ARGUMENTATION AND ADVOCACY
43 {Winter & Spring 2007): 144-151
SEEING THE VISUAL IN ARGUMENTATION:
A RHETORICAL ANALYSIS OF UNICEF
BELGIUM'S SMURF PUBLIC SERVICE
ANNOUNCEMENT
Katherine L. Hatfield, Ashley Hinck, and Marty J. Birkholt
This paper applies J. Anthony Blair's theorizing about visual argumentation to the 2005 United Nations
Children's Fund (UNICEF) Smurf public service announcement, which challenges our traditional understanding of argumentation as linguistically bound. This paper critically analyzes the PSA and offers several
implications for scholars of argumentation and rhetoric. The project urges further expansion of Blair's
perspective in hope that we can viove beyond acknowledging the existence of visual arguments to identifying their
utility and functions.
K e y words: visual argument, UNICEF, Smuifs, cartoons
I
I
In the fall of 2005, the United Nations Children's Fund, better known as UNICEF, took
a different approach to pleading for donations. They created a public service announcement
(PSA) illustrating the horrors of war by using . . . Smurfs. This PSA was used in an effort to
raise $150,000 to assist former child soldiers in Burundi, Congo, and Sudan ("FAQ," 2005;
Rennie, 2005).
Philippe Henon, press officer for Belgium UNICEF, explains that "traditional images of
suffering in Third World war zones had lost their power to move television viewers" (Rennie,
2005, ^ 3):
The public's resistance to the more traditional advertising campaigns can be explained by the fact that people
have gotten "used" to seeing traditional images of children in despair in (mostly) African countries. Those
images are broadcasted or published almost daily and people are no longer "surprised" by seeing them and
most certainly don't see them as a call for action. (P. Henon, personal communication.January 6, 20()f))
Essentially, viewers experience fatigue. After being exposed to the images so often, they
become disinterested and no longer engage actively with them. UNICEF chose to stray from
its typical modus operandi which captures childhood innocence by presenting real life images
of carefree children (Spongenberg, 2005). But UNICEF felt that a more aggressive approach
was necessary. In an attempt to shock viewers into action, it deployed our childhood cartoon
friends: the Smurfs.
The 30-second spot aired from the fall of 2005 until April 2006. Although the cartoon's
typical audience consists almost entirely of young children, Belgian television networks ran
the spot only after 9:00 p.m. so as to minimize viewership by younger audiences. International agencies like UNICEF seldom choose cartoon characters to convey their message.
Instead, they emphasize the realism of htiman suffering. This drastic departure invites us to
ask what UNICEF's Smurf PSA can teach us about reaching desensitized audiences.
Because this is a public service announcement, it is appropriate to draw our critical
perspective from concepts relevant to the study of visual argument. J. Anthony Blair's (1996)
Katherine L. Hatfield, Ashley Hinck, and Marty Birkholt, Department of Communication Studies, Creighton University. An
earlier version was presented at the annual meeting of the National Communication Association, .San Antonio, TX,
November, 'iOOti. The authors would like to thank Philippe Henon ol' UNICEF Belgium ("or htx assistance.
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed lo Katherine L. Hatfield, Department of Communication Studies, Creighton University, 2500 California Plaza, Omaha, Nebraska ()SI78. Email: katiehatfield®
creighton.edu
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perspective offers a focused lens with which to examine the Smurf PSA as a form of visual
argumentation. To understand better how the spot functions, we first will survey the
literature and outline Blair's theory of visual argument. Second, we will employ Blair's
perspective in order to investigate the UNICEF PSA as a visual argument. Finally, we will
offer several critical implications of this study.
VISUAL RHETORIC AND THE CASE FOR VISUAL ARGUMENTS
Rhetorical scholarship provides a space in which we are invited to investigate a n d grapple
with the communicative p h e n o m e n a that surround us. Ivie (1995) contends that rhetorical
scholarship has social relevance a n d produces knowledge about our lives. H e writes that
criticism
•».
reveals and evaluates the symbols that organize our lives within particular situations and that constitute the
civic substance motivating political action. It is a form of advocacy that is grounded in the language of a
particular rhetorical situation, its critique guided by the language of and about rhetorical theory, (p. 138)
Although Ivie is correct, we believe that scholars need to continue to explore the intersections of theory and rhetorical phenomena, especially those intersections that are visual in
nature.
