| Description |
Many American advertising cards in the nineteenth century displayed a variety of visual and rhetorical themes to foster the attention of potential consumers. The appealing elements these cards displayed convinced the public that these easily disposable ephemera pieces were worthy of preservation. In this card for Clark's Spool Cotton, three advertising tropes which can be observed are scenes that inspire young American women, eye-catching design features, and the inclusion of animals.
Advertising cards that featured children and young adults engaging in consumer lifestyles were appealing to young audiences. For young American girls, a demographic that often lived in constraining social environments, these cards were particularly endearing and relatable, especially when they featured girls of the same age group. The girls on the card participating in happy and even adventurous consumer activities were symbolic of what opportunities were available for young women in a new American industrialized era. This card features a girl and an owl discussing how Clark’s cotton makes clothing look better and the wearer more intelligent. This insinuates that a girl’s clothing and quality of life will improve if she purchases and uses the advertised item.
Printed trade cards which featured appealing designs and imagery were more likely to be recognized by the American public and, therefore, generate brand recognition for the producing company. Scenes with exotic, eye catching, and even fantastical qualities were often implemented into these cards. This portrayal was meant to suggest that the advertised product, as opposed to similar items from other brands, was of high quality and perhaps even supernatural in its effectiveness. In this card, an owl is speaking to a girl on the benefits of the spool of thread she is sitting on. This peculiar scene of an owl, often considered a symbol of wisdom, providing advice on the benefits of using a consumer product implies that the items advertised at Clark’s are particularly high-quality and the natural first choice for any textile-related project.
American advertisers often included animals in their trade cards to charm and increase consumer patronage. Producers were particularly incentivized to make their advertisements visually appealing to children since younger audiences tended to collect and disseminate trade cards to their parents. This card demonstrates this trend by showing a perched talking owl, a wholesome and curious image which helps to facilitate favorable attention from consumers.
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