TOW #6- Visual Text: Political Cartoon by Stantis

     Scott Stantis created this political cartoon for the Chicago Tribune in September regarding the refugee crisis in the Middle East.  Europe had been the destination for many fleeing refugees who had lost everything due to the crisis.  Because of its location, it was a perfect place for desperate refugees to go.  However, as many Serbian refugees were planning to cross over the border to get to Croatia, the connection and flow ended abruptly when Croatia ended road links to Serbia.  This ended the Serbians' ability to find refuge in the European countries that they thought would become safe shelters.  The illustrator of this political cartoon, Scott Stantis, is an editorial cartoonist for the Chicago Tribune.  The audience of this cartoon would be Croatians because he is trying to emphasize the abruptness of Croatia's decision to take back its invitation to the refugees from the Middle East.  Stantis accomplishes this purpose through the use of contrasting colors and irony.  The brick wall in the cartoon represents the Croatian decision to end their invitation to refugees into the country, where refugees were once welcomed.  The welcome mat in front of the brick wall represents how welcoming they first acted towards the refugees.  The irony used by Stantis in the cartoon between the welcome mat and the brick wall shows the abruptness of Croatia's decision to close its borders when they originally made a decision to allow refugees into their country just a day prior.  The contrast in the yellow color of the welcome mat and the black color that represents European territory  emphasizes how abruptly and quickly the decision was changed.  By revealing the effects of this decision on the refugees, Stantis accomplishes his purpose.  The cartoon helps the audience understand that the change of decision led many refugees to having doors slammed in their faces.  The severity of this decision is shown to be devastating for the refugees who have no where else to go.

TOW #5- Article: The Parent Who Wants to Fall Asleep

One of the most difficult tasks to accomplish is to put little kids to sleep at their bedtime.  In an article from The New Yorker, Rebecca Mead uses allusions and comparisons to show parents why the newest bedtime story, The Rabbit Who Wants to Fall Asleep, isn't worth their money.  Her audience is parents with little kids because through the article, Mead tries to convince parents why the book is not a good bedtime story to be reading to their children.  One way she does this is through allusions and comparisons to other popular stories.  For example, she alludes to Peter Rabbit when she writes, "...Peter Rabbit demonstrates that children can be enthralled by a good story even when its vocabulary might be regarded as demanding.  (Peter becomes entangled in Mr. McGregor's gooseberry netting and almost gives himself up for lost. 'But his sobs were overheard by some friendly sparrows, who flew o him in great excitement, and implored him to exert himself,' Potter writes, in one of my favorite passages in literature.)" (Mead para. 4)  Mead uses the allusion to Peter Rabbit to compare a classic bedtime story with a new one that doesn't quite live up to the standards of good literature for children.  She shows the difference in vocabulary used in each bedtime story.  She also explains the importance of challenging language in children's books so parents understand why the new bedtime story isn't worth reading to their kids.  Also, the author alludes to the story Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown when she writes, "Brown's masterpiece, first published in 1947, manages to be both warmly reassuring and transcendently awe-inspiring at the same time: it might have been subtitled 'A New Way of Giving Children an Insight into the Human Condition While Introducing Poetry Into Their Souls.'" (Mead para. 6)  By emphasizing the greatness that this bedtime story has achieved to help kids grow as readers, Mead compares Goodnight Moon to The Rabbit Who Wants to Fall Asleep by showing the differences in their poetic style.  Mead conveys to the audience that although the new bedtime story can make a child fall asleep, it does not accomplish the job of a children's story, which is to help them grow as young readers.  Using allusions and comparisons to famous texts also makes an appeal to ethos because the author of the article uses other famous and well-known texts to compare to The Rabbit Who Wants to Fall Asleep.  Mead accomplishes her purpose by using strategies to appeal to the audience, the parents, that the new bedtime story that everyone has been talking about isn't all it's made out to be.