In the latter half of the 1990s, scholars began a major effort to examine the role of the
visual in argumentation (Birdsell & Goarke, 1996; Blair, 1996; Cameron, 1996; Fleming,
1996; LaWare, 1998). LaWare (1998) suggests that this effort can be attributed to the "visual
orientation of contemporary society and the richness and complexity of visual images" (p.
140). Birdsell and Goarke (1996) argue that, because they are trained to focus on verbal
forms, "students of argumentation emerge without the tools needed for proficiency in
assessing visual modes of reasoning and persuasion" {p. 1). Foss (2004) notes: "Throughout
rhetoric's long tradition, discursive constructs and theories have enjoyed ideological hegemony, delimiting the territory of study to linguistic artifacts, suggesting that visual symbols
are insignificant or inferior, and largely ignoring the impacts of the visual in our world"
(p. 303). Visual symbols are pervasive, and our ignorance of them inhibits understanding of
much of the world around us.
Some may argue against including the visual in argumentation theory (Fleming, 1996),
generally based on two claims: (1) visual images are inherently ambiguous; and (2) arg^uments must be propositional (Blair, 1996, 2004; Foss, 2004). Blair (1996), however, suggests
that visual arguments fit nicely within traditional rhetorical paradigms and responds to both
of these claims.
First, Blair (1996) endorses O'Keefe's (1982) approach, in which an argument need not
actually be expressed in language but potentially couldhe expressed in language. Blair notes
that an argument must possess a claim and reason(s) for the claim, the claim and reasons
should be "linguistically explicable and overtly expressed," and there should be "an attempt
to communicate the claim and reason(s)" (p. 24). We agree that these characteristics
constitute an argument.
Second, O'Keefe (1982) asserts, and Blair (1996) agrees, that an argument must be
propositional. Arguments are propositional because they contain claims and reasons that can
be affirmed or rejected. Blair, however, adds that this can include visual arguments, which
he defines as "propositional arguments in which the propositions and their argumentative
function and roles are expressed visually" (p. 26). As an example, he suggests that the
146
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UNICEF SMURF PSA
WINTER & SPRING 2007
groundbreaking 1996 Benetton advertising campaign. The United Colors of Benetton, is identifiable as a purely visual argument about race. Although acknowledging that this campaign
easily might have increased sales of Benetton clothing, he argues that its primary purpose,
and the purpose of most visual arguments, was not necessarily to sell a product. Rather, most
visual arguments raise consciousness about an issue.
On the other hand, not every image presents an argument. Blair (1996) explains that
context is essential to understanding the propositional quality of arguments, including visual
ones. For example, in a proposition such as "George is no longer on the tennis team," the
argument is not obvious. Only when we know the circumstances, such as that he really
enjoyed being on the team, can we infer that George left, but not out of choice. Then we have
a proposition, in "George is no longer on the tennis team," and a conclusion, such as
"Something unusual has happened." Without context, we have only potential arguments.
Visual images either create or use context to contain or imply propositional content.
Television commercials present unique theoretical challenges (Blair, 1996). Although
some commercials may argue, most merely evoke "underlying and hidden identifications
and feelings" (p. 34), whether rational or not, to motivate an audience to buy a product (in
commercial advertisements) or change a behavior (in public service campaigns). Because
television commercials often contain music, they are more likely to conjure an emotional
response from viewers. In fact, Blair contends, the effectiveness of commercials stems
primarily from their manipulation of feelings and identifications, not from their argumentation. The difference between persuasive manipulation and argumentation is conscious
choice. Unconscious appeals to emotions do not present audiences with an opportunity to
choose on the basis of rational analysis. Instead, audience members reach for one product
over another without really understanding why. Blair (1996) explains that the "reasons" put
forth in such commercials do not withstand critical analysis.
Blair's perspective expands the grounds of investigation into the realm ofthe visual. Given
advancements in technology that have made our society a media driven culture, study of
visual arguments is especially timely and important. Having explained Blair's approach, we
now tum our attention to the UNICEF PSA.
