TOW #17 -- "got milk?" (Hayden Panettiere)

The ad below featuring Hayden Panettiere released by bodybymilk.com as part of their "got milk?" ad campaign is effective in 3 ways. The ad, which displays Hayden with a glass of milk accompanied by a milk mustache, along with slender-fitting attire, is meant to make the reader draw the conclusion that Hayden's good physique is the direct result of drinking milk. This is backed up by a portion of the statement written above the "got milk?" wording which says that protein -- found in milk -- helps to build muscle and has been shown to help develop leaner bodies. With this, it makes those who do not drink milk seem crazy because they are missing out on an opportunity to have a healthier body; this is when the pathos appeal begins to unravel. Besides the fact that many of the viewers would be attracted to the ad due to the fact that Hayden Panettiere is featured, from which the ethos is established, there is also a portion of the statement in small letters where it says "you don't have to be a hero to be invincible. That's why I drink milk." This statement implies that drinking milk can help make you feel invincible, and who wouldn't want that? Another portion of the statement, at the end, says "Cheers to that." This turns the positive effects of milk into a celebration, further hitting home the idea that milk can make everyone feel great. The ad covers the basis of all 3 appeals -- ethos, logos, and pathos -- because it makes the viewer feel left out if they are not drinking milk which makes them want to drink milk to feel "invincible" while it also makes milk seem like a necessity because of the health benefits associated with it. This is what makes the ad -- and the campaign -- so effective. There is a simple message meant to complete a simple task; get people to drink more milk. 

IRB Intro -- "127 Hours" by Aron Ralston

The IRB I have chosen to read for this marking period is "127 Hours" by Aron Ralston. The book focuses on Ralston's experience being trapped in Blue John Canyon in Utah over a 127 hour period, which is where the book gets its name from. Both the book and the movie based on the book have received multiple awards.

TOW #8 -- "Night" be Elie Wiesel (IRB Post #2)

At Birkenau -- first thought to be Aushwitz by Elie -- the first of many “selections” occurs. During these selections, those thought to be weak or unfit for physical work were separated from the others and killed. Elie and his father remain together after being separated from his mother and younger sister, both of whom he never sees again. Upon reaching the Nazi guards, Elie and his father lie about their ages to make themselves seemingly more able to complete physical labor. It is after this process, however, that Elie's fear peaks. While waiting in line to enter the camp, Elie watches as the Nazis throw babies and toddlers -- still alive and screaming -- into fires lining the path. In this moment, Elie's mindset switches from confusion to fearing for his life. He tells his father that what they see is impossible, that “humanity would never tolerate” such an atrocity. His father goes on to explain that humanity is non-existent while the other prisoners around them begin to recite the Jewish prayer for the dead, "the Kaddish." Elie joins the other prisoners in prayer, but he has trouble understanding what he has to thank God for. At one point, when the prisoners are told to go either left or right, it is not made clear which path lead to the barracks and which path lead to the crematorium. This uncertainty keeps the reader's attention while also holding their feelings captive until they figure out if Elie and his father are sent to the barracks or not, though since Elie is the one writing book and there are more chapters, it can be assumed Elie, at least, lives.
At the end of the summer of 1944, after many months of hard labor, the Jewish High Holidays arrive but Elie does not find a reason to bless God and rather mocks the idea that the Jews are God’s chosen people. The celebration of the Jewish New Year is short-lived as another selection is announced. Elie passes the first round, and his father passes the second. Elie knows more work is to come for both of them, but is happy not to be by himself. Winter soon arrives and the prisoners begin to suffer in the cold. Eliezer’s foot swells up, and he undergoes an operation. However, rumors of the approaching Russian army gives Elie new hope. This hope does not last long as the Germans decide to evacuate the camp before the Russians can arrive. The prisoners arrive at the Gleiwitz camp a few days later, met with a third selection before the prisoners are taken to a field where a train of cattle cars picks them up. The journey to Buchenwald takes even more lives.
Elie mentions only two more events after this, the death of his father on January 29, 1945 and the arrival of the American army on Aprill 11th, 1945, following days of Nazis slaughtering the prisoners. Elie, after having fully recovered, looked into a mirror -- something which he had not seen since Sighet -- and peered back at himself, recounting: “From the depths of the mirror, a corpse gazed back at me.”
Uncertainty of Elie's future throughout the book captures the reader's interest and captivates their feelings. Foreshadowing is used throughout the book as a device to always keep the reader guessing whether or not Elie will be alive on the next page. It is through this device that Elie explains his own feelings he experienced while he was in the concentration camps.