TOW #4- IRB POST "Freakonomics"

After reading about one half of this book, I am thrilled that I chose it.  The intriguing studies that are collected by this author have made me think about things like the similarities between teachers and sumo wrestlers or the KKK and real-estate agents.  Steven D. Levitt, one of the authors of "Freakonomics" is an economist, and Stephen J. Dubner, the other author, is a writer.  Together they have created this unique book that has blown my mind several times already.  The authors use a variety of rhetorical devices in order to intrigue readers and provoke thought about trends in the world.  Their audience is the general public because it isn't geared towards economists specifically.  In one of their chapters, the authors discuss the similarities that can be drawn between sumo wrestlers and teachers through the analysis of each person's use of incentives and cheating.  In the introduction of this chapter, the authors use repetition to relate to their audience.  They write, "If you toddle over to the hot stove and touch it, you burn a finger.  But if you bring home straight A's from school you get a new bike.  If you are spotted picking your nose in class, you get ridiculed..." (Dubner, Levitt 16).  This section continues on for a half of a page repeating the same phrase over and over.  The authors use an "if, then" pattern to show the audience that incentives are all around them.  Through this rhetorical device, they prove to the reader that incentives and the way people react to them are happening everyday all around them.  Another rhetorical device used in this chapter is rhetorical questions.  The authors use these questions to make the reader come to a realization of their own.  For example, when talking about the incentives behind not doing something, the authors bring up prostitution.  They write, "Which is a more horrifying deterrent: a $500 fine for soliciting a prostitute or the thought of your friends and family ogling you on www.HookersAndJohns.com?" (Dubner, Levitt 18)  Through this rhetorical question, readers understand why the use of shaming convicted johns or prostitutes publicly is such a successful incentive.  By utilizing these two rhetorical devices successfully, the authors can accomplish their purpose of intriguing the reader as well as getting their reader to think about the crazy connections made in the book.

TOW #3 - Visual Text: Gieco

           Many people would recognize this gecko anywhere.  This advertisement is for Geico, an auto insurance company.  Gieco Insurance has been around since 1936 and the famous gecko first appeared in 1999.  The popular slogan, "15 minutes could save you 15% on car insurance," isn't their only catchphrase.  A very successful ad campaign that was run before the gecko included the slogan, "So easy, a caveman could do it."  Geico's marketing strategies have been inviting customers in for a very long time.  The purpose of this advertisement is to convince readers to buy Geico's insurance.  I believe that the creator of the ad accomplishes his or her purpose through the use of appeals to pathos.  Before the slogan is mentioned the ad says, "You Know The Lyrics."  This line helps the ad  create a personal connection to the audience.  When the audience sees this ad, they will remember the slogan and feel a sense of inclusion with Geico's company and with the gecko.  It's important to note the intended audience with this advertisement.  Anyone with the need for auto insurance would be included in the audience.  However, many people who don't need auto insurance, such as children, would recognize this ad in an instant.  The spread their image and slogan to everyone, even people who don't need insurance, will help increase their customer following.  Another way the creator of this ad accomplishes his or her purpose is through the use of the slogan.  The Geico slogan makes an appeal to pathos by connecting to the wants and needs of the audience.  The general public is very busy, and we are always rushing around trying to get everything done as quickly as possible.  In the ad, Geico assures the audience that they will only take 15 minutes of their time to get a quote.  By connecting to the needs of the audience, the ad appeals to pathos.  Through strategies of the appeals, the creator of this ad effectively accomplishes his or her purpose.

TOW #2- Article: "Like the Syrians, I Fled My Country"

