Garrett Foster
ID#: 10772380
English 301.05
Assignment #2Instructor: Paul Muhlhauser
To the average citizen, most will believe that America has come a long way since the civil-rights era of the 1960s. For the majority of our population our society has finally reached racial equality through affirmative action and desegregation. It looks as though, in the eyes of this average citizen, our police forces no longer racially profile minorities and unjustly imprison them. It would appear that courts have refrained from packing juries with people that are by no means “a jury of their peers” and prosecutors finally pursue the same justice for all of our citizens. In the article, “A TOWN IN TURMOIL”, by Gretel C. Kovach and Arian Campo-Flores, the harsh reality of racism in the United States is brought to the forefront of American society. The authors present a very convincing, albeit broken up, claim through their use of warrants, logos and pathos, and the excellent way in which they supported this claim.
To successfully accomplish their argument in the piece, the authors had to first find what part of this story they would develop their claim around. The authors’ main claim is, “That provocation, which conjured up an ugly history of lynch mobs and the Jim Crow South, unleashed a cycle of interracial strife that has roiled the tiny town of Jena.” This claim is a very sensitive subject and, if you read the article carefully enough, it indicates how such an atrocious action taken by white students in this town sparked the entire incident.
When one thinks of the Deep South, they typically associate it with the Jim Crow south of the past. Readers will bring these warrants of racism and the idea that southern people tend to be more racist than the rest of the country. Also, the majority of white citizens in our country fail to accept the “white privilege” that is prevalent in our society and may actually believe that the students who were charged with the more serious offense committed exactly what the witnesses says they did. Warrants play an instrumental role in this article; even a reader who is somewhat prejudiced or ignorant at all may have a belief that black people commit crimes and are dishonest.
As the article detailed the events leading up to the turmoil, the authors carefully constructed the presentation of the facts of the case and the sentences given out to build the ideal of justice they would hope readers would have. By showing how drastically dissimilar the two sentences given out thus far are, they used the inductive warrant here in a different, but very tactical way. They allow for the reader to be expecting more of the same trend and when this trend doesn’t follow, the reader is perplexed. Also, a form of literal analogy is used in much the same matter by presenting both sides and then showing how differently the white students were treated than the black students, again varying form the logical conclusion a person would draw (Wood, 142-143).
Since most of this article is opinion based, the logos being practiced throughout aides the writers’ argument. It is clear, that the authors planned the organization of the piece so that the readers would see the treatment of the white kids, and then they would be able to contrast that to the punishments handed out to the black children. The goal was to make the reader believe that the only fair punishment would be equal to or less than that given out to the white students. When the awful truth is finally released to the reader, the hope was that they would be alarmed at the racial disparity present. Logically, a reader will be able to look at all of the facts presented and develop in his or her own mind that inequality is clearly still at hand in the Deep South.
When someone writes an article that draws so much emotion out of readers, pathos is clearly present throughout. The author describes the bleak outlook for the students being charged and even more so with the town, “Meanwhile, Jena is struggling to find its way forward” (Kovach, Campo-Flores, 38). Also, the author appeals to the emotions of the readers when describing the initial act; “Decades of suppressed racial hostility spilled forth at the appearance of those swaying nooses” (36). In an article as heart-breaking as this, an author’s task is very simple in exhibiting pathos due to the fact that emotion runs rabid in such an issue.
Compared to how well the authors presented pathos in this article, they did equally as poor of a job in appealing to the ethos. The article is composed of feelings and opinions of people closely related, or affiliated, with one side or anther. The most credible sources the authors bring into the piece are that of the school board member, obviously attempting to downplay the situation, and the DA (someone who would not want to say, or imply anything to make his actions seem worse than they do). The references to the ACLU and NAACP appear at first to be able to add credibility, yet they really do not give any real information to the reader about the right and wrong in the case. With this being said, the authors really had no other options to look to for information, but it still leaves this reader feeling that the meat of the article is based on opinion and hearsay.
Yet, the authors prepared for this problem by providing backing to their warrant that the legal system in this area of our country is skewed. They incorporated a quote form the D.A. stating, “I can be your best friend or your worst enemy…With a stroke of my pen, I can make your lives disappear” (36), which allows the reader to believe that the D.A. could be a somewhat dishonest or viscous person. This idea can create for the reader a subconscious idea that, possibly this is the case with a majority of our lawmakers and enforcers.
