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Jon Corn
Professor Malvin
English 115 TTH
10 December 2016
Drowning In The Water
The world is melting away and the human population is in the middle of the global
warming crisis of the century that could leave us with nothing. 2015 was the hottest year on
record for the earth. The average temperature for the United States was 54.4 degrees Fahrenheit,
2.4 degrees above the 20th century average and the average global temperature increased by .29
of a degree (Netburn). This is catastrophic. When the temperature increased by a quarter degree
in 2015, the atmosphere was [now able to] hold 1% more moisture in 2015 than in 2014 which
led to more flooding and sea levels rising (Netburn). The warmer ocean waters cause the ice caps
to melt, which make the sea level rise. The rising levels are slowly but surely wiping out cities
and global landmarks all around the world. It is also destroying oceanic ecosystems and their
species by leaving them with no food or home. Humans have caused all these problems by
continuing deforestation and burning fossil fuels and gasoline frequently.
Time, an art advertisement, by Pepey showcases this major issue of global warming. The
ad is in an hourglass shape. The top half is covered by ice caps that are melting away as the water
from it is building up. The bottom half is surrounded by a busy metropolitan city that is slowly
sinking as the water level rises due to ignorant global warming inducing habits of people. The
bottom city life is burning fossil fuels and gas at a nearby plant with the smoke going straight up.
The city is also chopping trees down, worsening the situation. The animals above them in the top
half have a sad expression as their homes are being ruined. These images show the importance of

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acting soon before it is too late because the earth might no longer be a home to all the species if
nothing is done. This ad correctly conveys the urgency of acting upon global warming by
appealing to logic through the use of the hourglass frame and touching the audience with pathos
through the use of color and animals.
The use of an hourglass shape is logical and ethical which conveys the urgency of global
warming. The hourglass shape is the main shape highlighted in this ad. It is used to portray time
and the increased need to act because time is running out. The water drips down the hourglass
and starts rising higher and higher almost reaching the city life. In Hugh Ranks
Intensify/Downplay, association is used to intensify the picture and is linked to a basic need
(610). The hourglass shape has been linked to time telling since the Middle Ages. It is a logical
and ethical decision to use an hourglass to portray the message, because it is more believable and
trustworthy with a symbol logically connected to time for centuries.
The words and water level in this picture connect with the hourglass shape to strengthen
the message that action needs to be taken against global warming urgently. The words are in a
very small white font on top and gray front on bottom. The words up top say, we are running
out of time while the words at the bottom, say act now before it is too late. It is in a very
small font to not be the center of the image. The words help the message, but do not overpower
the advertisement at all. It ties everything together and contributes to ethos because an image is
more trustworthy with the words to back it up. If the picture of the hourglass is telling someone
to act now, then that person should be more convinced to act right away. The increasing water
level shows the urgency of global warming. It makes logical sense for the city to now be filled
with water due to the hourglass shape. Sea levels are rising at an astounding rate, to where over
the past 20 years [this rate has rose to] 0.13 inches a year, roughly twice the average speed of the

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preceding 80 years (National Geographic). The height of the water levels is an accurate
depiction because it is actually that high in real life. They have never been at a higher level than
now and it emphasizes the urgency to act right away.
This picture is filled with bright vivid colors that connect to ones emotions. When
someone thinks of the earth, they think of bright colors surrounding nature everywhere. It can
make them feel like they are in the action and can picture everything happening right in front of
them. That was seen when I interviewed a twenty-year old female college student about this ad.
She felt connected to the ad because the bright blue water in the picture reminded her of water
she has seen before. It reminded her of when she was traveling the world and saw so many
beautiful things, that she said she would hate to see washed away from global warming. The
use of these colors made her feel surreal and connected to the picture. She was sad that this
could actually happen to the earth and felt more motivated to act now. The bright blue water
contrasted with the white ice caps and neutral background, which made it stand out. In Molly
Bangs Picture This: How Picture Works, she emphasized how we notice contrast [and] contrast
enables us to see which is why this advertisement is so powerful on the eyes (29). The contrast
emphasized the water and made it stand out. This highlight of the increasing water under the
melting ice cap is the true issue of global warming. There is more water, which is ruining and
sinking our cities and ecosystems. It creates a scared emotion for the people living on earth. It
makes it surreal because if nothing is done then our earth will suffer the consequences.
The contrast between light and dark also brings out emotions. The top of the hourglass is
filled with a dark sky. It brings out an ominous mood. It foreshadows that something bad is going
to happen because there is an association with darkness and negativity. Our vision at night is a
reason to why people feel scared or unsafe in darkness (Bang 24). The dark sky is like the dark