This article was written for The Washington Post by Mikra Krasniqi.  He wrote about his experiences fleeing his home country, Kosovo, in 1998.  Throughout the text, Krasniqi compares his account of refugee camps to the situation that millions of Syrians are facing in the present day.  Krasniqi is a writer who worked for the United Nations and studied at Harvard University.  Although it is important to recognize that the author is well educated, I believe that there is more to his credibility.  It is more important that he has lived through the same experiences as the Syrians are going through.  His credibility comes from his knowledge of life as a refugee.  Most of the text uses anecdotes to appeal to ethos.  Krasniqi writes to his audience about the ways of life as a refugee who had to flee his home country.  The purpose he has in writing this is to educate people about the reasons why people flee their countries as well as convince them to be more understanding and welcoming to those who need somewhere to go.  His audience is Europeans and Americans who have the opportunity to help Syrians feel safe.  He expresses this purpose in multiple ways throughout the text.  Through the anecdotes of his fleeing experience, Krasniqi appeals to pathos by showing the audience what life was like as a refugee.  He writes, "By late afternoon, hundreds of Serbian soldiers had infiltrated our town of 1,000.  They lit homes on fire and shoved people into trucks at gunpoint.  Their message to us was clear: Leave." (Krasniqi para. 9)  By sharing this anecdote, the author appeals to pathos because he makes the audience feel some of the fear that refugees must face every day.  His audience is more likely to feel sympathetic towards refugees if they understand their story and what they had to go through in their home country.  This contributes to his purpose by helping to convince Americans and Europeans to help Syrian refugees when given the opportunity.  Another strategy that the author utilizes is asyndeton.  The author uses this strategy when he explains his feelings during his time spent at the refugee camp.  Krasniqi writes, "Though we were finally out of danger, I felt depressed, heartbroken, hopeless."  (Krasniqi para. 13)  By using this rhetorical strategy, the author can make an appeal to pathos by expressing the feeling of hopelessness to his audience.  When reading this sentence, the audience feels the weight of each word as it is written.  Each word contributes to a feeling of hopelessness that helps the audience understand why it is important to help the refugees.  By using all of these strategies, I believe the author accomplishes his purpose by making the readers rethink how they act towards Syrian refugees after reading this text.

TOW #1- Article: "Trauma Needs a Witness"

“Trauma Needs a Witness” was written by Alison Carper, a psychologist from New York, about a patient discovery and breakthrough.  Paul, a patient of Alison’s, suffered through an abusive childhood, but never talked in detail about it with his psychologist.  He always seemed as if he wasn’t affected immensely by the trauma he experienced.  This wall that he put up between himself and the world was unhealthy, causing him to still feel tense when he heard an argument, and still freeze up whenever his wife narrowed an eyebrow.  Alison found that when Paul opened up about his abusive experiences, they were mostly about instances in which a witness was present.  Through this discovery, Alison could more appropriately handle Paul’s emotions toward his abuse, and get him to open up about it with her.  I think this text was written to any other psychologists who feel the same way with their patients.  Hopefully, after reading this, they can try to use this technique on their own patients to get them to open up about trauma in the past. 

The purpose of this piece was to explain to the audience that trauma is better handled when there is a witness present.  The victim would feel less at fault for the abuse if someone else is seeing it and telling them that it is wrong of the abusers to be treating them a certain way.  I think that Carper accomplished her purpose by communicating the information using rhetorical strategies.  She uses a simile when describing her connection with her patient once she broke through to him.  Carper writes, “And if I still sense, on occasion, a distance between us, I feel freer to talk about it.  When I do, the distance shrinks, like shadow exposed to light.” (Carper para. 16) This use of imagery and a simile helps Carper accomplish her purpose.  By conveying to the audience how she can easily and openly talk about the distance between her and her patient, she shows the success of her breakthrough.  By searching for traumatic events that were witnessed, and then talking about the patient’s abuse from that point, Carper experiences this breakthrough with Paul that she has not seen before.  I'm very curious to see if this technique is carried out by different psychologists, and is deemed successful.  Thanks to Carper, there may be a new way of handling closed-off patients who have experiences of damaging trauma in their past.

IRB Intro Post #1

Freakonomics is a book that I recently came across by suggestion from a classmate.  Although I have never heard about it before this past week, I feel like I will really enjoy this novel.  The book was written by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner.  Levitt is an economics professor at the University of Chicago and also won the John Bates Clark Medal, which awards influential economists for their work.  Dubner is a former editor and writer at The New York Times Magazine.  This book covers studies performed about everyday life, not just economic situations.  I think a book like this will be perfect for me.  However, after hearing just the title, I wasn't so sure.  I have never been a fan of economics, or studying the economy.  After reading only the back of the book, though, I was immediately intrigued.  This book covers much more than just economic studies.  The author takes the information he finds, and reveals a different way of looking at something or thinking about something.  Of course, the author does include applications of that information to the economy.  I am really excited to dive in to this book, and I hope I will gain some new knowledge about economics in the process.