Twix Ad- "Try Both, Pick a Side"

This ad campaign by Twix is used mostly as a humorous take on the most unique part about Twix bars, which is that there are two in each pack. The company has constructed a fictional feud between the two factories that separately manufacture the two bars. The backstory to the split is explained in a previous ad in the campaign, in which two men argue and build their respective factories next to each other. The commercial shows the left Twix factory at work. The imaginative machinery and river of caramel (like the very famous river of chocolate) a tour that is reminiscent of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Even though there is little dialogue in the commercial, there are obvious rhetorical devices in effect. The strategies used in the commercial convince viewers that the Twix bar is delicious and high quality, regardless of which side may be better.

                The commercial was aired frequently on Comedy Central, which makes sense, because this commercial is obviously geared more toward a young, easily amused audience. Children also fit the target audience for a commercial like this, because of the funny plot and simple jokes. Kids, much like adults who are up too late, are very susceptible to mental cues to buy sweets and junk food. The Twix company is hoping to entertain the audience with the plot; as if it were a small sitcom during the commercial break. The central, albeit fictitious, argument of the commercial isn’t to get the audience to by the Twix bars at all, but to get the audience interested in the continuing storyline, and interested in the pseudo argument.

                The Toulmin Model for this commercial’s argument is intentionally nonsensical. The central claim is that the left Twix bar is better than the right Twix bar, which the audience knows is a straw man argument anyway, because no one (outside of the Twix Company in another ad) would argue that one bar is inherently better than the other. The commercial itself is meant to serve as evidence, when the guide feverishly defends the integrity of the ingredients of the left Twix bar, and again assert that the right Twix bar is inferior. The warrant, therefore, would be that candy bars that are made with more patience and better ingredients are superior. However, the only backing for this is that left Twix bars are made this way, and the conclusion should then be drawn that left Twix bars are better. This is circular logic, because the reasons given to prove that the left Twix bar is better, already assume that the left Twix bar is better.

                Overall, because it is an advertisement, the overarching goal is to convince you to buy Twix candy bars. The real Toulmin model’s claim would be something along the lines of “You should buy a Twix bar”, and is missing a qualifier and rebuttal like most commercials. Just having you look at the flowing caramel and cascading chocolate for a full 30 seconds can convince your body that it needs the candy all on its own. The allusion to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is really just as effective for promoting an emotional response to the Twix bars. Millions of people watch the movie as kids, and remember it fondly when they grow up; it’s a classic. So, this is another link between the two target audiences of the commercial: children and young adults.

                The effect of the commercial is successful, despite the circular logic and entirely false premise for the argument and setting. After watching the commercial repeatedly, it’s almost impossible to not be hungry for a Twix bar.