michaelpeters5-blog

[michaelpeters5-blog]

Rhetoric to Me

Though the study of different theories of rhetoric in Comm 380, Rhetorical Traditions, I have learned a lot about the topic. In this essay I will highlight how my definition of rhetoric has changed from the start of the course to the end. In the beginning of this course rhetoric to me was not verbal, but a connection through thought and action. I defined it as “communication through knowledge and common action, coming from a shared thought or idea.”After studying theories of rhetoric for the past 14 weeks I have concluded a more specific definition of rhetoric. Now I believe rhetoric is “a communication tool that can be used in speech, writing, or action to affect the way an audience perceives an idea or concept.”

Throughout this course, my idea of what rhetoric is has changed multiple times, but this process eventually lead me to evolve my definition. At the start of our journey of the study of rhetoric we read and analyzed Booths reading “How Many Rhetorics?”. In this piece Booth share the complexity of rhetoric and defining it. In his opening paragraph of this article he says, “No one definition will ever pin rhetoric down. As Aristotle insisted, in the first major work about it - The Art of Rhetoric - rhetoric has no specific territory or subject matter of its own, since it is found everywhere.” (Booth, 3). After reading this quote and the rest of the passage, I threw all my preconceived ideas of rhetoric out the window. While this left me completely lost and worried about the course being centered around a subject that has no set definition, it was a very important first step in understanding rhetoric. Booth in his reading opened up my mind to consider all viewpoints of theorist, allowing me to formulate my own ideas and definition of rhetoric.

Pericles, The Funeral Oration, a speech delivered by the democratic leader of Athens that uses rhetoric to honor the soldiers to bring the people of Athens together while honoring those who died fighting in the war with Sparta. Pericles speech played a big role in strengthening my final definition of rhetoric. In this speech Pericles spends most of the time not talking about those who passed defending their city but on the city itself. He uses rhetoric as a tool to bring people together when he says, “I would prefer is that you should fix your eyes everyday on the greatness of Athens as she really is, and should fall in love with her. When you realize her greatness, then reflect that what made her great was men with a spirit of adventure, men who knew their duty, men who were ashamed to fall below a certain standard.”What Pericles means when stating this is that the people of Athens are what made their city so great, men that loved their city so much they were ashamed not fall below it standard. This use of rhetoric fits my definition because he is changing the way his audience, the people of Athens, see their society and sheds some positive light on a hard time.

Bruke was another theorist that really help shape my final definition. One quote that he uses in his reading “Reading in Rhetorical Criticism” was, “Do we simply use words, or do they not also use us?” What Bruke means when saying this is that when we have an idea that we try to promote and share, it is not our own, all ideas come from somewhere else. How we perceive that idea is where it becomes personal to us. this quote was important when concluding my idea of rhetoric because he is talking about the spread of thoughts or ideas through speech and how it is used like a tool. I define rhetoric as a tool to affect the way an audience sees an idea or concept and by Burke saying this supports my claim. The way Burke perceives rhetoric is as a powerful yet destructive tool that “Brainwashes” people to act in the way the rheterion wants, which is much like my idea of what rhetoric is.

Rhetoric is “a communication tool that can be used in speech, writing, or action to affect the way an audience perceives an idea or concept.” Wheather we like it or not we all use rhetoric in positive and negitive ways, and as human beings we all percive rhetoric differently based off our past expirences. These are the reasons why there is not a set definition of rhetoric because no two people think alike and by trying to spread your idea of what it is, is in fact a use of rhetoric itself. Rhetoric is nothing but a tool or stratigey to make people think and share the same ideas and concepts and a set definition will never be atained.

Work Cited

Burke, Reading in Rhetorical Criticism (3rd Ed.) ed. Carl R. Burgchardt, Colorado State University, 2005. Strata publishing, inc

Booth, Wayne C. The Rhetoric of Rhetoric. 2004. Malden, MP Blackwell Publishing

Pericles, The Funeral Oration. A Synoptic History of Classical Rhetoric (2nd Ed.) ed. J.J. Murphy and R.A. Katula. Hermagoras press, 1994

[michaelpeters5-blog]

In this entry, I will examine the critical questions: What gender norm is constructed or undone in this artifact, how is it performed, and/or how does it promote a dominant ideology over a marginalized group or push back against the ideology or gender norms?

The artifact that I will be using to answer these critical questions is the song I’ll Name the Dogs by Blake Shelton. The song shares to its audience that gender roles/norms are set preconceived ideas in society, which is counterproductive as it promotes a dominant ideology over the feminine group.

Blake Shelton is a very popular country singer and television personality, who in his song I’ll Name the Dogs sings about getting married and the life that they will be living after.

