Back to basics

When I think of shrewd marketing, I certainly do not jump to Levi's. I think of companies like Apple, where they use the right tools and techniques to make the everyday Apple user feel high-tech, cool, and elitist (shhh).  But when I saw this Levi's ad, I mentally gave them a pat on the back.  I thought of the Arrow ad in the textbook (page 196) and the connection to authenticity, a "free-flowing signifier ... that is meant to indicate a style that is 'classic' or 'timeless.'"  We, as an aware culture, are so sick of the greed and luxury that our country is seeped in, and realize all the damage that is has done.  Looking at this Levi's ad evokes a sense of "authentic" patriotism that I can't really put a finger on.  They aren't shoving the American flag down our throat, but rather asking us to go back to our roots.  And while some people looking at this ad don't consider their roots to be American, they can identify with the need for simplicity.  The statement in the ad coupled with the girl running through the field gives us a small taste of whatever it is to be authentically American.  That "classic" and "timeless" sense of opportunity and hope is something that, especially as a cynical New Yorker, is hard to find in the psyche of many Americans.  Because this "authentic" idea isnt really authentic and original at all, it gives the viewers a sense of familiarity and a connection to our country that some of us might have not thought about for quite some time now.  Authenticity can sometime have negative connotations to it because it so hard to truly capture it, but Levi’s executes an un-authentic perspective on an authentic American ideal. Amid the mess that America is knee deep in, it's nice to take a second and feel good about being an American.  Even if it’s just for a second.