Visual Arguments

QUESTION #1 ON PAGE 908

I liked "Identities are infinites.. What's yours?" the best. All of the colors and words do a great job of drawing the viewer in. What I like most about it is the upbeat feel, and also the simplicity.

The ad that I liked least was "Embracing Diversity in University Residences." The hands kind of creeped me out, it had no color or visual interest, and I think that a better poem could have been chosen to exemplify the importance of diversity.

QUESTION #2 ON PAGE 921

The cartoons are all referencing college admissions. The first threeo are commenting on how it is unfair that, due to the supreme court ruling on affirmative action, minorities have an easier time getting into college.  The fourth is saying that people are quick to blame minorities for getting in to college easily, but that there are plenty of other kinds of people who get college admissions precedence for various other (equally unfair) reasons - such as athletes, out of state students, and alum's children. The fifth is simply commenting on how costly it is to get into a good school.

I think that the fourth cartoon is the most effective. It is interesting to look at and simple to understand. The statement that it makes about each of the stereotyped characters is amusing. And I definitely agree with the general message - minorities aren't the only ones recieving preferential treatment when it comes to college admissions.

I think that the third essay is the least effective. It is a good message, but there is waaaaaaaaaaay too much going on in the ad. It didn't make me want to read it at all. It needs to be condensed in order to keep an audience's attention.

Jello Mousse - "It's time to give in"

What does the creator's attitude seem to be toward the image? They have zoomed in on the spoon full of mousse - making it the center of attention - and have worked to portray it in decadent detail.

Which media are used for this visual text? Images and words, no sound or videos.

What role is played by the words that accompany the visual text? They promote this idea of the desert being decadent and desireable. The word "decadent" is actually used towards the bottom. "It's Me O'clock" says that this is something you're doing for yourself; it's something that you want and deserve. And the large print, the ad's slogan, "It's time to give in" also enforces this message.

What does the visual text assume about its viewers and about what they know and agree with? It assumes that they actually enjoy dessert-food. The "60 decadent calories" part implies that the audience is calorie-conscious.

What overall impression does the visual text create in you? For me, the ad definitely makes the desert seem appealing. It is depicted to be rich and exciting. This is very different from the way that I would generally imagine Jello products to be, which is interesting.

What argumentative purpose does this visual text convey? It is an argument to convince you to buy their product.

What emotions does the visual evoke? Hunger!

How is the visual text composed? Where is your eye drawn first? My eye is first drawn to the large spoon of the dessert. It is situated in the center of the ad and is the largest thing on the page. My eyes are then drawn to the words "It's time to GIVE IN."

Fourth Essay - Beach Renourishment

For the fourth essay, my group will be arguing against beach renourishment. We chose this topic because it is something that is relevant to our Wilmington community, and because it is something that is very expensive and only temporary.

My thesis statement for the paper is: Beach renourishment is not an effective way to deal with beach errosion because it is costly, non-permanent, and the process can disrupt the natural environment of the beach.

I can't wait to start writing more of this paper! There are so many blogs, articles, books, and research on the subject. Some of the sources I've already looked at include..
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1541-1338.1986.tb00704.x/abstract
http://www.csc.noaa.gov/beachnourishment/html/human/index.htm
http://books.google.com/books?id=VWnxpAxp6TMC&pg=PA159&lpg=PA159&dq=pros+and+cons+of+beach+renourishment&source=bl&ots=9DpOFOeVgg&sig=1PprZ5FqmJ13ldiY6W5aA-N1kLI&hl=en&ei=vcCcTZXJN4-DtgeY7-S4Bw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CEgQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=pros%20and%20cons%20of%20beach%20renourishment&f=false

"Send it Somewhere Special"

In Michael Benson's article, Send it Somewhere Special, he proposes the the International Space Station (ISS) should be converted - expanded - into an interplanetary spacecraft.

I agree with Benson's proposal, because all of his reasoning makes perfect sense. Some of these reasons include...

1. The ISS is already suited for the purpose of space/planetary exploration - all it really needs are a few modifications, such as something to power and steer it.
2. Turning it into an interplanetary spacecraft would be better than the alternative - which would be retiring the shuttle or letting another country deal with it. Taking into account all of the money invested in it (hundreds of billions of dollars), this would be rediculous. Converting the shuttle in to something that can be used to explore our solar system is much more practical and economical.
3. It isn't doing anything right now - except for sitting in space. Why not make all of that money invested into the ISS worth it?

Basically, since NASA is planning on exploring other planets with the Constellation program, converting the ISS (which is currently serving no real purpose) would be the logical way to help make this exploration both economical and successful. I am all for Benson's proposal!

Define...

For our third essay, we are exploring defintions. The prompt requires us to define on a concept whose definition is under debate in today's society.

I'm still kind of deciding what to define, but I think I'm leaning towards "torture." I know that there's usually alot of controversy about this in the media (there especially seemed to be during the Bush presidency), and I am personally appalled that this is something that even has to be debated.

I would really like to be able to write this paper and nail down a consensus of what experts in the field currently define as "torture." I know that there is probably a big gap between what different people (politicians vs humanitarians) would classify as such, and even between people's opinions and actual legal guidlines.

Like I said, I'm not one hundred percent sure about this topic yet. I tend to be a softie, and if it gets graphic (as it very well may), I'm not sure I'll be able to stick with it. BUT, if I do, I think it will definitly be an interesting topic.

Covergirl!

For our second essay, we are supposed to compare the same argument made with two different kinds of media. For mine, I am looking at the Covergirl LashblastFusion ad campaign, featuring Drew Barrymore. I will be comparing the picture ad (which can be found in various magazines) to the commercial (aired on TV).

From first glance, the commercial seems to be the most effective. I think that generally a commercial can show more than just a picture, which gives it a leg-up from the beginning. The commercial also provides more evidence of what the mascara does and why you should want it, as opposed to the ad which simply features a very large photo of Drew Barrymore, overshaddowing very small lettering about the mascara.

The only aspect of the print ad I preferred was the fact that you can't hear Barrymore lisping through a picture (although I don't think I will be including this in my essay).

First Essay!

For our first essay, the text that I will be performing a rhetorical analysis of is an excerpt article from our book, called "Bottlemania: How Water Went on Sale and Why We Bought It."

I chose this text because, first, the title drew me in. I think it's absolutely crazy what people pay for bottled water (not to mention the environmental effects) when they could just as easily drink tap water. I was interested to see what the author had to say about it. Also, the article is a little longer than most of the excerpts in our book, so I figured that I would have more to write about with more to refer to.

I have come to the conclusion that the article is an argument to convince. I debated between this and persuade, but ultimately I think that putting it in the persuasion category would be a bit too extreme. The author is simply trying to convince the audience that tap water is currently just as safe (if not more so) than bottled water.

This being said, I think the author does a good job of achieving her goal. She cites facts from leading experts in the field, appeals to the readers emotions, and uses specific examples from her life (getting her own tap water tested, ect..)

I can't wait to write the essay and get a chance to elaborate on all of these things! :)