Alessandra Aguirre, Erica Jimenez, Jacob Woods

1. What is the purpose of the argument?
   1. The illustrator Nick Anderson is using art to show the inequities between access to different goods or services in our economy and social structures. On the left hand side of the comic we see an unscalable large white staircase cutting off the man from receiving health care. This resembles the obstacles the U.S healthcare systems create and continue to support through gatekeeping of health insurance or basic health care treatments. Then on the right hand side we see a business that is selling firearms and even a sign displaying the words, “come right in” implying the extremely simple and accessible process of obtaining a firearm here in the United States. This comic illustration takes a stab at the decisions made by the United States and their priorities. It is within those priorities that the U.S falls short to provide our citizens with resources and access to support their well-being. This message also subtly makes a connection between gun violence and mental health in the U.S seeing as it is a well known fact that most gun violence (especially within young communities) is a result of individuals suffering from mental health issues. It is controversial but not untrue in any way which validates the message. 
2. Who or where is the argument coming from?
   1. The argument comes from an editorial cartoonist that works for the Houston Chronicle newspaper by the name of Nick Anderson. It’s important to note the Houston Chronicles based in Texas, a state with some of the  most lenient gun laws in the country. In this cartoon the audience can see an almost insurmountable staircase representing our mental healthcare system beside a gunsmith with open doors and arrows pointing inside. The cartoonist here displays the parallels between accessing basic health care and the average Americans access to a gun. 
3. Who is the author appealing to? 
   1. The author is appealing to any adult over the age of 21. This argument shows how easily accessible firearms are compared to access to mental support. Most adults could purchase a gun by simply walking into a store, whereas it is much more difficult to schedule an appointment for mental needs or medical needs. This argument could also broaden their audience to the governing parties as they are arguing a fix or change in these systems.

I am responding to Lauren’s discussion post:

Similarities:

• Tan validated and relieved emotions of stress within individuals who had shared experiences
  • I mentioned this as a statement but Lauren was actually able to attest from personal experience that the author succeeded in relating to the audience
• I think we both saw her goal of the piece very clearly but how we interpreted it was slightly different in our explanations

Differences:

• Lauren focused more heavily about the subjectivity of the English language and I highlighted more after that fact about how our subjective viewpoints and experiences can aid us and allow us to seek out and support specific audiences

 

“Whereas long as people see the ‘deeper’ meaning behind my words regardless of other people’s opinions, that is what matters the most. ”

I really liked this quote from Lauren’s response, I think it summed up the authors message in Lauren’s own voice and it encompasses what I also obtained from reading “Mother Tongue.”

Marina and Alessandra

Passage 1:

A man from the city came to visit a small farm. He saw a farmer feeding pigs in a very strange way. The farmer would lift a pig up to a nearby apple tree to eat the apples directly off the tree. The farmer would move the pig from one apple to another until the pig was full. Then, he would start again with another pig.

The man from the city was pretty puzzled. He watched for quite a while and said, “What a strange way to feed pigs! It’s a waste of time! You could save a whole lot of time if you just shook the apples off the tree and let the pigs eat them from the ground!” The farmer looked puzzled and replied, “What’s time to a pig?”

Passage 2: 

A young man waiting in line at the bank developed a loud case of hiccups. While in line, they continued to worsen. Once he got to the teller to cash his check he could hardly talk.

The teller tapped numbers into the computer. She looked up and frowned, “I can’t cash your check.”

The man was shocked. “Why not?” he asked.

“The computer indicates you do not have sufficient funds to cover this amount.” she said. “In fact our records show that your account is overdrawn by more than $5000.00.”

“It can’t be!” cried the man. “You’ve got to be kidding!”

“You’re right. I am,” she smiled. She started counting out his cash. “You will notice that your hiccups are gone though!”

Amaya’s Response:

• “rhetorical analysis is peeling back layers to uncover the main point of a piece”
• understanding an image or piece of writing and the different aspects of it help you to not only understand it better yourself, but decide if others could as well.

Rachel’s Response:

• Who? What? Where? Why? When?
• subconsciously ask these questions everyday all of the time as we observe the world around us
• rhetorical analysis and understanding your own point of view is important to be able to replicate in your audience the emotions or reactions you are aiming for

We all referred to different commercials and ads. Amaya and I referenced intended audience. Overall, we recognized through discussion how our own experiences with arguments influences how we approach changing the minds of other people and also affects how susceptible we are to arguments.

https://express.adobe.com/sp/urn:aaid:sc:VA6C2:3bdf95ab-3a5f-4d82-a160-2e587f5ca920?fmt=video

Alessandra Aguirre, Rachel Ballad, Bojun Chen 

Lin-Manuel Miranda: 

Lin-Manuel Miranda has a background in playwriting and music composition. His work is very well known so to endorse a product related to music would be an effective advertising method. Some of which could be:

• Music editing software 
• High end keyboard
• Program that teaches playwriting 

Products that would not benefit from his endorsement in an area unrelated to his expertise would be:

• Makeup products 
• A new medication for alzheimer’s 
• Gatorade or a sports drink

Denzel Washington:

Denzel Washington is an American actor who is most well known for his roles in, “Glory,” “Malcolm X,” “Training Day,” and many other titles. He has earned 3 golden globe awards and is highly respected within the acting community. Denzel would be a great candidate for a Master Class on acting, they now have an array of Master Classes online you can take on many different topics and passions. Because of Denzel’s success and background in the acting business people would respect and believe that the Master Class is effective because he is putting his name and reputation behind it. 

