Cheat Commercial

Communication Theory + Criticism

5/23/06

Narrative Analysis


“Cheat” Commercial

Seymour Chatman’s approach to narrative analysis divides it in two parts: story, or content; and discourse, or expression. While these are tied together, separating them helps understand the structure of the narrative. Story is not the same thing as plot. In the Guess “Cheat” commercial, the plot is simple, but parts of the story are left out. These are the parts told by subtext, by the “how” of the plot.

From the very first image in the commercial, we are given the impression of an upper class setting. While the rudimentary plot is being presented by the “girlfriend” character, she & the detective sit in a spotless looking futuristic house on a hill, with a view of the city in the background. It’s definitely the type of house that gives one the impression of wealth. We can even see a maid or nanny walking outside with a child, which we may not necessarily assume belongs to this couple until seeing the commercial more than once. These bits of story create expression or discourse about a perceived upper class.

In another scene, the detective describes the man he’s supposed to be testing for relationship fidelity. “He’s got it all – looks, money, likes blondes,” the narration says, and we see the image of another beautiful woman, the detective’s employee. She’s looking at the photos of this guy with apparent interest and calls him “Mr. All America.” This is the story – but the expression or discourse tells us that this upper class guy is living out the American dream, and that this dream consists of money, good looks, and blondes.

When the detective presents this employee of his to the audience, the woman who will attempt to seduce, he tells us she “was just trying to get through college” as we see her sitting in a diner, “and I’m going to make sure she does it”. The expression here is to say that: this is a working (lower or middle) class girl who’s going to make something of herself one day by going to college.

The story then continues to show how she can pay for it: by flaunting her sexuality. “I try not to think about it- I mean, it’s a scary situation,” this working-class girl says, as her boss pins a microphone to her bra. “But it’s a job and the money’s great,” she finishes, shaking her bosom in the mirror and looking satisfied. This expresses to us that for the working-class girl, flaunting sexuality is not shameful, and that she should derive her confidence from men’s attraction to her body.

When a little later the upper class “Mr. All America” man meets the working-class girl in a bar situation, and the two flirt in a booth. She asks him a series of questions as we watch either the two of them in the bar, or his girlfriend listening in. Asked if he’s married, he says “No,” pauses, and then says “The relationship just didn’t work out.” So now, the expression is that this upper class all American man can’t resist the lure of an attractive woman in a bar, even if he has a girlfriend back home.

As the commercial closes, the detective tells us “my girls look so good that people ask me: ‘is it fair?’ and I have to tell them no.” This is the conclusion of the commercial; it quickly flashes the Guess jeans logo. The expression of this detective’s speech at the end is more than what he says: the discourse is that it is perfectly alright and expected for this All American upper-class man to not be faithful. On a whole the commercial presents the “upper class” as a place where everyone is white, men have all the power and women are their to use to their ends (the upper-class girlfriend at home with the baby worried, and the working-girl being used for her sexuality by the detective as a part of his business.