Silence of Love: Thai Life Insurance

Sigmund Freud's Uncanny and Jack Solomon's Masters of Desire: The Culture of American Advertising is similar in a sense that they both involve either the unconscious or subconscious feelings of fear and desire. The only difference is that Sigmund Freud goes deep into the uncomfortably familiar (such as Déjà vu) while on the other hand Jack Solomon criticizes what is there. In other words, Sigmund Freud talks about things that cannot be explained or proven while Jack Solomon critiques on how and why things happen. Solomon criticizes advertisements and why the creators of them would use that sort of method to gain favor of its audiences.

One advertisement that interests me deeply is Silence of Love: Thai Life Insurance Commercial that has gone viral and created an internet sensation. 

I can see why this life insurance commercial got so popular all over the world. Wait, I shouldn't have told you that it was a commercial because now you won't feel as emotional. My story tells it all. The first time I saw this commercial, I thought it was the trailer of a very sad movie. It was one of the first time I ever cried over a film or better yet, a commercial, and a life insurance commercial at that. However, I took back what I felt at the end when three words showed up, "Thai Life Insurance." This made me feel like I made a fool out of myself. I got all emotional and then..."Thai Life Insurance?!" I can't believe I cried so hard over a commercial.

This advertisement depicts the story of a mute father and his love for his daughter and even though he couldn't do what the other father's could do (such as talk) he still had unconditional love for her like normal fathers had for their kids. The quote that got me hard was at the end that "There is no best dad in the world, only the one that loves you more than anything." The reason why this commercial was so depressing for me was that I can relate to it and others as well. We all have the one and only father in the world and although he is not perfect, he still loves us no matter who or what we are like no other. This commercial is telling us to get their insurance by enforcing the "we never know what we have until it's gone" spectrum. I was not referring to the girl that does not know how great of a father she had and lost but I meant by the girl's father. According to this commercial, the father does not know that he'd suddenly die and leave his daughter so in order to look after her, he should buy an insurance so that his daughter would have an easier life by herself. To buy an insurance is to die with a compensation that would benefit his daughter. It's another way of looking after your loved ones even after death. 

According to Solomon, the American Dream is based on the society of class. Advertisements are usually based on the class difference. This commercial is portraying a very poor family both in physical and emotional situations. They don't live in a big house, their clothes don't look any more expensive, and they obviously aren't happy people. This family of two is on the lower end of the class and I think this is because this insurance company wants to let people know that their insurance is affordable. If they can afford life insurance, most people would be able to. In other words, you should buy the insurance to fit in with the whole society because everybody can get it. The commercial also aims these kinds of situations at everybody. Everyone has a beloved one that they want to protect and this commercial is solely based on that fact. It's like asking you (the consumer) how much you really love them cause if you love them enough, you would buy this life insurance to protect them.

(Image from http://www.kaplansky.com/insurance-quotes/life-insurance) 

(Image from http://www.cumberlandinsurance.com/w2/?page_id=143)

Insurance companies use images and commercials such as these to leave a mark on our subconscious minds that insurance can keep a family happy and relaxed together with nothing to worry about. We can have fun with our family without having to think about what lies in the future for us. Even when we can no longer look after them (such as the case of the mute father and his daughter) insurance can give us confidence that our loved ones are protected with the most valuable thing in the world.

It is also very significant that Life Insurance advertisements both produces the fears and desires in our minds. We all fear that our loved ones would have nothing if we are gone or in other words we fear that we have no life insurance. We also want that life insurance because we have fear for not having one. Fear can lead to desire and what we desire is to isolate the cause of that fear.