Fall is in the Air

Yes it is true; fall is here and has been for a while now. In case you missed out on the fact that the leaves have been changing colors and the mornings and evenings have been slowing been getting colder and colder. I love seeing these changes because out of all of the seasons fall is my favorite by far! I love the change in the weather and the trees turning pretty colors.
I especially like fall because my birthday is in the fall. Fall is also time for harvest, which, for my family means that the stress of the spring planting, hard work during the summer trying to keep the irrigation systems going and the time spent waiting for the results of the months of labor are finally coming to an end. These things are all reasons why I love fall, but the main reason that fall is my favorite season is because in the fall it seems as if my family is getting together. For fall break my family all went over to my grandma and grandpa’s for a Sunday dinner, over Thanksgiving break my family will get together again and then it’s not too much longer until Christmas.
I love to see the change in the seasons, but fall is my favorite change, because I like cold weather. It may seem strange but by the end of summer I am ready to break out my warm sweaters and sweatpants. Fall is my favorite season, because all of the bright colors of the trees make everything so beautiful. It’s also the perfect time to go for a walk and just enjoy the beauty of nature. This is why fall is my favorite season.

Vice Presidential Debate

Joe Bidden in his debate with Sarah Palin employs logos in several places throughout his debate with Palin. When Bidden begins to talk about how they will not support the three hundred billion dollar tax cut that McCain and Sarah Palin are for, Bidden is implying logos. By stating this as a fact that they will not do this makes this logos. About one minute into the video clip Bidden says, “We can not slow up on education, because that is the engine that is going to give us the economic growth and competitiveness that we need.” This is also an example of how he uses logos, by stating the fact that we are not going to slow up on education and then giving a reason uses both logos and ethos. This argument is made rational by using the because statement, which makes this appeal logos and it also gives Joe Bidden credibility, because he gives a reason as to why we are not going to slow up education.

By stating that he is going to cut spending in the current budget, is also a way of using logos, because he states a clear fact. Joe Bidden uses pathos when he talks about people taking their post office box offshore to avoid taxes. He calls these people unpatriotic, this would definitely cause an emotional response in me and I’m sure that it did cause an emotional response in other people that watched the debate and especially the people that he was referring to.

In Senator Joe Biden’s rebuttal he states that Senator Obama voted to eliminate the tax breaks for the oil companies and Senator McCain did not. By stating this Senator Biden is once again using logos, by stating a fact.

Final Presidential Debate

For this weeks post I chose the debate question asking if the Federal Government should play a bigger role in education. Senator McCain is the first to speak, right away McCain uses pathos, he speaks directly to Senator Obama and says in a tone that is somewhat inflammatory, asking if he is aware of the program in the Washington D.C. school system. Not only in his words but also in his body language he uses pathos, by the way he makes sharp gestures towards Senator Obama, this gives a feel of aggression. When Senator McCain speaks about vouchers he uses logos, speaking about how vouchers were used in the Washington D.C. school system. In the same statement he once again employs pathos by stating that he was surprised that Senator Obama didn’t pay attention to that example. When Senator McCain mentions autism, he is appealing to pathos, because we all have an emotional reaction to this word. He uses it saying that “Sarah Palin knows about that, better than most,” this makes the audience really listen to him, because in using pathos he relates to the audience and also relates Sarah Palin to the audience. McCain uses ethos by stating that “I think the Head Start program is a good program,” he states his own opinions giving the audience a taste of his character. In saying this he also is persuading the audience to adopt his view and opinion of Head Start.

When Senator Obama begins talking at about 2:45, he uses pathos, as does McCain, when they are talking about what the Superintendent of D.C. supports, charters or vouchers. They almost get into a little spat, using inflammatory language. Obama uses logos saying that “data doesn’t show that vouchers solve the problem,” this use of facts appeals to the audience as well, because it also appeals to ethos. This use of facts makes the audience acknowledge Obama as knowing facts and other data about education. Senator Obama appeals to the audience’s emotions using pathos, when talking about how McCain is leaving people in all other fifty states, outside of the D.C. area, without an education reform policy.

The order in which the candidates speak affect how the audience perceives them. Since McCain speaks first it can be said that he has an advantage to be the first to touch on the topics that he wants to without having to worry about defending his position on them. In the same sense it could be said that Obama has the advantage because he gets the last word in. Either way each candidate must have solid points to drive them home or to make sure that they can not be contradicted. This being the final debate, I think that the audience will be more perceptive to what each of the candidates has to say before making their final choice in who they will vote for. The number of viewers will increase as well in my opinion, for the same reason. I think that the audience will be very judgmental of the candidates and just how they appeal to the audience will make a big difference in who is elected.

Questions over Chapters 1 and 2

1. What are ways that you can establish the rhetorical situation (relationship between writer, text and audience)?

2. How does the use of different elements such as color affect the message?

3. What if the images used in a cartoon, aren't detailed, does this make it not rhetoric?

1. On a daily basis which type of persuasion are we more likely to encounter,logos, pathos, or ethos? Or a combination of them?

