Thursday, January 26, 2012
AOW #20: Picture
http://piccsy.com/2012/01/cc/
Summary: This picture is of the sunken cruise ship in Italy, in which 12 people died. Our generation expects not to worry about commercial ships sinking, planes crashing, or other types of transportation failing, so when these kinds of things happen it catches the attention of the entire world. Many have blamed the captain of the ship for sailing to closely to an Italian island, and he is now being charged with manslaughter. When events like these happen nowadays someone is always to blame because people know that technology is so reliable that events like sinking ships are extremely rare.
Source: I found this picture of Piccsy, which is not the most reliable website considering that anyone on the internet can post a picture on the website, so this could just be photoshopped. I still think it is interesting though, and I'm sure it is connected to the ship in Italy.
Context: This picture displays the ship on its side, but with the angle of the camera it looks as though the ship is upright and half of the picture is water. Obviously the exigence is that this ship sank. Not only is it rare that ships sink, but it is also very uncommon that we see a ship half-surfaced on its side. If one looked at the uncovered part of the photo, you would see a regular Carnival cruise ship where people most likely vacationed.
Purpose: I believe that whoever took this picture intended to make it unlike any other picture if the event. The news and internet have displayed hundreds of pictures of this same ship on its side, but none were at this angle and were so different as this one. It stood out to me, and I'm sure that the photographer wanted others to look at this picture and see that wreck with a different perspective, one much more unique than the news portrays. The photographer accomplished this purpose.
Rhetorical Devices: I would consider this picture ironic, because the picture looks like a normal cruise ship until you realize the reality of the event. It also alludes to the fact that most people look at these cruise ships as perfectly safe on the water. This event was a tragedy and very rare for our generation to see. I chose this picture because it was so different from other pictures that are shown on the news. It is a very unique perspective of ship and personally made me think about the event in a different way.
Friday, January 20, 2012
AOW #19: Cartoon
http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/3ynBGp/www.portfolio.com/images/site/editorial/illustrations/2008/02/cartoon-fish-large.jpg/
Summary: This cartoon is a metaphor for current internet search engines. The largest fish obviously represents google, a search engine that dominates the internet. It is eating less popular search engines, in order to represent a pond's food chain.
Author/Source: I found this cartoon on Stumbleupon, and you cannot easily see the artist's name on the cartoon. Because of this it is possible that the cartoon is not from a reliable source, and the ideas it portrays are wrong. However, it does look like a cartoon that would be shown in newspapers and magazines.
Context: This cartoon is clearly depicting the overwhelming power of google over other search engines. People in society today would most likely say that they use Google over other websites and google has definitely become the largest. The artist plays off of that in that the largest fish (Google) overwhelms all the other wesites' fishes.
Purpose: The author must have wanted to make fun of google's power compared to other websites. In a way it is making fun of the other smaller websites because they have been eating by Google, and have no chance at ever being as large or powerful as Google is. The author accomplishes this purpose.
Rhetorical Elements: This cartoon alludes to the idea of fish and the food chain, which represent the websites. In this way it also appeals to communal memory, because someone who did not know about the food chain would not understand the humor in this cartoon. One also has to know what Google, Microsoft, AOL, and Yahoo are.
Summary: This cartoon is a metaphor for current internet search engines. The largest fish obviously represents google, a search engine that dominates the internet. It is eating less popular search engines, in order to represent a pond's food chain.
Author/Source: I found this cartoon on Stumbleupon, and you cannot easily see the artist's name on the cartoon. Because of this it is possible that the cartoon is not from a reliable source, and the ideas it portrays are wrong. However, it does look like a cartoon that would be shown in newspapers and magazines.
Context: This cartoon is clearly depicting the overwhelming power of google over other search engines. People in society today would most likely say that they use Google over other websites and google has definitely become the largest. The artist plays off of that in that the largest fish (Google) overwhelms all the other wesites' fishes.
Purpose: The author must have wanted to make fun of google's power compared to other websites. In a way it is making fun of the other smaller websites because they have been eating by Google, and have no chance at ever being as large or powerful as Google is. The author accomplishes this purpose.