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future of the world if nothing is done to stop global warming. The neutral gray background also
contributes to this questionable mood. It highlights the bright colors of nature in this ad even
more. The contrast makes a person feel helpless. The water melting is the first thing that pops out
to the eye, emphasizing the urgency to act upon global warming to stop the water from building
up.
The animals in the advertisement appeal to ones emotions convincing the message to act
urgently about global warming. Many humans naturally feel empathetic to any animal like it is
their own. They feel like they can understand their affection and need for love. The animals in
this ad that stand out are the polar bear and penguin. Both are specific animals to the arctic
ecosystem and are losing their homes due to global warming. Their homes are melting away as
the temperatures get higher and sea levels increase. This is making the loss of polar bear habitats
around the world to diminish. It is becoming more likely that the planets 26,000 polar bears
will suffer a 30% decline in population by 2050 (Neslen). The polar bear in the picture is
depicted in a state of hopelessness as its head tilts down looking at the all the water surrounding
it, because it knows that its home is melting away. There is no where left for the polar bear to go
so people feel empathetic and want to help the polar bear by acting upon global warming, which
correctly conveys this ads message. The same could be said relating to the penguin habitat in
Antarctica because 60% of the current Adlie penguin habitat [there] could be unfit to host
colonies by the end of the century (Sidder). People feel connected to animals and in times of
struggle want to help them survive. They would much rather help an animal than a human so
putting struggling animals in this ad helps convince them to act urgently upon global warming.
There are emotional and ethical ties connected with this advertisement and logical statics
to back those ties to show how the ad correctly conveys the urgency of acting upon global

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warming. The use of color and animals appeals to the audiences emotions. They make them feel
a certain way. which provokes them to act urgently. The use of the hourglass frame appeals to the
audiences sense of logic because the connection of time and hourglass has been around for
centuries. They believe in the sense of urgency because of this lifetime connection to the
hourglass shape. It is also logical to use a symbol connect to time throughout history to paint a
picture about time. Time is the most important aspect of this advertisement hence why it is
named that. The ice caps on earth are melting at a pace faster than anyone could have imagined
years ago. Society will be covered in all this melting water, ruining and possibly ending life for
humans and animals. All these techniques are used to persuade the people living on earth to
become motivated to act upon global warming. The problem is getting worse and worse with
every minute gone by. The time to act is now before there is no earth left.

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Works Cited
Bang, Molly. Picture This: How Pictures Work. SeaStar Books. 2000.
Corn, Sarah. Personal Interview. 9 October 2016.
Neslen, Arthur. Climate Change Is 'Single Biggest Threat' to Polar Bear Survival. The
Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 18 Nov. 2015,
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/nov/19/climate-change-is-singlebiggest-threat-to-polar-bear-survival.
Netburn, Deborah. 2015 Was the Hottest Year on Record, and the Forecast for 2016 Is Warmer
Yet. Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 20 Jan. 2016,
http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-2015-hottest-year-20160119story.html.
Pepey. Time. pepey.deviantart.com/art/Time-494443868. 2009
Rank, Hugh. Intensify/Downplay. Models for Writers: Short Essays for Composition, Edited
by Alfred F. Rosa and Paul A. Eschholz, 11th edition., Bedford/St. Martins, 2012, PP.
609-611.
Sidder, Aaron. Antarctica Could Lose Most of Its Penguins to Climate Change. National
Geographic, National Geographic Society, 29 June 2016,
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/06/adelie-penguins-antarctica-climate-changepopulation-decline-refugia/.
National Geographic. Sea Level Rise -- National Geographic. National Geographic,
http://ocean.nationalgeographic.com/ocean/critical-issues-sea-level-rise/.