In an advertising class I took years back, I remember learning about rhetoric, which good old Aristotle had defined as “the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion.”

In Layman’s terms, rhetoric is basically the art of persuasion. I can recall my professor teaching us about the three elements of persuasion, as defined by Aristotle: logos, ethos, and pathos.

Quick little lesson: Logos refers to logic, or facts that support your argument—you need that in order to persuade someone. Then there’s ethos, which refers persuasion through convincing listeners of one’s “moral character.” Lastly is pathos, which is emotional appeal of the audience you’re targeting.

Aristotle believed that in order to persuade someone of something, all of logos, ethos, and pathos needed to be involved in your argument or persuasive tactic.

While my professor would beam at me if he heard me babbling about the means of persuasion…let’s get to the point.

Nowadays, we still use these elements in modern media, especially advertising, to get people to buy things or even just relate. While not all have to have to have equal time in the argument, they’re all important.

There’s one holiday ad that just came out that overloads us heavily with pathos—emotional appeal—or tugging of the heart strings, if you will.

The ad markets the French telecom brand Bouygues and in just 90 seconds, will take you through a plethora of emotions.

It begins with a new dad playing a cassette tape and dancing for his baby son to “Come and Get Your Love” by Redbone. His moves are pretty ragged, but you can’t help but smile at his attempt to make his kid happy.

The next scene showcases his son when he’s a little older, maybe five or six, and when their song starts playing in a window display, his dad starts dancing just like he did when his son was a baby. The child still finds it humorous at this point, and even tries to mimic some of his moves.

When the song comes on in a car ride when the son is a teenager, his dad turns up the volume—and even though the teen isn’t dancing, you can tell he still thinks his dad is pretty funny.

When the son is in his (we’re guessing) twenties, and the song comes on at a café, he’s not too amused by his dad dancing around the table.

But when his son becomes a father himself, he video-calls his dad on a Bouygues phone that he left wrapped in a box under his dad’s Christmas tree. When his dad picks up, the son plays their song, dancing with his own baby. His dad’s reaction is enough to send us over the edge!

“This Christmas, offer much more than technology,” the tagline reads at the end.

The 2018 holiday ad is honestly one of the best ones we’ve seen so far this year. It perfectly showcases that there are just some things you don’t understand until you’re a parent yourself, and makes tears brim to a serious level.

To check out the heartwarming ad, check out the video below—and grab some tissues!

What do you think of this ad? Can you relate to it at all? What’s your favorite holiday ad of 2018 so far?