TESTING BLAIR'S APPROACH: THE
UNICEF
SMURF
PSA
The UNICEF PSA is unlike a typical television commercial that attempts to sell a product
or service. Employing images, music, and a brief verbal statement, it evokes feelings through
audiences' recollection of a familiar childhood melody (the Smurf tune). Yet, it also articulates an argument visually. To demonstrate this, we will show that the argument can be
expressed linguistically and discuss the context that completes the argument and accounts for
its effect on viewing audiences.
The PSA begins with upbeat music, birds chirping, and sun shining. Those familiar
with the children's cartoon will recall the excessively happy mood of the village in which
Smurfs hold hands as they dance and sing together. Soon, this happy music is replaced
by the sounds of explosions. Airplanes drop bombs on the Smurfs' mushroom houses,
wreaking havoc and engulfing the Smurf paradise in chaos. As the bombing subsides,
viewers survey the damage. Many Smurfs are lying on the ground, dead. Baby Smurf
cries among the carnage. In the final scene, text (in French) appears: "Don't let war
destroy the children's world" (see Figure 1). The apparent claim is that children in
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Figure 1; Still frame of UNICEF Belgium's "The Smurfs." Used by permission of IMPS.
war-torn countries need help, which we can provide through UNICEF. The Smurf
animation provides the reasons for this claim.
These reasons are threefold, and can be expressed linguistically. First, war leaves children
without a support network. The PSA shows Baby Smurf alone, without family or friends.
Baby Smurfs mother, Smurfette, and others who could act as parental figures, have been
killed. Baby Smurf is left crying among the corpses and ravaged village. The second reason
is that war is real and undeserved. The chirping birds and sing-song music at the beginning
of the PSA establish the happy and peaceful atmosphere of the Smurf world. This helps to
demonstrate the innocence of those victimized by war. Finally, the devastation of war
demands a commensurate response. The Smurf village is destroyed; only helpless Baby
Smurf survives, needing total aid. In this way, the PSA's claim and reasons can be expressed
linguistically.
In addition, use of the Smurfs provides an immediately understandable context for the
PSA's argument. The PSA avoids ambiguity by fusing today's conflicts with a well-known
children's cartoon series. Belgians identify strongly with the Smurf cartoon:
The Snitirfs-image was selected because apparently "the Snmrf cartoon" is the image most Belgians in the
30-45 years age group link with an image of a happy childhood. If we wanted to symbolically show the
impact of war and violence on childhood, this seemed to be the best image to use. (P. Henon, personal
communication, January (>, 2006)
:
This purposeful choice created a very specific context for understanding the plight of
children during war. At the same time, the PSA occurs in the context of UNICEF's
longstanding, ongoing efforts to generate support for their children's programs. Because
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audiences understand UNICEF's purpose-raising fimds for child victims-the PSA is not
merely a potential argument but presents a definite claim and reasons.
| ,
Finally, the Smurf PSA does not rely on simplistic feelings to motivate its audience.
Although it does appeal to unconscious identifications, these are consistent with its conscious, rational appeals. This consistency is key to its success as a visual argument. The PSA
connects with audiences' memories of happy, innocent childhood. This is both an emotional
appeal and a conscious, rational idea. The audience first connects with the PSA subconsciously: Its images of gentle, peace-loving, and innocent Smurfs trigger pleasant memories
of childhood experiences watching cartoons. These images replicate those that once were
part of the audience's television viewing experience. This replication can evoke an emotional
response: When the PSA depicts the death of the Smurfs, viewers experience the death of
their childhood. In this way, they are shaken out of their complacencies to feel compassion
for the children.
Recall that the PSA's creators beheved that traditional appeals had lost their immediate
effect: Viewers had been desensitized to real images of war's devastation. The creators
sought to convey this devastation in a way that audiences both would comprehend and
respond to emotionally. The rational appeals are expressed in the emotional content of
innocent cartoon characters. Viewers reconstruct their ideals of childhood through the
Smurfs and transfer their concern for these imaginary cartoon characters to children, real
victims of conflict, now made real through visual portrayals of the Smurfs' suffering. The
consistency of emotional and rational appeals can be seen in the continued engagement of
those viewers who visit UNICEF's Belgian website and donate to the cause. We believe that
these viewers are not buying a product impulsively and unknowingly, but are fully engaging
an issue, thinking rationally about its merits as well.
