Rhetorical Visions in the Film, American History X
“Hate is baggage. Life's too short to be pissed off all the time”. This is a quote from the film American History X. This film sends out a powerful message about hate groups such as skinheads and Neo-Nazis. The vision of this movie is to make others aware of the complex life of a skinhead. Through different symbolism we see how society views this group. We also are made aware of the continuous cycle of violence that continues to exist even after a powerful leader changes his view.
American History X is important to analyze because it shows how one man’s rhetorical vision changes through life experiences. This film depicts the lifestyles of skinheads and how one person with a vision leads others to worship everything he is and everything he believes in. How can a leader with so much rhetorical vision and passion about one thing change over a period of time? The importance of this film is to observe how a character develops. It also shows a social and psychological issue that has been around for many years and how it only takes one person to change how a group thinks.
I will attempt to answer the research question by using Bormann’s Symbolic Convergence Theory and Fantasy Theme. The goal of this paper is to “provide insight in the shared worldview of a group of rhetors” (Bormann as cited in Foss 121). I will also show repeated phrases that lead to different rhetorical visions. I will explain how fantasy types emerge and also how symbolism reflects the rhetorical visions.
The first part of my paper will include two different literary reviews that have been done on fantasy themes. One of them specifically deals with hate groups and how th...
... middle of paper ...
...spectives (1999):
Vol. 1 Issue 3: p19, 4p. Academic Premier. InfoTrac. Scarborough-
Phillips Lib., Austin, TX. 20 Feb. 2004.
Benoit, William L., et al. “A Fantasy Theme Analysis of Political Cartoons on the
Clinton-Lewinsky-Starr Affair.” Critical Studies in Media Communication.
Vol.18, No.4, December 2001, 377-394.
Billingsley, Robert D. “Hard working youngsters or Nazi thugs?” Federal Probation;
Sep. 93, Vol 57, Issue 3. p88, 2p. Psychology and Behavioral Sciences
Collection. InfoTrac. Scarborough-Phillips Lib., Austin, TX 20 Feb. 2004.
Duffy, Margaret E. “Web of Hate: A Fantasy Theme Analysis of the Rhetorical
Vision of Hate Groups On Line.” Journal of Communication Inquiry 27:3
(July 2003): 291-312.
Foss, Sonja K. Rhetorical Criticism: Exploration & Practice. (2nd Edition). Illinois
Heights: Waveland Press. 1989.
A president has to have character, right? I mean, if the leader of the free world has no substance, nothing special about him, then how do we as citizens know that he is capable as far as foreign policies go. How do we know that we can trust him to make wise decisions? How do we know that he will tell us the truth? This concept is exactly what fictional president Andrew Shepherd successfully conveys in his “Address to the Press on Bob Rumson and the Crime Bill.” In the movie, The American President, Andrew Shepherd becomes romantically involved with crime bill lobbyist Sydney Ellen Wade. Many characters, including Bob Rumson, believe that the relationship between Shepherd and Wade is hindering the advancement of the country. They believe that this relationship shows lack of character, and it is made apparent to Shepherd through the side comments and actions of those opposing him. In the closing scenes of the movie, Shepherd is found defending himself and his character through the form of a rhetorical speech. He convincingly uses pathos to appeal to his audience’s sense of nationality and pride.
A critical analysis of the four fundamental patterns of knowing in nursing is essential for nurses to be able to grasp the complicated nature of the nursing practice. Barbara Carper (1978) lists the four patterns of knowing as: empirics, esthetics, personal knowledge, and ethics or moral knowledge (p.14). The science of nursing is called empirics and the connection of art to nursing is referred to as esthetics (Carper, 1978, p.14). These patterns are four very complex areas of nursing that every nurse must consider in order to be as successful as possible in providing care. In this evaluation the author will discuss how these concepts affect present learning and practice.
The Birth of a Nation (1915) is one of the most controversial movies ever made in Hollywood, some people even consider it the most controversial movie in the long history of Hollywood. Birth of a Nation focuses on the Stoneman family and their friendship with the Cameron’s which is put into question due to the Civil War, and both families being on different sides. The whole dysfunction between the families is carried out through important political events such as: Lincoln’s assassination, and the birth of the Ku Klux Kan. D.W. Griffith is the director of the movie, and him being born into a confederate family in the South, the movie portrays the South as noble and righteous men, who are fighting against the evil Yankees from the North, who have black union soldiers among them, whom overtake the town of Piedmont, which leads the KKK to take action and according to the movie become the savior of white supremacy. During this essay, I would focus on the themes of racial inequality, racism, and the archetypical portrayal of black people in the movie, which are significant especially during the era when the film was released.
American History X is a great film that delivers a very strong message about deviant behavior. The story of Derek Vineyard and Danny inspires a lot in terms of changing the deviant behavior through various social concepts. The film shows good application of these theories and it involves the audience into a gripping tale of the change one hoes through to fight deviance and get through the tough journey of correcting oneself and choosing the right path.
There exist so many different societies and cultures in this world. Some like to discover and learn about new people and their ways of living but others can not seem to understand how a certain group of people can live in a different way from how they are living themselves. They simply do not want to accept other societies or cultures which can create clashes. This is something that was created socially, mainly by how people perceive ideas and other faces they are not quite used to. What are the causes of somebody looking at different cultures negatively? What issues can this type of thinking cause and what can we do to minimize it in today’s society? We will try to answer these questions by analyzing the movie “American History X.”
