Drinking and Driving - Video Analysis

This video focused on the serious consequence that drinking and driving can cause. The video follows the story of two sisters, Meghan and Shauna Murphy, who were killed due to drinking and driving. You hear from many people about the horrors that night faced for them an others, and throughout their stories the appeal it takes to the audiences emotions is very real. Listening to the parents talk about the moments when they realized both their daughters were gone is heart wrenching and a feeling no one would wish upon anyone. Images of the upside down car tangled in the electrical lines flashed across the screen, and were very shocking. Trying to imagine how it must have felt to be hanging up there in the car for the girl who survived, how the EMT's felt when arriving at the scene, and how the parents must of felt when they saw their car above the ground in which their daughter died in. From the intro of the news report of the girl's death, to the moments at the end were the daughters parents discussed how they never want their daughters to be forgot, this video was full of pathos.

How Things Mean

Album covers:

1.       What do they suggest?

The first album cover of the girl suggest that her songs might be provocative and sexual. The other two with the guys suggest that their music will be mostly rap and inappropriate for kids due to explicate lyrics.

2.       How do they suggest it?

The body language of the girl is provocative, and her facial expression is luring you in. The guy’s posture is very intimidating which makes them look tough.

3.       Which elements of each image work on the viewer in various ways?

For the girl viewers are drawn in by her sex appeal. While the men look as if they’re about to drop the most fire mixtape of 2015.

Symbols of Patriotism:

1.       What do they suggest?

They suggest patriotic images of the USA, Great Britain, and France.

2.       How do they suggest it?

The eagle is associated with feelings of freedom and pride, the American flag makes you associate freedom with America. The bull dog is the national dog of Great Britain, he is standing on their flag looking very noble. The words in the third image mean liberty, equality, and fraternity and is the national motto of France, these words are etched into the wall showing that they are concrete ideals of the country.

3.       Which elements of each image work on the viewer in various ways?

The positioning of the dog and eagle convey strength because of their stance on the page, and the words as well convey strength because they are carved in stone.

                                           

Thesis Statement: The images use important and celebrated symbols of their countries to convey patriotism, strength, and ideals.

·         The eagle is associated with feelings of freedom and pride, the American flag makes you associate freedom with America.

·         The bull dog is the national dog of Great Britain, he is standing on their flag looking very noble.

·         The words in the third image mean liberty, equality, and fraternity and is the national motto of France, these words are etched into the wall showing that they are concrete ideals of the country.

·         The positioning of the dog and eagle convey strength because of their stance on the page, and the words as well convey strength because they are carved in stone. 

Reading Sources Critically

Tim Wise; “Use Of The N-Word”

1. What arguments does the author make?

    The author makes all arguments toward the position of not verbally using the N-word. Multiple arguments are brought up from playground examples such as “I can talk about my mother, but you sure as hell better not talk about my mother!” Another example that Tim Wise used was about a particular comedian Jeff Foxworthy and his jokes regarding “rednecks.” He argues that because Jeff may somewhat fall into the category of group that he is making fun of, it is seen as acceptable. On the flipside, if Jerry Seinfeld was to use these same jokes in a standup routine, it would be inappropriate. His main position is that white people should not use verbally the N-word, however it is at the discretion of black people to use freely.

2. How persuasive do you find the argument?

The argument is very persuasive. Tim Wise supports his stance on the topic with plenty of evidence. Wise is clear on why this issue is important, while giving his view of how it should be handled. He explains more than just the white man's point of view, and explains the point of view of a black man. The medium allows him to express his authority with a strong tone.

3. What is the author's stance?

    The stance the author takes is that he believes it isn't his place to determine how and when it is acceptable to use the word due to him being a white person. Although he does take a firm stance that it’s not his place to determine the above points, he does voice very clearly that if you’re not black you shouldn't use the word.

4. Does the publisher bring a certain stance to the work?

    His speech was part of Boston College’s FACES organization, which is designed to promote awareness about discrimination and racism. Boston College is interested in race relations and wants their community to be a part of discussions like this.

5. Do you recognize ideas you’ve run across in other sources?

    To my limited knowledge on the subject, Tim Wise brought up some new original and very persuasive ideas to the table to help illustrate his point. Some of the more generic things he said about Mark Twain and his use of the N-word in his book Huckleberry FinnI had heard before.

6. Does this source support or challenge your own position - or does it do both?

    I am in agreement with Tim Wise and his statements of when it is appropriate to use the word. As a white person, hearing other white people say the N-word sounds very inappropriate and out of place (being that this is not the 1950’s anymore). His examples only furthered my own belief/stance on the subject, and I think this was a very informative and explanatory video.

7. What can you tell about the intended audience and purpose?

    The purpose of the piece is to educate and offer some solution on who/ how the “n-word” should be used. The intended audience is students and faculty members who attend Boston College. He also aims to further educate people like who are fans of his writing, take a particular stance on the subject, or raise awareness of his opinion on how the topic should be dealt with. Also, since Tim Wise’s video is on youtube, it can be intended for the general public and anyone who is interested in being involved in the topic.

Think About Your Writing-- pg. 70

Recently I wrote an essay on three ad campaigns that were related and worked together to get a point across. I choose three ads from Smokefree which worked together to awaken people about the harsh consequences of smoking cigarettes. I analyzed these ads making the images they used a prominent part of the discussion, I concluded that allowing the audience to have a visual aid and then allowing them to form their own conclusion on it was a more effective process instead of just being another voice telling them what they shouldn't do, and yelling facts at them which they cannot see to be true. My motivation for writing this essay and choosing the topic of anti-smoking comes from knowing that this is a topic that is not taken seriously but is one that sound be.

Yes We Can

The change of medium to a video allowed for many contributing factors to help empower this speech even more than it was. The fact that you see a very powerful man, the president of the United States giving the speech through most of the video alone gives it an immense amount of power, and the fact that you see him, a face whom everyone knows, standing up and giving this speech along with others whom we've never seen before adds to the argument that yes we can, us together can. the additional music added and voice-overs help to keep the audience interested in order to hear the main points of the speech. And the written words are a way to visually point of key parts and important features of the speech that viewers should not miss.

Look to see where and how positions are expressed around you-pg. 66

  
It appeals to me and others because it is funny and using comedy is a good way to get your point across when it could be offensive to others. Using Dr. Phil in this meme adds to the comedy appeal because Dr. Phil is usually very serious and doesn't regularly use comedy, he is also very straight forward with people and doesn't hold back when telling them what is wrong with their lives. "Your're fat" is the biggest words on the page catching the readers attention first, this statement is also in all caps and is white with black edging making it really stand out. To revise this meme for a different audience it could be put into video form, it would be different because the visuals would be moving which would catch the viewers attention differently.

Bibliography:
"Funny memes life-of-a-student". Meme. Why are you stupid? 22 June 2015.
"Memes Vault Funny Memes Randomly Picked". Meme. Imgzz.info. 1 November 2015.
 "You're Fat" Meme. Pinterest. 28 May 2014.

Think about the genre pg. 62

This week I've taken a position on:

• why my sister should watch a certain documentary 
• on different ad campaigns for my English essay 
• where me and my family should go for spring break 
• what we need to get for our trip to Colorado 
• what I should get my sister for her birthday
• what classes I should take next quarter 
• where I should go get breakfast, lunch, dinner

This week the people around me have taken a stance on:

• where we should go on vacation for spring break
• what type of makeup is the best to use for Halloween 
• why someones costume was the best of the night
• how my sister feels about her job 
• who to vote for in the election