2. What affect does kairos have on an audience or group of consumers?

3. In what ways can we use ethos to establish credibility as writers?

Worlds Collide in Westfield

I pull out a chair and slide into the table across from Hibachi San, the Japanese Grill, in the food court of the Westfield Mall in Lincoln and soak in the events occurring around me. The food court is almost empty, only a few people stand in line at the Orange Julius, waiting for a refreshing smoothie. I’m sure that it won't be this way for long though, not in this fast paced world that we live in today. An older couple walks towards Subway, taking their time. They both carry a small bag in their outside hand, leaving their inside hands free to hold the others. The woman is thin and slightly shorter than her husband. The crow’s feet at the corners of her eyes suggest a happy lifetime with her husband. A slight smile plays at the corners of her mouth, making it obvious that she is happy with where she is at in her life right now. Her husband walks beside her, quietly observing the various components of the mall. The sunlight coming in from the windows that make up the ceiling to the food court, the bronze colored tables with the dark brown rings around the outside. The leathered brown of his hands suggest a lifetime of hard work and exposure to the sun, like his wife he seems perfectly content to have a day just to relax. His bright red hat sets off the dull brown of his shirt and faded blue of his worn out jeans. The couple continues on, taking in everything, living in the moment.
The glow of fluorescent light coming from the Orange Julius, Habachi San, and the Panda Express, scream to the passing customers “Pick me! Pick me! Eat here!” The smells of Amigos, Runza, and the Panda Express mingle together creating a mixture of ethnic aromas. As it gets closer to six o’clock the slow trickle of people coming into the food court becomes a steady stream of customers. The cleaning ladies tense up, waiting for the first tray full of food to be dropped on the so far spotless brown and tan marbled floor. Groups of teenage girls walk rapidly, almost jogging, to get to who knows where. Their long straight hair lays against the backs of their expensive, designer sweaters and tee-shirts. Their rapid pace and posh clothing parallels that of the older couples’ leisurely gait and worn clothes. The workers behind the Japanese Grill stand smiling, ready to greet their first famished customers, while the employees at Great Wraps look forebodingly at the people coming into the food court area.

The crusade to the food court is started by three mothers pushing their toddlers in strollers towards the steadily growing line for Runza, a group of high school girls carry bags from The Buckle, Victoria’s Secret, and American Eagle, gossiping away about how cute their newly purchased outfits will be, how they will attract their crushes with this or that shirt. Young mothers quickly guide their fidgety, squirming kids to the bathroom, while others are followed by their gaggle of children like little ducklings following their mother.

The noise level of the mall crescendos to a high point as the food court is filled with hungry people. The Habachi San comes to life as the cook tosses food about in the wok, throwing the food into the air at an almost impossible height for it to be caught again. The fire of the grill matches the intensity of the people coming into the food court, it has become a mad house, an asylum of famished people, the fire stretches to new heights and hisses, spitting as particles of food fall from the wok into the hungry fire, which devours the food instantly.

The sound of confrontation fills the air, a mother with her pre-teen daughter, are locked in a dispute. The hushed, slightly embarrassed voice of the girl is countered by the unyielding determined voice of her mother.
“But Mom, you wouldn’t understand! I NEED this skirt, everybody else has one just like it!” hisses the frustrated girl.
“I already told you, it costs way too much for way too little material. Maybe everyone else has one, but I will not let my daughter walk around wearing that.”

The argument continues as the older couple sits down in the table. They each hold their small bag from JcPenny’s and the husband carries a tray with two small Subway sandwiches on it. They casually take their seats across from each other and the husband hands his wife her meal. As they begin to eat slowly they talk calmly about their day of shopping and the random thoughts that just seem to pop up. They look around the food court and smile at the mothers rapidly escorting their children to the bathrooms, a glimmer comes to their eyes as if they were remembering back to a time when they did the same with their children. The horde of gossiping teenage girls pass quickly by talking in a manner so fast, it’s almost impossible to comprehend. Their pace and youthfulness parallel the manner of the older couple, and yet I question who is enjoying their time more.

As I observe this parallel of worlds, I wonder if it’s the difference in age that makes the difference or it just goes to show how much society has changed over time. How can we get to that relaxed carefree state that the older couple is at? Do we have to wait for our time to be that relaxed, or do we have to make our own time for relaxation to occur? Society has changed, that can’t be denied, we want everything and we want it now. Everyone seemed to be in a hurry to get somewhere, whether it be back home or to continue their shopping, people would order their food, quickly devour it, and then rush off to get to wherever they needed to be. Even though their dinner consisted of just two simple sandwiches, the couple took their time eating, talking, and reflecting on the events of the day. The old couple was content with their department store purchases, while the high school girls toted around their bags filled with designer clothes as the pre-teen begged her mother for an expensive skirt. This just goes to show how materialistic and fast-paced our society today can be. I think that sometimes it is okay to keep up the fast-paced style of life that we are used to living in. Sometimes this seems as if it might be necessary to keep up with what is going on in our world today. However, I think that many times we need to slow down, live in the moment and take things as they come like the older couple did.

The activity in the food court slows down after most of the people have gotten their food and rushed off to do better things. The older couple sitting in the table next to me slowly folds up the colorful yellow and green paper wrappers that were used to cover their now consumed sandwiches. As they make their way to the trash cans to throw away their leftover food and empty cups, the custodians shoot them a look of gratitude. Making their way to the doors I glance over at the various food places. The cook at the Hibachi San is cleans off the grill and takes the used wok to the back, the workers at Great Wraps pick up left over particles of food and deposit them into the trash behind the counter, and the cleaning ladies pick up their brooms and begin to sweep over the now trod on floor. I gather my things making one last note of the fluorescent lights that not long ago called on so many customers, are now dim and ready to retire for the night.