 

He would not be good at endorsing:

• Makeup
• Sneakers 
• Music 

Tom Brady:

Tom Brady is a former American football player in the National Football League, so some products on exercise that might benefit from his endorsements.

• football shoes
• football protector
• Video game about sports

 

Some products he would not be good at endorsing:

• Makeup 
• Women’s clothing 
• Alcohol 

Ariana Grande: 

Ariana Grande is a well known singer and actress with a large youth following. If she were to be in a commercial or advertisement, her and her persona could help to sell the product. Some of these could be: 

• Hair extensions
• A perfume line

Products that her name might not help to sell could be: 

• Insurance plans
• Credit cards

Loss of Literacy Narrative:

Ashley begins her narrative off strong with a real time recording of a conversation she is having with one of her dementia patients. She displays through this how there is a different level and manner at which she is required to speak with in order to successfully communicate with her patient. The dementia patient is missing literacy cues in her sentences and lacks an understanding of her reality. She states, “there is nothing wrong with me, I’m in my 40s,” “it’s 10 o’clock, my dad will be getting home from work now so I can go home,” “why do you care about me, why do you want me here, how did I get here?” Ashley shares that when she first encountered dementia patients working as a nurse’s aid she found that she did not know how to relate or speak to/with these patients. Her very literal way of talking and explaining things proved to be too abrasive for the condition of her patients and so she had to “adapt to their loss of literacy.” Through this experience she gained knowledge/ wisdom on the importance of creating relationships with your patients in the medical field and in life. She learned how to relate to different kinds of people and how to anticipate and be aware of her patients’ needs. The act of having to shift her literacy when speaking towards dementia patients provided her with the ability to be more flexible and multi-dimensional as a healthcare worker. I liked the example and will provide something similar as Ashley did in the beginning to give more context. 

Ice Audio Literacy Narrative: 

This narrative felt more informal than the prior one I listened to. It was also well done but felt more like a string of thoughts versus a planned and well thought out narrative with a goal in mind. The speaker tells us about how at the age of about 11 or 12 he wrote a 40-50 page novel about a magic hockey stick. He did this over the summer and he really enjoyed the process of writing it. Throughout the time of writing it he gained much more knowledge on hockey and was sort of pushed to dive deeper into the world of hockey, which is when he started playing and his passion grew. He also shares that through this experience he felt as though he was not only becoming a better writer but a better student overall because it helped him enjoy school and learning more as well as broadening his vocab and approach to schoolwork. His narrative shows the importance of including the things you love into the experience of learning because it enhances every aspect of education! I did not like the amount of background noise in this narrative and the lack of structure or vibrancy but I did appreciate the message at the end.

Alessandra, Trista, Bojun

FDA “Skin” Commercial: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-cu1Wdxu6Y 

Appeals:

Pathos: 

• Fear: overall aesthetic of ad/ setting 
• Sympathy: pain of pulling off skin 
• Pity: skin peeling for cigs
• Empathy: smokers fear 
• Anxiety: future of health as a smoker 
• Nervousness: what’s to come after there no more skin to rip off
• Scared: her wellbeing
• Denial: “this could and would never happen to me” 

Ethos:

• created by FDA 
• TheRealCost.gov shown at the end of ad 

Logos: 

• Widely known fact that nicotine/ smoking can be harmful to your health 

 

I am responding to Amaya’s discussion post. She focused on giving a strong summary of each story and proceeded to find that in each passage the author’s utilized “hooks” for their stories. The “hooks” engage the reader and assure that the reader not only follows the story but becomes invested in it.

I focused on how appeal to emotion is a characteristic of good writing. I think the two factors we pointed out go hand in hand and in order to have “hooks” you tend to need an appeal to emotion parallel with it. I see through her response that Amaya values engaging writing that also makes itself easy to follow and comprehend through use of logical and strategic examples.

My story is about good music. The kind of music that doesn’t get old, the songs that hold a universal place in every person’s mind. Music that simply doesn’t exist anymore. Growing up my family had a small cottage on a lake in Northern Michigan. Whether we were inside cooking pancakes and bacon or outside cleaning off the outdoor furniture that had been collecting leaves and cobwebs we always, always had music playing. My dad was the reason behind this and he loved to listen to an array of genres and artists. Music in different languages, from our different cultures, and different decades as well. I think the first time he heard me singing along to Eydie Gormé he just about started crying. My older sisters enjoyed the music but since they were already in their broody teenager years they weren’t as impressionable as my 5 year old self. My dad and I really began to connect over music and he exposed to me to as many songs as he could think of. We didn’t listen to music at our house that often because he was working for most if the day, but I knew that as soon as we were at the cottage the best tunes would be going all weekend. One summer he took me to my first concert, The Beach Boys, and despite the fact that a third of the band members had passed away, I was a kid sitting amongst 60 and 70 year olds, and most of my friends had just gone to see Ariana Grande live I was more excited than I had ever been for anything in my life. Before I knew it my uncle and I were jamming out to Fleetwood Mac and Santana in his garage or burning CDs I would be able to use in my car one day. This passion eventually began shifting to involve the historical and societal aspects of what was occurring at the time the music I was listening to was coming out. I zoned in on Folk Rock of the 60s and early 70s that was synonymous with protest and social change. Artists like Bob Dylan sparked my interests in speaking out and messaging through art.

 

Outline:

1. Background as to how I was exposed to music + relationship with dad
2. Shift to how that exposure led to my interest in the societal and political issues
3. How those issues at the time connect to the issues we still have today in society
4. Part of my passion and drive to work in social justice while also satisfying and utilizing passion for music