NYT Editorial: The HPV Vaccine is for Their Own Good

Summary:
HPV stands for human papillomavirus, which is associated with cancers of the vulva and vagina in women, the penis in men, and anal and throat cancers in both men and women. Each year it causes cancer in 25000 men and women in the U.S. There is a vaccination which can dramatically decrease a person's susceptibility to the disease, but the vaccination is most effective when given to females and males from ages 11-13. Right now there's a push to require states to administer this vaccination, though it has been met with much opposition. The author is advocating for the requirement.

Author/Source:
There is a certain credibility that comes along with the name "The New York Times." Many consider this to be a very credible source of information. However, this is an editorial, which is based upon the opinion (albeit informed) of the editor.



Purpose: 
 "Public health officials should focus on increasing vaccination rates."- directly stated in article

Audience:
Readers of the New York Times and those who are not currently supporting the push to require states to administer this vaccinations 
Rhetorical Devices:
Classical arrangement- Starts of by giving the history of the problem (introduction/narration), hard facts which back his viewpoints (confirmation), gives examples of the opposition's  opinions and refutes it (refutation): "Conservative politicians have railed against the vaccine and the efforts by some states to require it. Many parents are appalled at the notion of vaccinating youngsters against a sexually transmitted virus before most have even begun to think about sex"; and concludes by summing up why the vaccination would be beneficial (summation)

Use of Topics- The author uses the cause and effect relationship topic in order to undermine claims that the vaccinations would not be cost effective. He argues that if the recommended persons get their vaccinations now, it will reduce the burden of illness and hospital bills in the future.

Ethos- The title itself establishes the credibility of the author. The title implies that the speaker is concerned only with the well-being of those affected and not motivated by personal gain.

Effectiveness:
I thought this was a very successful argument. Its primary appeal was to logic which, as seen in "Crito," can be a much more effective argument than emotion based appeals.

Les Demoiselles d'Avignon

  Summary:
This painting depicts many different females in erotic poses.

Artist
The artist is Spaniard Pablo Picasso, creator of Guernica and many other renowned works.  He is a pioneer of the cubist style (displayed above).

Context:
The title translates literally to "the young girls of Avignon." It is spatial since it is not prompted by any event nor created or thought-of spontaneously, but took years of drafting.

Purpose:
Given his title and piece, his purpose may have been to portray the seductive nature of females from the specific region of Avignon.

Audience:
I believe this work was made predominantly for the eyes of men, given its sensual and seductive nature. Additionally, its message would appeal more to men than females.

Rhetorical Elements:
Positioning: Females are all posed in erotic positions which emit a sexual vibe from the painting
Communal memory: In the story of Adam and Eve, Eve tempts Adam into tasting a forbidden fruit. Fruit is painted in the picture to further convey the seductive and tempting nature of the females.
Variety: The females in the painting have varying styles and looks. This may portray that Avignon is a heterogeneous place, in which many exotic females reside.
Color Contrast: The backdrop of the painting is painted different colors. This gives the painting a convoluted feel, as if many things are happening at once.

Arrangement: It seems as if one of them is coming out from behind a curtain. This tells me that the women are on display and meant to be looked at. Also prompts me to think whether Picasso was depicting all of the women in Avignon or the prostitutes in Avignon.

Police Fire Tear Gas As Protesters Riot in Rome. Foxnews

Summary:
All throughout Europe, protests have become commonplace as those who resent the capitalist system and the international banking system have begun to congregate in order to assert their opinions. In Rome, a group of tens of thousands of protestors began to violently display their discontent for their economic situation.

Source:
Foxnews is often criticized for its "biased portrayal of news". Critics claim that they lean far more towards the republican side than necessary. The republican stance on economics favors laissez-faire economics, which is essentially capitalism. These riots were based on the hatred for capitalism. And though they address multiple different riots towards the end of the article, their primary focus was on Rome's bloody riot, which portrays the opponents of capitalism to be very brutish and violent.

Context:
Causal: This article was in response to the Rome riot predominantly.

Purpose:
The main purpose of this article is to describe the turmoil going on in Europe due to the economic crisis. This was probably the reason for the focus on Rome's riot. It simply best serves the purpose of conveying this turmoil.