The argument here was presented in a very adequate tone for the issue being discussed. For the authors to explicitly come out and write an article clearly biased one way or the other would be extremely unprofessional when the facts of this case are plainly construed. Racism exists, whether one wants to accept that fact or not, this article brings it out of the shadows and into the spotlight. After reading this article, it is clear that the argument used by the authors was very valid and influential, leaving the reader feeling called to take some form of action.
Works Cited
Kovach, Gretel C., and Arian Campo-Flores. "A TOWN IN TURMOIL." NEWSWEEK 27 Aug 2007: 36-38.
Wood, Nancy V.. Essentials of Argument. Upper Sadle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2006.
THE BLOGSPOT:
My rhetorical analysis of an article in my NEWSWEEK magazine was in need of major revisions from the second draft to the third draft. The main reason I needed this transformation was due to my lack of understanding how to construct a good analysis, according to the Toulmin model. The meat of my second draft was constructed in the usual form that I use when creating a paper; eloquently articulating my main arguments while painting a dramatic picture for the reader. However, this form of writing doesn’t exactly fit for the assignment given. In the third draft I feel that I successfully incorporated many aspects that were lacking in my second draft such as: describing the claim more effectively, explaining where and how warrants were used, and editing out much of my plot summary that was included. Looking back on my second draft and then the revision notes by Paul, I initially felt overwhelmed at all the work I needed to do to get it up to par. Now, after completing the third draft, I feel that it was actually much easier to write the analysis according to the Toulmin model than to write it in part in the Toulmin model and the other part in my typical form. The overall organization and flow of the paper was immensely improved by simply writing the paper as a rhetorical analysis, mainly because the Toulmin model has a very concise organizational pattern that proves easy to follow. Finally, I feel that this third draft is superior due to the fact that I re-assessed the article I was using and looked at what rhetorical style it was using and tried to figure out how each piece of the article related to the Toulmin model. The third draft fully conforms to the style being taught to my peers and myself.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Monday, October 15, 2007
Blog #7: Contemplation
After looking over the first draft and making corrections, I thought that I had created a pretty good piece of work. However, when I took some time off, read the comments by Paul, and re-evaluated what I thought of as a masterpiece, I realized that there were considerable improvements needed. Firstly, my introduction did a relatively poor job at introducing exactly what I was going to be discussing, whether I thought the argument accomplished its goal, or adequately outlined my analysis of the article I chose. In the final draft, I feel that I really did a great job of hooking the reader into the paper and allowing for them to really envision the advertisement. Also, I feel that in the first and second drafts, I had a pretty weak conclusion that didn’t restate my thesis or review my main ideas. The third draft’s conclusion wasn’t much longer in wordage, but I feel that it struck home my thesis and main points very effectively. My explanation of the author’s use of logos, ethos, and pathos was also much more detailed in the third draft and I feel that I actually put more thought into how the author used this in my most recent revision of the paper. Finally, I feel that throughout my writing of this paper I did an excellent job of explaining the targeted audience and the constraints associated with that audience. I am very proud of how I looked into the desired audience of the authors and researching their new power in marketing and how they are changing the face of advertising. I think that the explanation of constraint is pivotal in my analysis to prove my reasoning. If I did not explain this, then my readers might be confused as to why it was important for the author to explain the uniqueness of such great benefits on a car insurance premium.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Blog #6: Paper ONE draft THREE
Garrett Foster
October 3, 2007
Looking through a copy of NEWSWEEK, I notice an advertisement that immediately catches my attention. Placed amongst the common colorful advertisements and traditional white pages of NEWSWEEK, with red borders and traditional black ink, is a black and white picture. This picture is far from plain and far from common to many of my generation. Yet, I can relate to it and appreciate the humor presented in the advertisement due to my recollection of yearbook photos of my parents from high school. The advertisement created by GEICO is well-placed, well-crafted, and well-timed. Baby boomers are inspiring a huge new campaign in business and advertising, “Today, they're changing the way companies will look at marketing.” (Freeman). This revolution that is taking place demands the catering to our older population. Advertisements like this are sure to continue and become more wide-spread. GEICO insurance developed a catchy, creative, and nostalgic advertisement that hooks in all readers, but specifically attracted not only the attention, but perhaps the wallets of countless “baby boomers”.
