Tow #4: Visual text

The visual text that I analyzed was an ad by Amnesty International. In the ad, it brings up the topic of suicide awareness and says that the person may survive suicide, but the gossip leaves deeper scars. It also talks about how the mental illness itself doesn't discriminate, people do. The author of this ad is Amnesty International, a non profit organization founded in 1961. Today this organization has over 3 million members and their goal is to draw attention to human rights abuses and campaigns for compliance with international laws and standards. It also has the longest history and broadest name recognition in the field of many international rights organizations. The ad's focused audience is mainly those who have tried suicide or know someone who has. The context speaks to the audience in a way that they would understand the situation because it talks about that the discrimination that someone in that instance would experience. A key rhetorical device used in this visual text to achieve purpose is amplification, in which the word discrimination is bolded and used throughout to successfully draw to the audience's attention. The effect of this took is so that the audience also recognizes the importance of the purpose. The purpose of this ad is to gain more support and awareness to not only suicide, but also to the organization so that they can stop discrimination as a whole. In my opinion Amnesty international did an excellent job with achieving their purpose because they apply to pathos by making the audience feel bad for the person in the ad who is a suicide survivor, and then making them feel even worse by revealing that she is a mother of two who has been discriminated by gossip.

Tow #3: Night by Elie Wiesel (IRB)

My IRB, Night by Elie Weisel, is an autobiography of the author's experiences as a concentration camp survivor. It takes place during 1941 when the Holocaust was in full effect. Wiesel, who was a young boy at the time, and his family were taken from their home, and separated among different concentration camps. He was first sent to Auschwitz, then to a number of other camps during his time of captivity. Throughout his memoir, Wiesel tells about the death of his parents, the lost of his innocence, and reveals to the audience that life or death doesn't matter anymore. The author was born in September 1928, and is a professor and political activist. He is the author of 57 books, including Night. Wiesel certainly has a lot of credibility because this book is a direct account of what he went through during the holocaust, and his work of writings also lead on to him receiving the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986. The audience that this novel was composed for are people who want to know the full and raw details of what really happened in the Holocaust. The context of this text was almost like a journal as the author takes his audience through everything he experienced while being in the concentration camps, before, and afterwards. One of the most important rhetorical devices that helped Wiesel achieve his purpose was imagery. Although the topic of the holocaust can be quite disturbing, the author does a very good job at providing the audience with full fledged imagery in helping to understand what really happened in his ordeal. With this, he is almost able to make the reader feel as if they are actually there and seeing the occurrence happening. I believe that the author's purpose was to retell his experience to show what people in the holocaust really went through, and also help people realize the importance of sharing peoples stories, especially since there are not too many survivors left to tell them. I believe that Elie Wiesel did an exceptional job at accomplishing his purpose because it really allowed me to be more historically minded and to see an unveiled version of a real story of what a holocaust survivor went through. He didn't fail to hide anything from the audience, allowing the audience to realize the importance of his experience.

Tow #2: Two Dads and One Ideal by Evan Marby

Two Dads and One Idea written by Evan Marby evaluates the author's different experiences of growing up with his biological father, and his stepfather. While spending time with his biological father, Marby didn't have much in common besides playing basketball, and describes him as someone who had no stability, comfort wise and financially. He then depicts his stepfather as someone who was very responsible and number one priority was providing for his family and making sure they have enough food on their table, clothes on their backs, and a roof over their heads. Evan Marby is a freshman at Indiana University and a 2013 graduate of The Dwight School , and is a credible source because he writes about his own experiences. This essay is  written to a broad audience because it is posted on The Huffington Post, the target audience is people who have grown up with stepfathers or without their biological fathers. The context in which this text is written is that Marby writes his accounts of how both of his fathers have affected his life differently, and why it led him to choose his career path. An important rhetorical device that Marby uses to achieve his purpose is an aphorism. He gives a memorable summation of his point which helps the audience understand how his irresponsible biological father has effected him positively (although the audience would assume negatively) by telling them, "I also thank my biological father as well. His negatives provided the lens for me to value the positives of my stepfather. Without my biological father, I may have considered the responsibility of my stepfather as the mere norm-not something that requires sacrifice" (Marby). The author's purpose in writing this text was to show the audience that he had two different fathers in his life that contrasted the way he was brought up. His goal was also to prove to the audience that although he had someone in his life that wasn't very helpful, it still effected him in a positive way because it showed him an example of something that he didn't want to become, and taught him to value his stepfather and his priorities. The author did a great job of achieving his goal because although this was a personal essay, Marby wasn't bitter over the fact that his biological father left him and his mother. He overlooked this fact, and was able to see the positive side, and learned to recognize that his stepfather had taught him good values. 

IRB: Night by Elie Wiesel

The IRB that I'm reading is called Night by Elie Wiesel. It is centered around the holocaust (1930's - 1940's), and is a true story written from the accounts of Elie Wiesel's survival as a teenager in the Auschwitz concentration camps. The book, written in first person, is said to be very disturbing because it is the record of the author's memories of he death of his family, and also the death of his innocence. Weisel honestly and directly describes life as a prisoner of the Nazis, the conditions of the camp, and treatment of the prisoners.

TOW: How to Say Nothing in 500 Words by Paul Roberts

How to Say Nothing in 500 Words by Paul Roberts essentially analyzes the different types of strategies that student writers use to fill up words in their essays, as well as giving helpful advice on other ways to have a strong structured piece of writing. The author, Paul Roberts, is an american author who taught college English for over 20 years, first at San Jose State College and then later on at Cornell University. He also wrote several helpful writing textbooks including English Syntax (1954), Patterns of English (1956), Understanding English (1958), and English Sentences (1962). The audience that this text is composed for is students who write ineffective essays. The context is initially a scenario in which a student is dreading a 500 words essay and just overuses examples and ideas that many other students also use. The author then goes on to explain ways that students can write a good essay and utilize an advanced structure. Throughout How to Say Nothing in 500 Words, Roberts applies several didactics and instructs his intended audience on using adequate words and sentences. This rhetorical strategy effects the entirety of the essay because it makes it much more informative and allows the audience to see the purpose of the writing. The purpose in writing the text is to benefit students in their writing skills, and also teaches them to write an intriguing essay rather than a bland and uninteresting one. In my opinion the other certainly did a good job in advising students on writing a better structured and appealing essay because he is able to establish a tone that makes the audience comfortable and allows them to understand what he is saying. The text is well backed up by examples, which I believe did a good job of illustrating Robert's purpose.