IMPUCATIONS
'
Now that the Smurf PSA can be understood as an argument, we can consider four
implications. The first concerns the evocation of emotion in argument. Blair's perspective was moderately successful in distinguishing between advertisements that evoke and
advertisements that argue. He discusses the emotional impact of visual arguments in
terms of their ability to advance claims that can be determined to be either true or false.
However, this case study demonstrates the persuasive power of emotions generated by
visual arguments. The Smurf PSA exhibits the characteristics of an argument but also
evokes an emotional response. The power of its emotional appeal enables the message
to overcome audience exhaustion, persuading viewers to act. Previous messages failed to
elicit the desired response not because of a lack of truth-value but because audiences
needed an emotional push to act. The Smurf PSA overcomes compassion fatigue and
desensitization by distancing the audience from the emotional intensity of war and by
tying the message to a more personal emotional response.
The second implication concerns this visual argument's success in raising consciousness. The PSA was successful in three important ways. Traffic on the UNICEF website,
and specifically its link to the PSA, increased, suggesting that viewers at least were moved
to become more informed (Van Munching, 200.5). In addition, UNICEF Belgium raised
over 750,000 euros (P. Henon, personal communication, February 14, 2006). This Is a
significant amount: At the same point in 2006 when the Smurf campaign had raised half
ARGUMENTATION AND ADVOCACY
HATFIELD ET AL.
a million euros, UNICEF Belgium's fundraising effort for victims of Pakistan's recent
earthquake had netted but 65,000 euros (P. Henon, personal communication, January 6,
2006). Finally, this campaign succeeded in stimulating "talk": "People and media 'talked'
about it, people have logged into our website and school teachers talked about our
campaign in their classrooms. 80% of reactions we received from other parts ofthe world
were also positive and supporting" (P. Henon, personal communication, January 6,
2006). The association of publicity agencies in Belgium conferred its Merit Award for the
best campaign commercial on the PSA, and the campaign received high praise from
numerous other UNICEF organizations.
The third implication concerns aesthetic form. The Smurf PSA departs from UNICEF's
typical campaigns. UNICEF has spent years developing an aesthetic style that adamantly
eschews actual footage of war but depicts a spokesperson surrounded by orphans of war.
Thus, audiences generally see the real aftermath of war but are spared the trauma of war
itself. The Smurf PSA departs from this formula by depicting war itself, but also does so via
the added aesthetic distance afforded by animation. Fictional, lovable, and familiar cartoon
characters temper the shock and awe of war.
Aesthetically, the PSA engages desensitized publics by employing familiar images to
reposition an important social issue in a context that viewers easily and readily understand.
Those in charge of persuasive campaigns for a variety of social causes should take note. From
AIDS to addiction, hurricane relief to homelessness, the use of personally familiar images to
create a new context for understanding claims on compassion might be a useful strategy to
address the problem of desensitized publics.
Finally, and relatedly, the PSA's departure from UNICEF's traditional formula alters our
understanding of acceptable violence. Although UNICEF consistently has declined to show
footage of real war, it has determined that cartoon bombings are acceptable. Of course,
cartoon mayhem is a Saturday morning staple, but the Smurf PSA is not entirely makebelieve. This may raise some concern among those who study the impact of cartoon
violence. Even UNICEF's decision to air this PSA only in the evenings acknowledges this
concern. Moreover, children may be traumatized not simply by the violence per se but by
the death of favorite cartoon characters. This invites the question: Is the distinction between
real and animated violence tenable? In our opinion, the answer is "no." The power of the
visual should not be taken lightly. Visual images have the power to move an audience into
action; responsible rhetors must consider the unintended consequences of their argumentative choices.
FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS OF VISUAL ARGUMENTS
UNICEF Belgium's goal was to overcome compassion fatigue in order to increase
contributions to child relief efforts. Several characteristics of the Smurf PSA appear to have
contributed to this goal's attainment, enabling us to consider not simply whether visual images
can argue but how they can do so.
