Everyone in the world has an attitude, and that attitude is expressed in everything we do. A huff of breath can show an annoyed attitude, a smile shows a happy one, and tears a sad one. It can be quite easy to observe the attitude of someone based on their visual cues, but though it can be more difficult when trying to discern an attitude from writing, it can still be done if you read carefully. Three examples of attitude in writing can be found in The Norton Mix, in the essays “Sex, Drugs, Disasters, and the Extinction of Dinosaurs” by Stephen Jay Gould, Neil Postman and Steve Powers’ “This Bias of Language, the Bias of Pictures”, and “The Big Movie” by Paul Chaat Smith. Gould displays a humorous attitude in his writing, Postman and Powers’ …show more content…
have a suspicious one, while Smith shows an attitude of bitterness. In his essay, Gould writes about three ways that the dinosaurs could have gone extinct.
He explores the theories that a rise in temperature could have made the reptiles of old infertile, or that the dinosaurs ate flowering plants that acted as drugs, causing the beasts to overdose. He goes on to examine a third theory, that of an asteroid hitting the earth and causing a cloud of smoke and dust to cover the sun, dropping temperatures and killing not only the dinosaurs, but much of the life that was present on the Earth at the time. Gould himself leans toward the last theory, citing evidence and research to back his point. All of this, he delivers with an air of humor, saying things such as “How can we possibly decide whether the hypothesis of testicular frying is right or wrong?” (par 21). While the theory of infertility of dinosaurs comes from the idea of rising heat, Gould’s wording here brings to mind a funny image rather than a worldwide epidemic. Using humor again, Gould says “If you talk just about asteroids, dust, and darkness, you simply tell stories no better and no more entertaining than fried testicles or terminal trips” (par 26). Not only does he cast aside the first two theories as useless frivolities, he sets the stage for proving why the asteroid theory is better, using humorous language to do so. A humorous essay such as Gould’s is fun to read, while keeping a basis in …show more content…
fact. A suspicious paper like the Postman and Powers’, on the other hand, is not, necessarily, as fun to read.
They delve into modern day media to dissect the language and pictures used in an effort to protect viewers from unconsciously being swayed by the attitudes therein. They go on to discuss how language can be manipulated, however unconsciously, to show the speaker’s true feelings on the subject. Pictures can likewise be manipulated, if only because they show only a small part of the larger image. They start their show of suspicion by saying “The question then arises: what do viewers have to know about language and pictures in order to be properly armed to defend themselves against the seductions of eloquence (to use Bertrand Russell’s apt phrase)?” (par 1). The idea that one needs to defend themselves automatically brings up a defensive, suspicious attitude. This is further reinforced when the reader is warned that “It means that the viewer must never assume that the words spoken on a television news show are exactly what happened” (par 3). A suspicious attitude in an essay brings about a suspicious attitude in the reader. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, after all suspicious minds are the least likely to be overtaken by half-truths and empty
promises. Paul Chaat Smith shows a different kind of attitude in his own essay. He writes about the Indian representation in Western movies, starting with the antics of William “Buffalo Bill” Cody, and moving on into modern day westerns, and how the Indian culture was misrepresented and badly portrayed, to the extent that the common man accepted this wrong portrayal of Indian’s as truth. Smith declares that “Some westerns demonstrate a real interest in Indians, but in most we exist as a metaphor” (par 40), a statement that shows how he feels about how the media uses Indians. He goes onto say about the media’s portrayal that “It says with perfect consistency that we are extinct, were never here anyway, that it was our fault because we couldn’t get with the program” (par 53), which is a rather bitter statement. Even though Smith does try not to show his bitterness, is slips through in his wording, and show’s his true feelings on the subject. Whether an attitude is humorous like Gould’s, suspicious like Postman and Power’s, or bitter as Smith’s, the audience can observe it through the language of the author. While to some this may seem at first glance as a waste of time, in reality it is a useful skill. A careful reader can use the author’s attitude to determine how biased or not the article is, and can in turn decide for themselves how to embrace the material, rather than take the author’s word for gospel.