Rhetorical Elements: This cartoon alludes to the idea of fish and the food chain, which represent the websites. In this way it also appeals to communal memory, because someone who did not know about the food chain would not understand the humor in this cartoon. One also has to know what Google, Microsoft, AOL, and Yahoo are.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Unit 3 Reflection
For years societys have stuggled to reach perfection. Even today in some of the most wealthy and advanced nations, the relationship between government and it's people is not flawless. While I realize that society will probably never be flawless, this unit has helped in recognizing the duties of leaders and the duties of those who they lead in order to benefit everyone. Writers such as Thomas Jefferson, Martin Luther King Jr, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton have influenced society in trying to maintain equality and balance between the government and people.
Thomas Jefferson, a founding father of the United States, not only insisted on separation from British rule in his Declaration of Independence, but also set the stage for our new democratic country. He stated ideas that the duty of the government was to allow people to be free and persue their own goals. Jefferson's document is still legitmate today, and since written has become a basis for the rights of American people and our government's expectations. By refusing to be controlled by a tyrant king, The Declaration of Independence complied with duties of the government and in return, the American people made our country one of the most powerful and wealthy in the world.
Martin Luther King Jr. lived during a time when the American government did not fulfill duties that a government should. Before the civil rights movement, black citizens were treated as inferior peoples because of their skin. King points out this inequality in his speech I Have a Dream when he juxtaposes how he "dreams" American American people should be treated in order to stress the repression of his people. The government was supposed to protect the rights of all citizens, no matter what race. Failure to do so resulted in protest by those who believed in equality and natural rights. Had the government provided African Americans with liberty and protection, there would have been no outrage or protest by citizens like Martin Luther King.
Another oppressed group in American history was women. Even before the foundation of the country, women were looked down upon as a week gender although they contributed as men did to society. Recognizing that women should have rights from the government, Elizabeth Cady Stanton wrote a speech to women gathered at the Seneca Falls convention. In this speech Stanton references Jefferson's Declaration of Independence to show how the nation was founded on equality and the government's duty to it's people. From reading this speech, I believe that Stanton based the entire speech about how women's rights were ignored by the government. Much like the civil rights movement, people complained.
Overall, this unit has opened my eyes what makes up a well-functioning society. As a citizen, I have a duty to obey the rules of the government, and in return, they have a duty to protect and provide me with personal freedom and opportunity. These writers, Jefferson, King, and Stanton, have written pieces that show what happens when a government is oppressive. In order for society to maintain a structured system, there must be a balance. This has made me recognize not only when the government is demanding, but when the people are being unjust to the government as well.
Thomas Jefferson, a founding father of the United States, not only insisted on separation from British rule in his Declaration of Independence, but also set the stage for our new democratic country. He stated ideas that the duty of the government was to allow people to be free and persue their own goals. Jefferson's document is still legitmate today, and since written has become a basis for the rights of American people and our government's expectations. By refusing to be controlled by a tyrant king, The Declaration of Independence complied with duties of the government and in return, the American people made our country one of the most powerful and wealthy in the world.
Martin Luther King Jr. lived during a time when the American government did not fulfill duties that a government should. Before the civil rights movement, black citizens were treated as inferior peoples because of their skin. King points out this inequality in his speech I Have a Dream when he juxtaposes how he "dreams" American American people should be treated in order to stress the repression of his people. The government was supposed to protect the rights of all citizens, no matter what race. Failure to do so resulted in protest by those who believed in equality and natural rights. Had the government provided African Americans with liberty and protection, there would have been no outrage or protest by citizens like Martin Luther King.
Another oppressed group in American history was women. Even before the foundation of the country, women were looked down upon as a week gender although they contributed as men did to society. Recognizing that women should have rights from the government, Elizabeth Cady Stanton wrote a speech to women gathered at the Seneca Falls convention. In this speech Stanton references Jefferson's Declaration of Independence to show how the nation was founded on equality and the government's duty to it's people. From reading this speech, I believe that Stanton based the entire speech about how women's rights were ignored by the government. Much like the civil rights movement, people complained.