This is an ad for GEICO auto insurance, featuring a black and white photo of a young man in a tuxedo, wearing horned rimmed glasses and sporting a massive afro. In a lime green text box a simple question is posed; “Survive the ‘70s? You deserve special treatment.” Two more text boxes are followed beneath this, elaborating on the statement, before turning the page to read more in-depth about the company. One of the first things most people look for when they see an advertisement is what the particular ad is trying to say. In this GEICO ad it seems very clear at first; if you made it through the seventies alive you should get some type of special treatment. However, upon further examination one finds that the ad really is implying that a person who has lived through the seventies and is still alive today has more than likely been driving for quite some time. The experience that they possess may be able to qualify them for amazing savings on their car insurance. The author of this advertisement attempted to mak this piece as uncomplicated as possible. The author decided to ask the reader a question that is easy to answer, and then made them feel unique by saying, “That’s why GEICO offers personal service, just for you.” This tactic further draws the possible customer into the advertisement. The interested consumer now is able to see four benefits they may be eligible for and a website they could look up to find more information.
All of this information is clearly placed in text boxes below the attractive lime-green box to allow the reader to locate all of this information with ease. The use of layman language that the average person understands also presents a very relaxed feeling towards the potential customer; thus continuing the friendly, comical relationship established. If the reader is so inclined to look further, they will notice that on the back of the ad is more information about the possible savings they could have by switching their car insurance over to GEICO. On this back side the author presented policy perks in a traditional column form with the headlines for each point in bold font. The top of this page also has the same question posed on the front in the same green text box, but with a different answer stating, “Survive the ‘70s? You Deserve GEICO.” I believe that this text box was used by the authors to allow for readers to recognize that this writing was in relation to the advertisement on the front.
Authors and advertising teams are constantly trying to understand the most effective way to convey their message to the public that will be both appealing and memorable in such a competitive market. In this advertisement the author presents a universal image of the seventies, which may represent simpler times to “baby boomers”, in hopes of trying to create a common-ground with them. The fact that the majority of people in their fifties did not have their hair in an “afro” is irrelevant to the purpose of this argument. As Valerie Fried, 56, says, "I'm not sure whether Led Zeppelin trying to sell me a Cadillac makes me want to buy a Cadillac. But listening to the song sure takes me back to a pleasant time and place.” (Erickson) The author does a great job of connecting with the desired audience and invoking a laid-back affiliation between the consumer and the corporation. Then, once this relationship has been established, the author further respects the reader by explaining how the accomplishments throughout the readers life has made them an exceptional person and deserving of discounts on insurance premiums. Since the author did not use any pedantic words to describe the benefits or how the company was planning to distribute these privileges, the author has successfully conveyed his message without offending anyone or speaking over the heads of the readers.
Furthermore, readers can truly understand the friendly attitude presented in the advertisement by knowing more about the company it was designed for. GEICO is a company that was founded on basic, American family values, attempting to bring quality insurance to government employees at very low premiums. Today, the company continues in this effort to bring quality insurance at low premiums to all people in the form of auto, motorcycle, recreational vehicle, home, and other forms of insurance to cover all of life’s potential problems (GEICO History). However, an insurance company is in the business of making money, so seeking out policyholders that have enough discretionary income to purchase multiple policies is enticing. Therefore, it makes it clear to understand that the advertisement is most likely aimed at a certain demographic that entails a great deal of citizens. It seeks to gain policyholders in their mid-forties to early sixties with good driving records and people looking to save money on auto insurance. This advertisement does exclude those people who did not live during the decade of the seventies, or even more so, those who did not truly “experience” the seventies; people who spent much of their developing years in that particular decade. However, being that this demographic is from the “baby boom” era, there is a great deal of “boomers” in our society, in fact they make up 26.75 percent of the population, and most “baby boomers” have a substantial career that allows for financial security, the average income of “boomers” age 45-54 in 2000 was $64,080, an appealing characteristic for an insurance company ("DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE: American Baby Boomers."). Even more so, it is a market of people that entails seventy-eight million people and three trillion dollars worth of revenue (Freeman).