Judy blume use these Rhetorical Strategies in a virtuous way to guide her audience threw every thought process every emotion in the article , every thought that makes you think and reflect on what you just read and how it makes you feel and see society has what it really is. Blume article is really well write, she knows what say that is not to over the top to come off bitter and rude against the censors. blume is asking us to re think the way in which is when something is unknown and controversial to us, that we would shy away but instead, take it head on and embrace it immerse our self’s in it and explain it to our younger generation and educate them on the unknown to so can bark on their own quest and expand their minds.
The mass media has an essential role in today’s society as a channel of valuable information. Lots of people rely on media as the epicenter of information and as the yardstick on which they form their decisions and opinions (Agner, 1999). Any selection of messages in the mass media would have a profound impact on the entire society, this is according to Cultural selection theory. In the short story “Gray Noise”, Rojo uses this story to express his annoyance toward technology, but more specifically his most effective critic is on how society has overpowered valuable news with “dramaturgically crafted news” (Vettehen) and competition while desensitizing their viewers. Since competition has also stiffened up in are of mass media as the attention of readers, TV-viewers and listeners are fought for by every journalist. For this reason, every news media has turned to other strategies such as scandal-mongering and entertainment as tools of making a profit since a large audience is assured of such news even if they are not correct. Rojo’s views on critics of technology are widely shared among many people including the authors of the following studies, “Research Note: Sensationalism in Dutch Current Affairs Programmes by Paul Hendriks Vettehen
Pathos is the appeal to an audience’s emotion. Aside from the other two appeals that I have outlined in this essay, pathos is by far the most recognizable appeal in Lamott’s article. The humorous tone of the article is very easily recognized and frankly, it is hard not to laugh at some of Lamott’s uncalled-for sarcastic remarks (whether it be in your head or out loud). For example, when writing about how every writer she knows never writes an elegant first draft, she continues, “All right, one of them does, but we do not like her very much. We do not think that she has a rich inner life or that God likes her or can even stand her” (1). By making such presumptuous claims about this person, some audiences might find this type of language comical or entertaining, which in turn makes them want to believe Lamott and continue reading. In a way this helps Lamott seem credible to some readers, in which case she has created a successful argument. On the other hand, some readers might find this kind of language unprofessional and inappropriate. Because much of the article deals with language that is full of humor and sarcasm, it would make sense to say that Lamott has directed this article towards an audience who is looking for something more entertaining than a typical statistic-filled essay that one might consider mainstream in this field. Whether it be entertaining or absurd, Lamott most definitely uses the appeal of pathos in her
Through manipulation and lies, media manages to modify objective news into biased news in order to convince the public of what the media wants them to believe. The article, “How the Media Twist the News”, by Sheila Gribben Liaugminas discusses the major influence that news has on readers based on their choice of stories and words. “How the Media Twists the News” has borrowed from multiple other texts such as the books like Public Opinion and Liberty and News, news magazine writers such as Ruderman, and news networks like CBS through Bias, A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News and CNN to make her arguments valid and prove that the news is biased and that it does influence readers significantly because of it.
Everyday we observe people’s contrasting opinions. Whether it be in politics, school, or in one’s personal life, emotions are often a major factor when it comes to expressing one’s ideas. In writing, an audience must be aware this, and decide for themselves if an author is being bias or equally representing all sides to a situation. In both Into the Wild and In Cold Blood, the authors form distinct opinions about their main characters and believe family structure heavily influenced their future.
“Sex, Drugs, Disasters, and the Extinction of Dinosaurs” is written by Stephen Jay Gould, professor of geology and zoology at Harvard. This essay is one of more than a hundred articles on evolution, zoology, and paleontology published by Gould in national magazines and journals. It tells about scientific proposals for the extinction of dinosaurs – a confusing but an exciting problem that humanity tries to solve. By analyzing and describing each of the claims for the reptiles’ demise – sex, drugs, and disasters – Gould differentiates bad science from good science and explains what makes some theories silly speculations, while the other, a testable hypothesis.
