Car Emblems- What you don't always see..

When you see an attractive car or maybe even just a spoiled one, the first thing we tend to look at besides the body and paint job of the car, is its model. In order to find out the make or model of the car we must look at the emblem which identifies it. I have always wondered what the significance behind some of the car emblems I have seen, might be. Whether it comes in the form of a circle with two connected W's for a Volkswagen, or an upside down “Y” in a circle for a Mercedes, these emblems not only contribute in identifying the car and representing the car, but they also contribute to the implicit message behind the car. We don’t often think about what the emblem of a car might represent or symbolize just by glancing at it but perhaps we can speculate that such car symbols can carry a deeper rhetorical meaning if we are to examine them more closely. For example, the symbol of jaguar is of course a jaguar, yet the symbolism behind this simile of comparing to their car to a jaguar is probably to show that it is as fast or as powerful as a jaguar. Even deeper then this meaning with knowledge of this car, we could also infer that the symbol of a jaguar could represent the fact car is in fact special and of high value since it as rare as the jaguar species. The maker of the car might be trying to send the message that it is not a common car and that it is a car which sets its self apart from others.
What about the common circular or oval emblems which we see from cars which range from range from Mercedes to the Toyota’s or those of a Nissan, Volvo or Lexus. The oval and circular emblems might not serve the purpose of just circling the shapes in the emblem; it might also be a symbol of something else deeper. We can conclude that perhaps with the circular or oval designs, that these shapes imply that the car might be is unstoppable as it keeps on going like a circle or oval. More specifically for example, a car such as a Lexus which contains a 45 degree angle sign encompassed in a circle could also convey the statement that the car is made with accuracy and precision, the car must be perfect. Never looked at it that way huh? My point is that a deeper rhetorical message lie behind the emblem found on cars. We don’t ordinarily try to make interpretations of these symbols, yet is we take the time to look a lot closer we just might find out a little more about the car than it’s make.

-AveMaria Okolo