Language, Advertising, and Rhetorical Situation: A Study of Bilingual Advertisements in Iranian In-Flight Magazine

Abstract

This study investigates the rhetorical functions of language choice in bilingual advertising in Iranian in-flight magazines, focusing on how the use of Persian, English, bilingualism, and differences between linguistic versions contribute to the construction of audiences, products, and consumer identities. The present study adopts a qualitative and descriptive-interpretive approach to analyze five advertisements purposively selected from the bilingual in-flight magazines of Iran Air (Homa) and Qeshm Air. The advertisements were examined in terms of language choice, translation status, product and brand characteristics, presumed audience, and contextual conditions, and were interpreted based on Bitzer’s (1968) Rhetorical Situation Theory, with emphasis on exigence, audience, and constraints. The findings show that language choice is closely related to product characteristics, brand positioning, presumed audience, and communicative purpose. The exclusive use of English in advertisements for luxury products may contribute to the construction of concepts such as prestige, distinction, and cosmopolitan consumer identities, whereas Persian-only advertising is more closely associated with mass-market and domestic products. However, bilingual advertising may serve both accessibility and rhetorical differentiation. Overall, this study demonstrates that language choice in advertisements in bilingual in-flight magazines constitutes a rhetorical resource through which advertisers not only communicate with audiences but also construct particular audiences, products, and consumer identities.

Keywords

• Bilingual advertising
• Consumer identity
• In-flight magazines
• Language choice
• Rhetorical situation

Thanks

بله، متن خوب و کاملاً مناسب است. فقط برای طبیعی‌تر و حرفه‌ای‌تر شدن، پیشنهاد می‌کنم این نسخه را بفرستی: **Dear Editor,** I am pleased to submit my manuscript for consideration for publication in your journal. I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to contribute to your journal and look forward to your consideration of my manuscript. Kind regards, Pariya Azad

Dil, Reklamcılık ve Retorik Durum: İran’daki Uçak İçi Dergilerde Yer Alan İki Dilli Reklamlar Üzerine Bir İnceleme

Abstract

Bu çalışma, İran’daki uçak içi dergilerde yer alan iki dilli reklamlarda dil seçiminin retorik işlevlerini incelemekte ve Farsça, İngilizce, iki dillilik ve dilsel versiyonlar arasındaki farklılıkların hedef kitlelerin, ürünlerin ve tüketici kimliklerinin inşasına nasıl katkıda bulunduğuna odaklanmaktadır. Araştırmada, İran Air (Homa) ve Qeshm Air’e ait iki dilli uçak içi dergilerinden amaçlı örnekleme yoluyla seçilen beş reklam, nitel ve betimleyici-yorumsamacı bir yaklaşımla incelenmiştir. Reklamlar; dil seçimi, çeviri durumu, ürün ve marka özellikleri, varsayılan hedef kitle ve bağlamsal koşullar açısından analiz edilmiş ve Bitzer’in (1968) Retorik Durum Kuramı çerçevesinde, özellikle retorik gereklilik (exigence), hedef kitle (audience) ve kısıtlamalar (constraints) boyutlarına odaklanılarak yorumlanmıştır. Bulgular, dil seçiminin ürün özellikleri, marka konumlandırması, varsayılan hedef kitle ve iletişim amacıyla yakından ilişkili olduğunu göstermektedir. Lüks ürünlere yönelik reklamlarda İngilizcenin tek başına kullanılması, prestij, seçkinlik ve kozmopolit tüketici kimlikleri gibi kavramların inşasına katkıda bulunabilirken, yalnızca Farsça kullanılan reklamlar daha çok kitlesel pazara ve yerel ürünlere yönelik bir konumlandırmayla ilişkilendirilmektedir. Bununla birlikte, iki dilli reklamcılık hem erişilebilirlik sağlama hem de retorik farklılaşma işlevi görebilmektedir. Genel olarak bu çalışma, iki dilli uçak içi dergilerde reklamlarda dil seçiminin yalnızca hedef kitlelerle iletişim kurmaya hizmet eden bir araç olmadığını, aynı zamanda belirli hedef kitlelerin, ürünlerin ve tüketici kimliklerinin inşa edildiği retorik bir kaynak niteliği taşıdığını ortaya koymaktadır.

