Roles of English in facial cosmetic advertisements in Thai Magazines

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Published: Dec 11, 2018
Keywords:
Advertisement Facial cosmetic Print advertisement

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Wannapa Trakulkasemsuk
King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi (KMUTT)
Tisa Tontiwatkul

Abstract

An advertisement is one of the communication tools that product owners commonly produce to persuade potential customers to buy their products. To do so, choice of language in advertisements can be crucial not only to convey messages to customers, but also to play some other roles. In this era of globalization, English is very influential worldwide and thus it is a prevalent language choice in advertisements. The inclusion of English in advertisements might not be necessary, in terms of transferring meaning in situations where the target audience do not truly use the language. However, it can be observed that in a non-English speaking country like Thailand, English regularly appears along with the local language, Thai, in print advertisements, even for Thai products. To understand more about the roles of English in print advertisement in Thailand, this study analyses the language used in 100 facial cosmetic advertisements available in Thai magazines. The findings reveal that English is not really used for presenting meaning, rather it functions as a tool for getting attention, enhancing a product’s image and value, and denoting modernization.

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How to Cite
Trakulkasemsuk, W., & Tontiwatkul, T. (2018). Roles of English in facial cosmetic advertisements in Thai Magazines. Journal of Studies in the English Language, 13(1), 24–43. Retrieved from https://so04.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/jsel/article/view/159271
Issue
Vol. 13 No. 1 (2018)
Section
Articles
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