Butler, Judith (2004) explains that  “For gender to be a norm suggest that it is always and only tenuously embodied by any particular social actor.” The concept of deconstructing gender is what Bulter is trying to get us to understand when saying this because of the fact that there is no substantial reason gender should cause an individual to act a certain way.

Blake Shelton constructs the gender norm that men play a more dominant role than women in a relationship. This is shown in the main chorus of I’ll Name the Dogs and is repeated throughout the song.

One of the gender norms that Blake Shelton constructs is that men are the primary earners in a relationship. He does this when saying “you pick the spot and I’ll find the money'' promoting the idea that men are more dominant than women because they are financially in control. This pushes against the idea of gender reconstruction by saying the man's job is to make money while the women is to spend it. We as a society have moved toward the idea of gender reconstruction and away from this norm in that as time has passed more and more women have taken over the role of breadwinner in their relationships.

Another gender norm built on in the song is that females are supposed to always look good and focus on their physical appearance. The line “you be the pretty and I’ll be the funny” promotes the idea that women should always look good while men can get away with just acting funny. This is another case where I think gender reconstruction has occurred because in today's world men have increasingly given more care to their appearance moving away from this norm.

The next norm that Blake empathizes in his song is that women need to decorate and create an attractive atmosphere. He promotes this idea when he says “you plant the flowers and I’ll plant the kisses”. Here Blake constructs the idea that women should do the gardening because flowers are feminine so they should know more about them than males. When connecting this to Butler’s idea gender reconstruction, while flowers are still a symbol of feminine style there is not reason that gardening should be limited to just the female's role.

The last gender norm promoted in I’ll Name the Dogs I that men are the handy ones in the house and know how to fix things. He shows this in the last line of the chorus where he states “I’ll put a little swing on the front porch if you put a little tea in my glass”. This also promotes that men are the dominant ones by demonstrating control in saying “I will do this if you serve me.”. This also promotes that women are dependent on males to be able to fix and build things around the house. The concept of gender reconstruction applies here because there are many women who have skills to fixing and building things and men who are not.  

To these gender norms, there are both ways that they promote a dominant ideology over a marginalized group and push back against it. It promotes the dominant ideology that men are the superior one in a relationship but it also pushes back in that there are also area when men are limited. For example when he says “you be the pretty and I’ll be the funny” Blake is limiting the idea that men can look good and focus on their image. Also when Blake says “you plant the flowers I’ll plant the kisses” he is limiting males by saying yard work is a woman's job, which is not the case in reality.

(Chodorow, 1997; Gilligan, 1982; Ruddick, 1989) touch on how gender roles have changed since women have gained more rights by saying “while the historical conditions for women have changed in many ways, their primary social roles have not”. This applies to Blake Shelton’s I’ll Name the Dogs because this song was released in 2017, but the gender norms he is associating with women in the song are the same as they were at the time of the others reading, despite large steps towards women deconstructing gender.

In summary, Blake Shelton constructs the gender norm that men play a more dominant role than women in a relationship in his song I’ll Name the Dogs. While these gender norms might have been seen as traditional in the past, gender reconstruction as brought up by Butler has changed gender roles and it can be seen in society today.

Dow J. Bonnie and Tonn Boor Mari (2003) “Feminine Style and Political Judgment in the Rhetoric of Ann Richards”.

Butler Judith – Undoing Gender (2014)

Shelton Blake, “I’ll Name the Dogs” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAsN4lSa7O0

[michaelpeters5-blog]

In this entry, I will examine the critical question of how symbols are used in the way Burke describes it in his reading ‘On symbols and Society’? As well as, how it is productive for society?

Symbolism is a tool that we all use in our everyday lives whether we realize it or not and it affects how we see certain things. Childish Gambino in his music video ‘This is America’ productively uses symbols to demonstrate the race and gun violence that is happening in our country through his lyrics and actions.

Donald Glover (Childish Gambino) is an African American rapper, actor, and comic. His music video ‘This is America’ was an attempt to make his audience see the problems within society that many of us overlook. While it was released in May 2018 a lot of the issues he touches on are still prevalent today.

Burke (1989) says that our lives/realities are made up of symbols that change the way we perceive things based off our past experiences.

The first symbol that Childish uses in his video comes from both his action and his lyrics. In the opening moments of the video it shows him shooting the man who is strumming a guitar playing happy music, then being dragged away. Following this Gambino raps his first line “this is America dont catch you slipping now” with a transition of beat that is more dark and aggressive. He uses this scene to symbolize that he is a normal person like everyone else and also is part of the overarching problem. The lyrics and change of beat come right after he fires a shot at the man in the chair symbolizing the dark reality of the problems. When he says “this is America dont catch you slipping now” what he telling the audience that this is what is going on and not to shy away from it like it doesn't exist. In this scene he uses rhetoric to tell use we all have a part in this issue at hand and that pretending it doesn't exist is not the answer.