These characteristics, which may be universal in visual arguments, include medium,
realism, detail, abstraction, and ambiguity. Medium concerns the channel(s) through which
the message is transmitted, including sound, movement, color, and light. Visual arguments
often layer several media that contribute to the construction of a message. Realism concerns
the degree to which the image accurately reflects the object that it is intended to represent
in the argument. Realism concerns the image per se, not whether an audience perceives an
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UNICEF SMURF PSA
WINTER & SPRING 2007
image to be "real" or ''imaginary." Other characteristics, such as medium, detail, and
abstraction, may be used to increase or decrease an image's realism but are not intrinsically
linked to realism. Detail involves those minute elements that contribute to the visual
argument. It does not refer simply to the quantity of information in or realism of an image
but, rather, to details in the argument. The level of detail may vary within a visual argument.
Abstraction is the degree to which the image transcends any particular instance. Highly
abstract images may be generalized more easily to a wider range of contexts than less
abstract images. A highly detailed image with a low level of abstraction may not be clearly
connected with a particular person, time, or location. Finally, ambiguity is the degree to which
multiple meanings may attach to an image. The more senses in which an image can be
understood, the higher its level of ambiguity.
Each of these characteristics is present in the Smurf PSA. First, the PSA layers multiple
media in order to reach its audience. Its beginning employs sound to create the sense of a
happy life and childhood. Deployment of the cartoon's theme song immediately brings
images ofthe television program to mind for viewers. The PSA also varies lighting to build
its argument. Its beginning is brightly lit, reinforcing the happy mood, while, after the
bombing of the Smurf village, images tum dark. These media reinforce one another and the
PSA's argument: Sound connects the audience to childhood experiences while lighting
reinforces emotional responses to events depicted in the cartoon.
Second, varying levels of abstraction are evident. At first, animated characters represent
the human casualties of war, reducing the image's realism. However, this abstract depiction
of human suffering may be effective in reaching viewers who have become desensitized to
more realistic images of suffering. Also, the images of Smurfs are highly realistic in a different
sense, namely, as representations of familiar images from viewers' childhoods. The animation prompts a recollection that evokes an emotional response and makes the argument
personal.
The PSA also shifts levels of detail in order to emphasize particular aspects ofthe image.
At the beginning, images of animals and the forest are very detailed. These details of nature
contribute to the argument by elaborating an environment filled with furry happiness. Later,
less detailed images encourage viewers to contemplate war in general, not specific damages
or deaths.
The PSA manipulates abstraction not only in order to deflect the concrete horrors of war
but also to make its message relevant to any military conflict in which children are
victimized. The first helps to break through barriers like compassion fatigue while the second
increases the PSA's utility.
Finally, the PSA manipulates ambiguity. In the cartoon. Baby Smurf, the only child, is a
minor, little developed character; s/he does not talk and plays a small role. Thus, as a
character. Baby Smurf is ambiguous. But, because s/he is ambiguous, s/he also can represent
all children. In its final scene, s/he is shown crying amidst the destroyed Smurf village. Baby
SmurFs ambiguity as a character contributes to a visual argument whose claim is unambiguous.
I
CONCLUSION
I
i
This paper sought to investigate both the possibility and nature of visual argument through
examination of a particular case: UNICEF Belgium's Smurf public service announcement.
J. Anthony Blair's work enabled us to analyze this PSA's significance as a visual argument.
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Finally, we extended his work by offering several implications concerning the form and
functional elements of visual argtiments. It is our hope that this essay will prompt further
conversation about visual argumentation and the ethical challenges that arguers face when
crafting messages, both verbal and visual.
The Smurf PSA raises several avenues for future research. For example, because they
often are part of larger persuasive campaigns conducted over an extended period of time, it
often is difficult to isolate the effects of individual visual arguments. Additionally, the
methods by which visual arguments can be translated propositionally and context can be
specified require development.
We strongly encourage scholars to engage further in this area of inquiry. As we become
increasingly aware of the power of visual arguments, we must test our theoretical commitments. We must step outside of the comfort zone of our traditional modes of thinking to see
what we can leam from alternate sites of interest.
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