The argument presented in this advertisement is a very successful one in my opinion. Many people that read NEWSWEEK are people concerned with the current events that occur in our world. Interpreting the logos used in this ad, I found little actual logical appeal being used. It seemed to rely more on appealing to the readers pathos and ethos. Also, as I stated earlier, the frequent complementation of the author towards the reader definitely appeals to the pathos of the reader. The GEICO insurance corporation is a very strong company that is on the rise economically, with a very strong moral foundation instilled in it at the time of its inception by its founders (GEICO History), this fact is something that a very prudent consumer would look into and discover, which would appeal to the ethos of many readers. Also, ethos applies in that the advertisement shows that they will provide lifetime service and quality claims, to give the reader a feeling of safety and that they will not be betrayed by the company. By explaining to the reader the policy the companies has involving lifetime approval, again this proves that the company exhibits ethical operation.
Advertisement is one of the most difficult professions in the business world. Creating the right advertisement that will not only be catchy, colorful, and unique, but enticing enough to provoke the audience to actually purchasing the desired object is incredibly disconcerting. Creating an advertisement for the “baby boomer” generation can be even more difficult, since these people have seen all forms of advertisement and are less likely to be duped by cheap gimmicks (Freeman). In analyzing this particular advertisement, I found it to be unique, creative, and most importantly, very convincing.
Works Cited
"DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE: American Baby Boomers." MetLife. 2003. Mature Market Institute. 17 Sep 2007.
Erickson, Paula . "Advertisers lure baby boomers back to the '60s." Beaumont Enterprise 03 Sep. 2007: B. 5.
"GEICO History." GEICO. Apr 2007. GEICO Insurance Co.. 10 Sep 2007.
Karla, Freeman. "A Marketing Boom: How to Attract the Baby Boomer Market." The American Salesman 52(2007)
October 3, 2007
Looking through a copy of NEWSWEEK, I notice an advertisement that immediately catches my attention. Placed amongst the common colorful advertisements and traditional white pages of NEWSWEEK, with red borders and traditional black ink, is a black and white picture. This picture is far from plain and far from common to many of my generation. Yet, I can relate to it and appreciate the humor presented in the advertisement due to my recollection of yearbook photos of my parents from high school. The advertisement created by GEICO is well-placed, well-crafted, and well-timed. Baby boomers are inspiring a huge new campaign in business and advertising, “Today, they're changing the way companies will look at marketing.” (Freeman). This revolution that is taking place demands the catering to our older population. Advertisements like this are sure to continue and become more wide-spread. GEICO insurance developed a catchy, creative, and nostalgic advertisement that hooks in all readers, but specifically attracted not only the attention, but perhaps the wallets of countless “baby boomers”.
This is an ad for GEICO auto insurance, featuring a black and white photo of a young man in a tuxedo, wearing horned rimmed glasses and sporting a massive afro. In a lime green text box a simple question is posed; “Survive the ‘70s? You deserve special treatment.” Two more text boxes are followed beneath this, elaborating on the statement, before turning the page to read more in-depth about the company. One of the first things most people look for when they see an advertisement is what the particular ad is trying to say. In this GEICO ad it seems very clear at first; if you made it through the seventies alive you should get some type of special treatment. However, upon further examination one finds that the ad really is implying that a person who has lived through the seventies and is still alive today has more than likely been driving for quite some time. The experience that they possess may be able to qualify them for amazing savings on their car insurance. The author of this advertisement attempted to mak this piece as uncomplicated as possible. The author decided to ask the reader a question that is easy to answer, and then made them feel unique by saying, “That’s why GEICO offers personal service, just for you.” This tactic further draws the possible customer into the advertisement. The interested consumer now is able to see four benefits they may be eligible for and a website they could look up to find more information.
All of this information is clearly placed in text boxes below the attractive lime-green box to allow the reader to locate all of this information with ease. The use of layman language that the average person understands also presents a very relaxed feeling towards the potential customer; thus continuing the friendly, comical relationship established. If the reader is so inclined to look further, they will notice that on the back of the ad is more information about the possible savings they could have by switching their car insurance over to GEICO. On this back side the author presented policy perks in a traditional column form with the headlines for each point in bold font. The top of this page also has the same question posed on the front in the same green text box, but with a different answer stating, “Survive the ‘70s? You Deserve GEICO.” I believe that this text box was used by the authors to allow for readers to recognize that this writing was in relation to the advertisement on the front.