Overall, this unit has opened my eyes what makes up a well-functioning society. As a citizen, I have a duty to obey the rules of the government, and in return, they have a duty to protect and provide me with personal freedom and opportunity. These writers, Jefferson, King, and Stanton, have written pieces that show what happens when a government is oppressive. In order for society to maintain a structured system, there must be a balance. This has made me recognize not only when the government is demanding, but when the people are being unjust to the government as well.
Monday, January 16, 2012
IRB #18: Poem
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY&feature=share
Summary: This poem attacks organized religion, and reveals how contradicting it is of God's will, as portrayed in the bible. The poem is very causal, as tension has risen with the unjustness of the church and it's followers. The author, Jefferson Bethke, writes this poem to proclaim his faith not in the church, but in Jesus. This poem makes one reflect on what God really wants, and how organized religion actually defies God and his son, Jesus.
Author/Source: This poem was written by Jefferson Bethke, a 20-year-old who then made a video and posted it to youtube. While he may just be an average guy, his video has been viewed over 2 million times, and his powerful message has been spread through social networks.
Context: The context of this poem is the wrongfulness of organized religion. Bethke points out how the church is quick to point out sinners and those who struggle, yet praise Jesus, who was an outcast of religion himself. The exigence for this poem has occurred for thousands of years, as religion has caused war but promotes peace. Bethke appears fed up with organized religion and writes the poem to explain what he thinks is actually morally correct.
Purpose: I believe that Bethke wrote this poem in order to show a blinded society how contradicting the church really is by referencing the bible and history. He also writes this poem to explain his own beliefs, and then justifies them. He definitely achieved this purpose, as his poem is convincing and has spread to many young people through the internet.
Rhetorical Devices: This poem is both logical and credible. Bethke looks not at religion emotionally, but uses logical examples of how it is contradicting of God's will. He questions, "why does it build huge churches, but fails to feed the poor" which makes an audience realize that this is extremely true. By appealing to one's logic and by quoting Jesus, he is able to make an extremely powerful argument against organized religion. The entire poem also juxtaposes the actions of the church and the bible to stress how much religion differs from God.
Summary: This poem attacks organized religion, and reveals how contradicting it is of God's will, as portrayed in the bible. The poem is very causal, as tension has risen with the unjustness of the church and it's followers. The author, Jefferson Bethke, writes this poem to proclaim his faith not in the church, but in Jesus. This poem makes one reflect on what God really wants, and how organized religion actually defies God and his son, Jesus.
Author/Source: This poem was written by Jefferson Bethke, a 20-year-old who then made a video and posted it to youtube. While he may just be an average guy, his video has been viewed over 2 million times, and his powerful message has been spread through social networks.
Context: The context of this poem is the wrongfulness of organized religion. Bethke points out how the church is quick to point out sinners and those who struggle, yet praise Jesus, who was an outcast of religion himself. The exigence for this poem has occurred for thousands of years, as religion has caused war but promotes peace. Bethke appears fed up with organized religion and writes the poem to explain what he thinks is actually morally correct.
Purpose: I believe that Bethke wrote this poem in order to show a blinded society how contradicting the church really is by referencing the bible and history. He also writes this poem to explain his own beliefs, and then justifies them. He definitely achieved this purpose, as his poem is convincing and has spread to many young people through the internet.
Rhetorical Devices: This poem is both logical and credible. Bethke looks not at religion emotionally, but uses logical examples of how it is contradicting of God's will. He questions, "why does it build huge churches, but fails to feed the poor" which makes an audience realize that this is extremely true. By appealing to one's logic and by quoting Jesus, he is able to make an extremely powerful argument against organized religion. The entire poem also juxtaposes the actions of the church and the bible to stress how much religion differs from God.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
AOW #17 IRB
Summary: This portion of Decoded is the final third of my IRB book. In this section, Jay-Z (the author) inspirations for his more recent music. He discusses issues such as 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and the election of Barack Obama as inspiration for his music. He also talks about how fortunate he has been, and choses to give back to those who come from unfortunate circumstances such as his own.
Context: The context of this section is life recently for Jay-Z and how he has come to adjust to fame, and how his music has grown. You see his music and lyrics change with his lifestyle and experiences. The exigence of this is to wrap up Jay-Z's life and give an overall reflection of his life.