TOW #7 -- "I am Not a Coffee Drinker" by Ethan Hauser

"I am Not a Coffee Drinker" is a short essay written by Ethan Hauser in honor of National Coffee Day, recently held 3 weeks ago. However, the essay itself proceeds to highlight the importance of the symbolism of coffee in modern society, rather than the individual importance of the actual drink. Hauser talks about his knowledge of Starbucks and little coffee shops with baristas and free WiFi. He also talks about his knowledge of coffee's presence in social media, through Instagram and Facebook posts. Yet, he admits his lack of knowledge pertaining to what an espresso is, or an Americano, but only of a latte. Through mentioning this, Hauser divulges the fact that he has little knowledge about the drink itself, but only of what is portrayed in modern society that pertains to it.

Hauser goes about highlighting the significance of coffee in modern society through amusing anecdotes and repetition. He talks of his shortcomings with his understanding off basic coffee knowledge, such as the machines used to make the drink.

"I don’t know what Keurig is. Could that be my Ikea couch? When I assembled it from the pictogram that came with it, I had several screws left over. Probably someday it will collapse. (Don’t go to Ikea on a Sunday unless you need to feel relieved about being single and childless.)

Through this he establishes the drink's little importance to himself, as he completely ignores it in these sentences from an essay which is supposed to be all about it. He also draws humor from the audience with these lines, which in turn keeps their attention. Hauser also uses repetition to draw the audience's attention as well.

"I DON’T know what an Americano is. I don’t know what Chemex is, though I thought the point was to get chemicals out of our foods, not into. Maybe that is what the “ex” is for. I don’t know what cold drip is. (I do know what iced coffee is. Iced tea, too — Mayor Bloomberg tried to ban it and that’s what got him voted out of office, right?)"

Through this repetition he gets his point across that he has little knowledge of actual drinks and their specifics. Yet, he reveals his knowledge of iced coffee and iced tea, as he has come to know these drinks through the actions of Mayor Bloomberg which brought the drinks publicity. This furthers Hauser's message telling the audience he knows only of coffee as he has seen it in the media.
 



It is clear that the use of rhetoric devices is varied throughout the short essay. The author employs multiple devices in order to get his message across to the reader, including anecdotes and repetition. The anecdotes kept the attention, while the repetition hammered the message into the reader's mind over and over again. This allowed Hauser to explain his perspective that we know little about coffee, only what we see in media. Yet, coffee is a staple in our society through its presence in social media and that is the reason why we celebrate it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/19/opinion/sunday/i-am-not-a-coffee-drinker.html?_r=0

TOW #6 -- "Advanced screenings for Ebola begin at JFK airport" by Fox News

The U.S. is doing everything in its power to prevent the spread of Ebola -- a deadly viral hemorrhagic fever which had killed 4,00 people in West Africa over the past few months -- from entering the country. Additional screenings will begin for airline passengers travelling from West Africa to New York's JFK Airport this week, as well as airline passengers travelling to Newark’s Liberty, Washington’s Dulles, Chicago’s O'Hare, and Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airports next week. Public health workers at the five airports will use no-touch thermometers to take the temperatures of travelers from the three countries which have been most affected by the virus -- Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. In addition, those found to have fevers will be quarantined and interviewed to determine whether or not they may have come in contact with someone infected with the Ebola virus. Of the 150 people that travel daily to the U.S. from or through the three countries affected most, nearly 95 percent of them land at one of the five airports at which screenings are being increased.

This information was presented to the American public by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (C.D.C) and the Department of Homeland Security's Customs and Border Protection Wednesday, October 8th. Citing sources such as President Obama and backing up their actions with the 1944 Public Health Service Act which allows the federal government to take action to prevent communicable diseases -- including viral hemorrhagic fevers such as Ebola -- from spreading into the country, the ethos of the announcement is clearly established. Both pathos and logos are established as well through the mentioning of the death toll caused by the Ebola virus, as it causes emotion in the listener or reader to want to put a stop to the virus, as well as a logical argument in which it seems that the increased screenings are necessary in order to keep the country safe.

