My Dad is a Liar: A Rhetoric Analysis

“My Dad is a Liar” is a tear jerking commercial of an Asian insurance company which illustrates truism of the uncertainty of life and the threat that poverty and economy is posing on one’s future - especially the children`s. It was shot in Thailand but several other versions were created in the other countries of Asia. It is an advertisement that promotes an educational insurance for children to finish higher education and in order to achieve their dreams in life. The ad is sponsored by MetLife.

The advertisement is about a father-daughter relationship which created a deeper and very emotional wallop than usual ads do. It was just a simple plot wherein the little girl writes a letter about his father, who has been a super hero for the little girl and had done everything just to provide the things needed by his daughter. The little girl noticed and praised the sacrifices of her father however; towards the end she wrote that her father is a liar (Bakutyte).

“How far would you go for your children?” this is the hidden message of the advertisement. It can be observed from the video that a person cannot alter his destiny however he can do something in order to create a better one. This is the message of the ads that illustrates the value of education for the children. Moreover, it is shown that the insurance company values the dream of the parents for their children especially in the provision of education and making a better life. The ad farther demonstrates understanding on how hard it is for the parents to provide the things needed by their children and on how they can make both ends meet in order to give their children the assurance of attaining higher education.

Wanting the best for the children is indeed the primary goal of every parent- best shelter, the best upbringing, education and life (Duczeminski). Great parents indeed want their offspring to have the optimum quality of life hence they are doing their best and making sacrifices just to provide the needs of their children. Strusiewicz further emphasized that being a good parent means instilling the good and desirable values to the children in order to make them grow healthy, conscientious and triumphant individuals.

Indeed, it is true that parents are willing to do all the sacrifices for their children and they sometimes masked their struggles for them. Just like in the advertisement, the father concealed all his sacrifices and difficulties from his daughter. In front of his daughter he never accepted that he was hungry so that he could give the food to the daughter, he never acknowledged the fact that he was tired and still kept on going his tiring job just to earn money for his daughter’s future. He even lied about having money wherein fact they had nothing; about having a job however he had been applying from one office to another and was not lucky enough to be accepted. 

In the advertisement, the little girl wrote an essay to her father acknowledging and praising him and describing him as her super hero, the sweetest daddy in the whole world, being the most intelligent, the cleverest and the kindest (Bakutyte). Nevertheless, the child wrote that her father has been lying to her. The child recognizes that her father had been lying about his job, about being not tired, not hungry and about having the money they needed (Nudd). The child distinguished that all the lies that her father has done were definitely for her.  This showed that despite the efforts of the father in pretending in front of his daughter, her inquisitive mind noticed everything and just realized that her father is lying to her so that she will have a better life.

The advertisement showed the sacrifices and the challenges of being a parent. It further showed that parenting is indeed a complex process which involves the physical, emotional, social, financial and intellectual aspects. These factors are indeed necessary in making child-rearing effective and successful. Indeed it is not easy to be a parent. It is a lifetime and endless duty because as parents you have to consider not only what is needed by the child while they are young but that also includes making sure that these young individuals will have a better life in the future and that they will develop into a better persons. Just like in the ads, it can be noted that becoming parents is indeed affected by various factors such as the social class, economy, culture and civilizations. These factors played significant roles in rearing a child and constantly, this role is challenged by the economic factor and by conditions of the society. 

Works Cited

Bakutyte, Justina. Little Girl Pens A Heartbreaking Letter to her Dad telling Him He’s a Liar. February 2015.

Duczeminski, Matt. 10 Things Parents Can Do To Make Their Kids Highly Successful. May 2011.

Nudd, Tim. Ad of the Day: Met Life’s Doing Dad is also Liar in This Ad with Heartbreaking Twist. February 2015.

Strusiewicz, Cezary Jan. “7 Things ‘Good Parents’ Do (That Screw Up Kids For Life). November 2009.