Purpose: As said before, this final section was to wrap up Jay-Z's life as an artist and conclude his story with who his is today because of his past. He discusses current issues he is facing with music and producing, and his plans for the future. He also reflects on how music has changed his life.
Rhetorical Elements: This section was personally much easier to relate to. Having experienced events that Jay-Z raps about, I feel extremely connected to what he is saying, which I'm sure many other readers also experience. In this way he appeals to one's memory, and gives a reader more insight to his music and the events he raps about. I feel that this section was also appealing to logic because this section was all based on current events and the aftermath in the media.
I overall really enjoyed this book, even though at times it felt I could not relate to Jay-Z because he obviously lives very differently from myself. I found the book very interesting, and found myself searching his songs and understanding his lyrics, which I never had any insight to before.
Context: The context of this section is life recently for Jay-Z and how he has come to adjust to fame, and how his music has grown. You see his music and lyrics change with his lifestyle and experiences. The exigence of this is to wrap up Jay-Z's life and give an overall reflection of his life.
Purpose: As said before, this final section was to wrap up Jay-Z's life as an artist and conclude his story with who his is today because of his past. He discusses current issues he is facing with music and producing, and his plans for the future. He also reflects on how music has changed his life.
Rhetorical Elements: This section was personally much easier to relate to. Having experienced events that Jay-Z raps about, I feel extremely connected to what he is saying, which I'm sure many other readers also experience. In this way he appeals to one's memory, and gives a reader more insight to his music and the events he raps about. I feel that this section was also appealing to logic because this section was all based on current events and the aftermath in the media.
I overall really enjoyed this book, even though at times it felt I could not relate to Jay-Z because he obviously lives very differently from myself. I found the book very interesting, and found myself searching his songs and understanding his lyrics, which I never had any insight to before.
Friday, December 23, 2011
AOW #16: Video
http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2e3MPI/www.ted.com/talks/rick_smolan_tells_the_story_of_a_girl.html/
Summary: This presentation was about a girl named Natasha, who was born in Korea and lived with her grandmother. A photographer named Rick Smolan met the wester-looking girl and her grandmother and began taking picture of them until the grandmother informed Smolan that she was going to die, and needed to find a family for the girl. Smolan then tells of his journey to find her an adoptive family and move her to the United States. Natasha grew up to be extremely successful in the U.S, and was given opportunities that she never would have received in her rural town of Korea.
Author/Source: Rick Smolan is a famous photographer who has taken pictures world-wide for TIME, LIFE, and National Geographic magazine. He is now CEO of Against All Odds Productions. Smolan told this story in December of 2007 in Los Angeles, which was recorded and is now on the TED website. TED conferences give people the chance to present their ideas, hence their slogan: "ideas worth spreading". Bill Clinton, Jane Goodall, Bill Gates, and Al Gore are just some of the names of people who have presented on TED.
Context/Exigence: The context of this presentation is the young girl, Natasha, who was born in Korea with limited opportunities but given a new life in the United States. The exigence is how interesting her story is, and how far she has come since she was taken out of Korea in the 70's. People are fascinated with her progress, which is the reason why Smolan told her her story.
Purpose: The purpose of this presentation was to tell the story of an amazing girl who's life was transformed. The story was mostly for entertainment, but also to inspire people to give every child a chance at life, because they have the potential to be very successful. Smolan accomplishes this purpose.
Rhetorical Devices: This story is very emotional, in order for Smolan to make an influence on his audience and to get their attention. However he also structures his speech so that the audience does not know what happened to the girl, and have a vague view of where she is currently for most of the presentation. This makes the story somewhat suspenseful, and attracts the attention of the audience. At the end, he finally ends the suspense and introduces Natasha to the audience. He also includes images, not just because he is a photographer, but so that the audience can imagine the girl and picture the story in their minds, also appealing to the audience's interest.
Summary: This presentation was about a girl named Natasha, who was born in Korea and lived with her grandmother. A photographer named Rick Smolan met the wester-looking girl and her grandmother and began taking picture of them until the grandmother informed Smolan that she was going to die, and needed to find a family for the girl. Smolan then tells of his journey to find her an adoptive family and move her to the United States. Natasha grew up to be extremely successful in the U.S, and was given opportunities that she never would have received in her rural town of Korea.