The reporting agency relaying the information to the American Public, Fox News, uses an allegory to convince the reader of the necessity of the increased screenings as well as statistics backing the actions of the government, showing clear support of the Ebola screenings. The allegory used in the article is in support of the opposing view that the additional screenings are useless, as it mentions that additional screenings implemented with the three countries hit hardest by the disease has seen nothing but failure. This helps to build credibility as it shows full knowledge on the situation and is, therefore, more convincing to the reader.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/10/12/advanced-us-airport-screening-for-ebola-begins-saturday-at-new-york-kennedy/

TOW #5 -- Political Cartoon

Over the past several months, the Russian Federation has been encroaching on its shared borders with Ukraine -- even crossing the border on multiple occasions. At the surface of the situation, Russian army troops were being sent into Ukraine to help minimalize the violence within the country as it experienced a shift in power. However, it is believed that the Russian troops were sent into Ukraine to take control of the country, rather than to simply act as peacekeepers. This allegation has led many other countries in the world -- including the United States -- to take a closer look at the situation as it has unraveled. Some countries, convinced of Russia's ulterior motives, have even begun to place sanctions on Russia, limiting their trading with the country among other punishments. The United States is one of the countries to have placed sanctions on Russia. However, it is highly disputed whether or not the country is enforcing the sanctions in place, or just letting them lapse over time.
The political cartoon below details one side of the argument as to whether or not the United States is enforcing its sanctions on Russia. The bear pictured in the cartoon represents Russia, with the bees representing the sanctions and Obama representing the bee hive. The bear is shown saying "BEES WITH NO STINGERS!..COOL!" This is referring to the lapsing sanctions put in place by the United States which do no real harm to Russia, as they are "all bark and no bite." Simply put, the sanctions carry no real threat to the country, as they are more of a political move than one to seriously put an end to Russian military activity along the borders of Ukraine.
The purpose of this political cartoon was to shine a light on the complicated politics which have engulfed the situation, as well as to depict the idea of the sanctions carrying little action. This is achieved through a comical metaphor in which the author likened the sanctions to bees with no stingers. The metaphor was able to break-down the situation into a simple idea which was relayed to the audience -- primarily the Americans looking upon the sanctions -- with delicate humor.

TOW #4 -- "Night" by Elie Wiesel (IRB Post #1)

In the spring of 1944, the Jews of Sighet -- a town located in what is now modern day Romania -- gathered around their radios listening to reports of Jews across Europe becoming victims of violent attacks. Elie recounted their reluctance to believe that one man, Adolf Hitler, could wipe out an entire race, saying "The Germans were already in town, the Fascists were already in power, the verdict was already out – and the Jews of Sighet were still smiling."

In a matter of weeks, they too found themselves in that very situation when the Nazis stumbled upon their town. Yet, not once did their optimism waiver up until the point when innocent civilians began to be shot down in the streets. It was in the wake of Passover that the violence first struck. It started with a command to shoot any Jews who left their homes within the first three days following the holiday. Then the command was to shoot any Jews who refused to give up their valuable belongings. This progressed to the relocation of the Jews into two ghettos -- and then eventually to the deportation of the Jews to concentration camps in Germany.

At the time of Sighet's downfall, Elie was only 12 years old. He looked upon the town nervously as his father and the accompanying council members made the decision to not evacuate the area. He again looked upon the town nervously as the German soldiers marched through the streets, each choosing a house to occupy. Elie's fate was out of his hands, making him a mere bystander to the events unfolding around him. Within a few weeks, The Wiesels were transported to a ghetto where they would live for another few weeks until being transported to a smaller ghetto where they would await their deportation. They would then be forced into cattle cars -- some holding over 80 Jews at once -- and shipped off to Auschwitz, a Jewish concentration camp operated by the Nazis. There, Elie and his father would be split from his mother and sister and sent to work. Looming over were smokestacks working day and night releasing the smoke from the burning bodies in the furnace below. It is then that Elie begins to doubt his further existence, feeling abandoned by God as his death is looming near.

The reader can sense this in Elie as he Wiesel tells stories of himself looking for ways to kill himself rather than to be killed as a prisoner of the Nazis. He talks of one point when he thought about running into an electric fence to avoid being burned to death. This thought came shortly after he witnessed children being burned alive along the side of the trail he was walking on. Through images such as these which are imprinted in the minds of the readers, Wiesel is truly able to get the reader to sympathize with him as he writes.