Keiko Tanaka offers an analysis of the linguistic devices that are used in advertisements, looking at the strategems which advertisers employ to gain and retain the attention of their audience. Using relevance theory as a framework, she sets out its key aspects and applies them to the language of written advertising in Britain and Japan. Particular emphasis is placed on `covert communication', puns and metaphors, and the book contains a unique chapter on images of women in Japanese advertising. It is fully illustrated throughout with recent contrasting advertisements drawn from the two countries.
The book provides a compelling analysis of the language of advertising, and an exploration of Relevance Theory that will be of interest to scholars in many fields.