Keywords

• İki dilli reklamcılık
• Dil seçimi
• Tüketici kimliği
• Retorik durum
• Uçak içi dergiler

References

1. Alcantara-Pilar, J. M., Sánchez-Duarte, I. M., Rodríguez-López, M. E., & Abdel-Lah, S. A. (2023). The linguistic fetish in multilingual advertising: an audio message translated into seven foreign languages. Journal of Marketing Communications, 31, 749 - 763. https://doi.org/10.1080/13527266.2023.2283047
2. Alcántara-Pilar, J., Sánchez-Duarte, I. M., Bermúdez-Martínez, M., & Rodríguez-López, M. E. (2024). Linguistics and marketing: The effect of foreign languages in advertising messages. Tourism & Management Studies, 20(1), 79-89. https://doi.org/10.18089/tms.20240106
3. Alkhirbash, A. (2010). Persuasive language in selected speeches of Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohammad. Universiti Putra Malaysia.
4. Alkhirbash, A., Paramasivam, S., & Ahmad, A. M. Z. (2014). Aspects of persuasive language in selected speeches of Mahathir Mohamad. Journal of Language and Communication, 1(1), 41–57.
5. Bitzer, L. F. (1968). The rhetorical situation. Philosophy & Rhetoric, 1(1), 1–14.
6. Dąbrowska, M. (2022). Crossing language boundaries. The use of English in advertisements in Polish lifestyle magazines. Linguistics Beyond and Within (LingBaW), 8, 37–54. https://doi.org/10.31743/lingbaw.14956
7. Dover, N. (2021). A critical discourse analysis of a vintage american airlines advertisement. Language Literacy: Journal of Linguistics, Literature, and Language Teaching, 5(1), 48-56. https://doi.org/10.30743/ll.v5i1.3235
8. Fathma, D., & Ningsih, H. K. (2022). Attitudinal meanings in bilingual travel articles: A case study. Linguistik Indonesia, 40(2), 165-178. https://doi.org/10.26499/li.v40i2.315

9. Guo, X. (2023). Translation under the guidance of translation variation technique: the case of written advertising. The Translator, 29, 378 - 391. https://doi.org/10.1080/13556509.2023.2188698
10. Hornikx, J., Van Meurs, F., & Tenzer, H. (2023). Foreign languages in advertising: Theoretical implications for language-related IB research. Journal of International Business Studies, 55, 270 - 279. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-023-00639-6
11. Hutabarat, N. M. (2026). Advertising media: A code analysis of food and beverage advertisement compilations on YouTube. Journal of English Language and Education, 11(1), 530-538. https://doi.org/10.31004/jele.v11i1.2035
12. Kelley, S. (2008). The Rhetoric of Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address. Best Essays in Rhetorical Theory University of Massachusetts.
13. Khedri, M., Hasan, E., & Kritsis, K. (2022). Rhetorical structure and persuasive features of advertising: An intercultural analysis of English and Arabic online advertisements. Russian Journal of Linguistics, 26(3), 596-624. https://doi.org/10.22363/2687-0088-24591
14. Ločmele, G. (2025). The impact of technology on advertising language: A case study of translation into Latvian. Vertimo Studijos, 18, 79-103. https://doi.org/10.15388/vertstud.2025.18.5
15. Rania, L. W. (2008). The English language, South Africa and Nelson Mandela: A case for rhetorical urgency and a strategy for rhetorical success. University Of Florida.
16. Sherick, B. (2015). The ethos of Mark Driscoll: Rhetorical analysis of a sermon in the context of a preacher’s public reputation. University of Calgary, Alberta.