The idea behind conforming to evidenced based practices is that research is the most likely tool to improve patient
... is the brutality of hate and racism. The emotions running high in the movie makes it powerful and moving and the death of Derek’s younger brother Danny Vinyard is shocking enough to bring tears to many viewers’ eyes. The movie ends with Danny’s voice reading his paper out loud and he ends his paper with a very important quote by Abraham Lincoln. This quote shows how Danny’s, as well as Derek’s, mindset changed from the beginning of the movie to the end. When hearing this quote it leaves the viewers in awe that Danny finally started to look past his hateful ideologies but ends up dead because of the lifestyle him and his brother decided to lead. “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained we must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be by the better angels of our nature”.
The White Savior Complex is a damaging subconscious underlay of the Hollywood system, and more broadly all of western society. It is used to further separate the notions of “us” and “other” by creating a firm separation fueled by self-righteousness, and a sense of entitlement. Hollywood attempts to address race relations, but fails because of this trope. Kingsle, from the article “Does My Hero Look White In This?” described that both racism and colonialism are acknowledged, but not without reassuring that not only were white people against the system of racist power dynamics, but also were actively fighting against it in leadership roles (2013). In the remainder of my essay I will be commenting on many modern films and their use on this trope, and why subscribing to this filmmaking strategy is problematic.
When we think of hard times in today’s world, our thoughts might consist of the number of days before we get paid, an argument with our spouse, or simply that our car is not operating so great these days. Most people today can not begin to imagine what hard times were like during the Industrial Revolution. In nineteenth century England, hard times to the factory workers may have consisted of watching one’s nine-year-old child tied to a machine in the mill for fourteen hours a day. It is no wonder why the writers of this period protested society through the voices of their writings. One of the greatest of these writers was Charles Dickens, who made his voice of protest through a literary masterpiece known as Hard Times. There are many aspects of Hard Times, and Dickens manages to capture what life was like for all of the social classes of his day through each individual character with his protests against the horrible ways in which people were treating one another in the times that truly were hard.
Hard Times by Charles Dickens was published in 1854. Dickens vividly depicts the various social issues of his time, and his critical view is reflected in the story. Unlike the majority of the children at that time, Dickens was fortunate enough to attend private school. He wrote this story to voice sympathy for children who had to follow the biased education system that emphasizes facts and concrete logical thinking. Dickens shows his dislike of the system through use of language, setting, and character development over abstract ideas, and creativity imagination.
...ewarded. However, most of the characters cannot be labeled good or bad, and some of their fates turned out different from what was expected. For example, Mr. Blackpool died, Mr. Gradgrind had to depend on the circus, one of the things he despised because of its fancy, to save the life of one of his children just to have him die anyway, and Louisa never has a family of her own. However, they were able to have some sorts of happiness within their troubled lives.
I love how Coldplay decided to make their album cover look like a battle they were trying to fight. The women on top holding the French Flag looks like it demonstrates victory, which in Coldplay’s position, accomplishment for creating a new album. I feel like the album is a good example that demonstrates what they were going through since they were “fighting” to create an amazing album for fans since before Via La Vida, Coldplay hadn’t created an album with new released songs in almost 3 year. The scrip of “ Viva La Vida” stands out to viewers since its scripted in Bold & White reflecting on the background of the war scene.
Charles Dickens lived in England during the 19th century, during a period of rapid economic growth when the industrial revolution was in full swing. Industrial cities sprung up throughout England, sustained solely by their factories, which furiously churned out wealth and merchandise and employed thousands of working class citizens. The living and working conditions for factory laborers in these towns were extremely poor, and the wealthy bourgeoisie prospered marvelously by greedily exploiting their employees, unfortunate people who toiled long hours in grimy factories to barely earn their subsistence. Utilitarianism was a prevalent viewpoint during this period of industrial frenzy, for it embraced the values of practicality and efficiency; and the success and survival of the participants of industrial society often depended on these standards. Dickens was disgusted with the single-mindedness of his society and with the dreary, inanimate atmosphere that accompanied it. In his novel Hard Times, an ongoing struggle ensues between the ideas of `fact' and `fancy'-- or the `head' and `heart.' The rivalry between these philosophies is a central theme to the Hard Times, not to mention a fundamental crux of human existence as well. Should an individual base his life on fact and rationality, or should he live by the whims of his imagination and fancy, following his heart? Dickens advances this theme persistently throughout the Hard Times, employing frequent use of descriptive imagery and metaphor throughout novel to animate the conflict between Fact and Fancy, and the result of this emphasis is a broader, encompassing critique of industrialized society in general.
Supernatural elements – religious figures and activities, ghosts, witches, and anthropomorphized animals among others – have been used throughout the history of literature from its origins in oral folktales to Shakespeare’s plays to Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series. Throughout the history of literature, supernatural elements have been useful in developing themes that reflect the nature of humanity. Supernatural elements are often used to outline and comment on conflict and power struggles: both within the plot of the work and within society at the time of the work’s publication. These otherworldly components are also commonly used to adapt, expand upon, and make a work of literature more applicable to its settings. Supernatural elements also play a r...
In order for the petitioner to get divorce, he/she needs to prove the marriage has “broke down irretrievably” and it must proven by one of the following factors: Respondent had committed adultery; It would be unreasonable for the petitioner to live with the respondent for their behaviour; Desertion; They have been lived apart for continuously 2 years with consent or 5 years without consent .