Author/Source: Rick Smolan is a famous photographer who has taken pictures world-wide for TIME, LIFE, and National Geographic magazine. He is now CEO of Against All Odds Productions. Smolan told this story in December of 2007 in Los Angeles, which was recorded and is now on the TED website. TED conferences give people the chance to present their ideas, hence their slogan: "ideas worth spreading". Bill Clinton, Jane Goodall, Bill Gates, and Al Gore are just some of the names of people who have presented on TED.
Context/Exigence: The context of this presentation is the young girl, Natasha, who was born in Korea with limited opportunities but given a new life in the United States. The exigence is how interesting her story is, and how far she has come since she was taken out of Korea in the 70's. People are fascinated with her progress, which is the reason why Smolan told her her story.
Purpose: The purpose of this presentation was to tell the story of an amazing girl who's life was transformed. The story was mostly for entertainment, but also to inspire people to give every child a chance at life, because they have the potential to be very successful. Smolan accomplishes this purpose.
Rhetorical Devices: This story is very emotional, in order for Smolan to make an influence on his audience and to get their attention. However he also structures his speech so that the audience does not know what happened to the girl, and have a vague view of where she is currently for most of the presentation. This makes the story somewhat suspenseful, and attracts the attention of the audience. At the end, he finally ends the suspense and introduces Natasha to the audience. He also includes images, not just because he is a photographer, but so that the audience can imagine the girl and picture the story in their minds, also appealing to the audience's interest.
Sunday, December 18, 2011
AOW #15: Painting
http://johnbriner.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/starry-night.jpg
Summary: The Starry Night was painted in 1888 buy Dutch impressionist artist Vincent van Gogh. The painting uses impressionism, painting strokes to capture the mood instead of an accurate depiction. Since its creation in 1941, The Starry Night has become one of the most famous paintings in the world and is held in the Museum of Modern Arts in New York City.
Source: This painting was by Vincent van Gogh, one of the most popular artists in the world today. His work is priceless, as all of his paintings are beautiful. Any museum would love to have just one of his pictures. Even though he died in the early 1800's, his work has become infinitely famous.
Context: Van Gogh created this picture by looking outside his sanitarium room at night. The exigence is the beauty and mood of the night that few artists were able to capture until van Gogh.
Purpose: The painter's purpose was to not simply paint what the night looked like, but to give the painting a mood or feeling that any viewer could easily identify. I think he accomplished this purpose extremely well.
Rhetorical Devices: Van Gogh was an impressionist, so clearly The Starry Night was an example of impressionism. The brush stokes do not look clear when looking at the image close, however when you back away and see the entire image a mood or feeling is created. This was van Gogh's purpose. He also portrayed mood using color. He juxtaposes light and dark figures, when night is usually thought of as entirely dark.
Summary: The Starry Night was painted in 1888 buy Dutch impressionist artist Vincent van Gogh. The painting uses impressionism, painting strokes to capture the mood instead of an accurate depiction. Since its creation in 1941, The Starry Night has become one of the most famous paintings in the world and is held in the Museum of Modern Arts in New York City.
Source: This painting was by Vincent van Gogh, one of the most popular artists in the world today. His work is priceless, as all of his paintings are beautiful. Any museum would love to have just one of his pictures. Even though he died in the early 1800's, his work has become infinitely famous.
Context: Van Gogh created this picture by looking outside his sanitarium room at night. The exigence is the beauty and mood of the night that few artists were able to capture until van Gogh.
Purpose: The painter's purpose was to not simply paint what the night looked like, but to give the painting a mood or feeling that any viewer could easily identify. I think he accomplished this purpose extremely well.
Rhetorical Devices: Van Gogh was an impressionist, so clearly The Starry Night was an example of impressionism. The brush stokes do not look clear when looking at the image close, however when you back away and see the entire image a mood or feeling is created. This was van Gogh's purpose. He also portrayed mood using color. He juxtaposes light and dark figures, when night is usually thought of as entirely dark.
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