He brings in an angry, yet defensive mechanism to persuade the viewer. He says, “However, my behavior doesn't make it right for the media to follow my 2½-year-old daughter to school and report the school's location. They staked out my wife and pursued my mom.” He states this to reinforce how unnecessary it is to stalk his family, especially his immediate family. He mentions how the media watches his wife and mother to display his disgust about the press. He pleads, “please leave my wife and kids alone.” This statement highlights the negative effects of the press on the families of public figures. He is claiming that how he deals with his personal life is something he and his family can decide, not the press. Displaying his anger for the press makes the reader and viewer feel sorry for him and what he had to go through after the affairs with the press. Showing his anger about the actions of the press is another way he tries to persuade the audience watching.
In the second chapter of Lies My Teacher Told Me Lowen argues that electronic media has decisively and irriversibly changed the character of our environment. He believes that we are now a culture whose information, ideas and epistemology are given form by televison not by the printed word. Loewen describes how discourse in America is now different from what it once was. Loewwen says discourse was once logical, serious, and rational and now under the governance of television it is shriveled and absurd. In addition, he writes about the definitions of truth and the sources in which the definitions come from. Loewen shows how the bias of a medium is unseen throughout a culture and he gives three examples of truth telling.
Owens and Sawhill use pathos to evoke the feelings of their readers. This method establishes
We use dinosaurs to represent the changes in nature that have occurred throughout time. Studies found that although the “oldest rock did not show evidence of life, the progression of plant and animal life that changed in recognizable intervals, from ancient life, age of reptiles to the age of mammals” (Dino Nature Metaphor, slide 6), measured the age of the earth. When we think of dinosaurs in relation to nature, we think of that very powerful force that controls the cycle of life. Nature was able to yield such magnificent ferocious creatures that walked the earth and then take them back when they served nature’s purpose. Dinosaurs fit perfectly in nature’s constant
In his argument, Postman described how technology is affecting our way of thinking. The main suspect in this case is television. In his book, Postman pointed out one of the significant facts in the twentieth century, which was: “the decline of the Age of Typography and the ascendancy of the Age of Television”(8). As soon as the shift began, the social institutions involved in printed content were forced to learn the language of the television. Since television’s content is entertainment-oriented, serious forms of public discussions were also modified to be more entertaining. Postman believes that, “whatever the original and limited of its use may have been, a medium has the power to fly far beyond that context into new and unexpected ones”(18). When exposed to writing, humans’ minds are still able to respond with a critical reaction. But that is not the case with television and modern-day media. This is because of what Postman described as “media-metaphor”. He suggested that the media works like a metaphor, giving us powerful implications to enforce their definition of reality. Many television programs and advertisement are inexplicitly telling us
...d Elisava in Barcelona respectively, and who wish to remain anonymous, I can determine that my conclusion is valid, as all these factors play a role when pre-establishing ideas and making contradictions. I can also state that it is in fact, a form of manipulation, as it makes the audience pre-establish ideas about certain things and then judge others.
The nature of human communication requires that only a certain number of details may be expressed. A photograph leaves out what is beyond its frame, statistical data generalizes answers into categories to make results meaningful, and words distinguish between specific concepts to present ideas. The author of a written work chooses the details to express not only what they want, but how they want the audience to feel about it. I will analyze what the author chooses to include and to ignore in The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky and “Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemmingway.
One problem that plagues us everyday without us even realizing it is media bias. We see it in the news. We see it on our favorite sitcoms. We read it everyday in the paper. Yet, we really don't recognize it when we hear it or see it. Media bias is evident in every aspect of the media, yet the problem is that we don't even recognize it when it is right in front of our faces. Are the impressions that we form about individuals a product of the media? Do we form certain opinions about particular types of people based solely on the things we see and hear in the media everyday without even realizing it? The problem is not only that there is media bias present, but also that we can't recognize it when we see it.
Althusser (1971) explains that, as an ideological state apparatus, media doesn’t use pressure as a way to bind society together under one dominant ideology, but instead uses the will of the people to make them accept the dominant ideology. However, media is also used as a way for people to challenge the dominant ideology. Newspapers, for example, will have articles that openly criticise and oppose the dominant ideology for what it is, whilst at the same time providing perspectives and opinions on different ideologies (such as feminism) that society can believe in. Although these alternate ideological perspectives exist, they are usually overlooked and only ever reach small audiences. Ideology can also help us understand the media because of the way in which it distributes ideology.