Authors and advertising teams are constantly trying to understand the most effective way to convey their message to the public that will be both appealing and memorable in such a competitive market. In this advertisement the author presents a universal image of the seventies, which may represent simpler times to “baby boomers”, in hopes of trying to create a common-ground with them. The fact that the majority of people in their fifties did not have their hair in an “afro” is irrelevant to the purpose of this argument. As Valerie Fried, 56, says, "I'm not sure whether Led Zeppelin trying to sell me a Cadillac makes me want to buy a Cadillac. But listening to the song sure takes me back to a pleasant time and place.” (Erickson) The author does a great job of connecting with the desired audience and invoking a laid-back affiliation between the consumer and the corporation. Then, once this relationship has been established, the author further respects the reader by explaining how the accomplishments throughout the readers life has made them an exceptional person and deserving of discounts on insurance premiums. Since the author did not use any pedantic words to describe the benefits or how the company was planning to distribute these privileges, the author has successfully conveyed his message without offending anyone or speaking over the heads of the readers.
Furthermore, readers can truly understand the friendly attitude presented in the advertisement by knowing more about the company it was designed for. GEICO is a company that was founded on basic, American family values, attempting to bring quality insurance to government employees at very low premiums. Today, the company continues in this effort to bring quality insurance at low premiums to all people in the form of auto, motorcycle, recreational vehicle, home, and other forms of insurance to cover all of life’s potential problems (GEICO History). However, an insurance company is in the business of making money, so seeking out policyholders that have enough discretionary income to purchase multiple policies is enticing. Therefore, it makes it clear to understand that the advertisement is most likely aimed at a certain demographic that entails a great deal of citizens. It seeks to gain policyholders in their mid-forties to early sixties with good driving records and people looking to save money on auto insurance. This advertisement does exclude those people who did not live during the decade of the seventies, or even more so, those who did not truly “experience” the seventies; people who spent much of their developing years in that particular decade. However, being that this demographic is from the “baby boom” era, there is a great deal of “boomers” in our society, in fact they make up 26.75 percent of the population, and most “baby boomers” have a substantial career that allows for financial security, the average income of “boomers” age 45-54 in 2000 was $64,080, an appealing characteristic for an insurance company ("DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE: American Baby Boomers."). Even more so, it is a market of people that entails seventy-eight million people and three trillion dollars worth of revenue (Freeman).
The argument presented in this advertisement is a very successful one in my opinion. Many people that read NEWSWEEK are people concerned with the current events that occur in our world. Interpreting the logos used in this ad, I found little actual logical appeal being used. It seemed to rely more on appealing to the readers pathos and ethos. Also, as I stated earlier, the frequent complementation of the author towards the reader definitely appeals to the pathos of the reader. The GEICO insurance corporation is a very strong company that is on the rise economically, with a very strong moral foundation instilled in it at the time of its inception by its founders (GEICO History), this fact is something that a very prudent consumer would look into and discover, which would appeal to the ethos of many readers. Also, ethos applies in that the advertisement shows that they will provide lifetime service and quality claims, to give the reader a feeling of safety and that they will not be betrayed by the company. By explaining to the reader the policy the companies has involving lifetime approval, again this proves that the company exhibits ethical operation.
Advertisement is one of the most difficult professions in the business world. Creating the right advertisement that will not only be catchy, colorful, and unique, but enticing enough to provoke the audience to actually purchasing the desired object is incredibly disconcerting. Creating an advertisement for the “baby boomer” generation can be even more difficult, since these people have seen all forms of advertisement and are less likely to be duped by cheap gimmicks (Freeman). In analyzing this particular advertisement, I found it to be unique, creative, and most importantly, very convincing.
Works Cited
"DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE: American Baby Boomers." MetLife. 2003. Mature Market Institute. 17 Sep 2007
Erickson, Paula . "Advertisers lure baby boomers back to the '60s." Beaumont Enterprise 03 Sep. 2007: B. 5.
"GEICO History." GEICO. Apr 2007. GEICO Insurance Co.. 10 Sep 2007
Karla, Freeman. "A Marketing Boom: How to Attract the Baby Boomer Market." The American Salesman 52(2007)
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