Another one of the symbols Childish uses in ‘This is America’ and one that carries on throughout most of the video itself is when he is rapping and singing with children, all with smiles on their faces while acts of violence are going on behind them. He uses this to show the blindness that much of America has to such problems in society. Most of us are only aware of the violence going on within our country because of what is shown on the news or social media, but there's a lot said violence that is not shown that we do not see or know about. Childish uses rhetoric through symbols when he has him and all the children smiling and dancing while this is going on behind them to show this blindness. What the symbol represents is the fact that we all are living our lives happy as if everything is okay while in reality there is a huge problem within our society.    

The last symbol coming in the closing moments of the video is when Childish running away down a dark hallway as a group of people sing “you just a black man in this world”. This symbol is related to the race issue that has been prevalent in America since the beginning. The actions of Gambino and the lyrics are a symbol for African American having to run for their lives. This scene uses rhetoric in making us see the fear many African Americans have to carry with them day in and day out because many, though innocent are still being blamed and and even killed for these problems stated above.

There are both advantages and disadvantages that come with symbolism, but the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. An advantage of symbolism is that is use of visual communication that we all understand and allow us to see things from a different point of view. The disadvantage with symbolism is that how people perceive it is solely dependent on their experiences. This can lead them to displace the message that people like Gambino are trying to spread.

Burke (1989) further explains symbols are used in rhetoric to influence people's perceptions on certain situations as applied to Childish Gambinos ‘This is America’ music video by him showing his audience the problem within our country and everyday lives that we as a society are not all addressing.

In summary Childish Gambino uses his music video ‘This is America’ as a symbolic tool the way Burke decribed it in a productive way for society.

[michaelpeters5-blog]

In this entry I will be examining the Powerade commercial tell the narrative of the Derrick Rose come up which anyone who is from Chicago or has any interest in sport is aware of. This artifact promotes the truth that everyone has had struggles in their come up to where they are now. This artifact tells us the we all have made it through struggle and should celebrate that, which teaches us not only that we should ask why, but that we should celebrate making it through. Powerade is a sports drink that endorses Derrick Rose and they use his come up narrative to connect to their audience by promoting the fact that nothing is just handed to you. Palczewski, ice, and finch say a narrative “depicts or describes events; they are not the event itself.”, which Powerade does a great job of of expressing in their commercial. 

one of the narratives evident in this artifact is that we are very quick to judge others past or dwell on our own, but it promotes the truth that we all overcome things that could hold us back and should celebrate that together. The deep voiced, motivational narrator open by saying “see you wouldn't ask why the rose that are through the concrete had damaged peddles.” Here he uses rhetoric to tell us that you wouldn't ask why someone they are not perfect because we all already know how peoples past effect them. He ends the commercial by saying “we are the roses, this is the concrete, these are my damaged peddles, don't ask me why, ask me how.”, he wraps the video uppitiest by using rhetoric to help us connect the the narrative that we all made it through struggle and should question why we struggled but how we managed to get through it. 

This narrative has both its advantages and disadvantages, the advantage is that  we all can connect to it because we have all struggles in life and have made it through. It helps us see those struggles and not just accept them but celebrate that we made it through. However, this artifacts narrative also has the disadvantage of some of our struggles are not as challenging as others might be. That is where the strongest use of rhetoric from the video comes to play, when the narrator says “ don't ask me why, ask me how.”. This tells us asking why does not do anything because we can't all understand why we and others struggle, but something we all can connect with is how we as people made it through the struggles we all have experienced, no matter the size. 

Concerning Human Understanding (1690) further explains how rhetoric is effectively used in narratives when stating “being intended to enlighten the understanding, to please the imagination, to move the passions, and to influence the will.”. As applied to this Powerade commercial it uses rhetoric to understand that everyone has struggled in their come up, it tells us to celebrate that and helps us see the positivity in it because it makes us who we are. It uses rhetoric to motivate us to power through and achieve the greatness we all and thriving reach, to celebrate that we all have conquered it. 

In summary Powerade uses rhetoric by sharing Derrick Rose story in the perspective on a rose and continues to connect us to that story. It motivates us by giving us a different point of view of our past by making people see that its not about the event itself but how we managed. 

Palczewski, C.H., Ice, R., Fritch, J. (2012). Narratives. In Rhetoric In Civil Life (pp. 117-146). state college, PA: Strata Publishing, Inc. (course concept source)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrxI3PUMEHw