Audience:
There was no indication that the article was intended for a certain type of person or for a person from a certain place. No communal memories were included so I couldn't draw any types of conclusion from that.

Rhetorical Devices:
Imagery: The author described events we could picture in our mind to better understand the scene. For instance: "Clad in black with their faces covered, protesters threw rocks, bottles and incendiary devices at banks and Rome police in riot gear. Some protesters had clubs, others had hammers. They destroyed bank ATMs, set trash bins on fire and assaulted at least two news crews from Sky Italia."

Arrangement: The arrangement of this article was, for the most part, process analysis. They described how the events transpired in a step by step manner. First, the protestors were just marching through with banners. Second, a couple of more radical persons began igniting cars, bashing windows etc... Third, the police came and used water hoses and tear gas to break of the riot.

Testimonies: Towards the end of the article, they included quotes from persons from the rioters and others who opposed capitalist policies so that readers get a better sense of what caused such radical activity.

Effectiveness:
I think the article did a great job of conveying the state of Europe and its people. The use of testimonies helped me to understand the passion with which the opposition felt and the process analysis arrangement gave me a basic understanding of what the protests entailed.

Unit One Reflection

An effective Argument is one that you can support with evidence. However, not only does the content and subject matter make an Argument effective, the way in which it is presented is equally important. The way in which an author taps into the emotions, logic, and communal memories of an audience can make or break an Argument. Rhetorical devices such as diction, syntax, imagery, use of topics, etc... can be instrumental in achieving these desired effects. But first one must take into account the purpose and subject matter they are creating prose about, and selectively implement the devices which achieve this purpose in the most efficient manner.

The group literary analysis presentation helped me to better understand what rhetorical analysis was. The fact that I got to see and collaborate with others who worked on the same piece allowed me to expand the way in which I approached and saw rhetorical devices.

This I Believe 2: Pages 1-59

Summary/Author:
This book is a collection of essays from Americans throughout the nation. The topic and "prompt" of this issue is: "What would you say in five hundred words to capture a core principle that guides your life?". The book includes around 75 different three to four page essays written by a diverse selection of people. The authors of this book range from the famous, such as: Pulitzer Prize winners, professional athletes and singer, to your ordinary diner waitress. In this section, I read essays about integrity, sexuality, memories, relationship, and what it means to be American.

Context:
The title of this book comes from a segment on National Public Radio, in which people talk about their unique (and often not so-unique) life experiences. The overwhelming success of the segment led to the creation of the first edition of This I Believe, which became a New York Times' Bestseller. The positive feedback for first edition, probably allowed and prompted this second edition to be released.

Purpose:
The purpose of this book was to give an opportunity for people to express their own opinions and convictions about life, as well as for others to hear, reflect, and perhaps apply these teachings into their own life.

Audience:
All of the essays that I've read thus far were written by Americans. The use of communal memories, such as the U.S court system, typical family, and American born cliches indicate that these essays were written for Americans. However, in the introduction of this book, one editor claims that these essays are as much for the writers as they are for the readers, for they allow writers to explore an come to terms with some of the experiences they've had and examine its impact on their life.

Rhetorical Devices:

• Repetition
• Contradictory language
• Humor and Irony
• Every essay included pathos of some kind. One of which sought to explore the implications of the death of a child on their life, which is sure to provoke an emotional response from readers
• Strong diction which every American can relate to in some way (i.e Yankees, terrorists)
• Imagery. In an essay about applying the behavior of his dog in his own life, the author used vivd descriptions to allow the reader to imagine his actions.

Effectiveness:
I would say most of these essays had some impact on the way I see things making the strategies they used effective, some more than others. The ones that were most inspiring/thought-provoking placed a strong emphasis on pathos and the use of humor and irony though.

Family, Friends, Advocates remember Troy Davis

Summary:
This article is about the death of Troy Davis, a young male from Georgia who was executed on Sept. 21. In recent years, there has been debate as to the morality of his sentence and the morality of capital punishment in general.

Source:
This article was written by the staff of msnbc and The Associated Press, both of which have a respectable reputation in the domain of reporting.

Context:
Causal: This article was created in response to the execution and feuneral of Troy Davis

Purpose:
The author focused more on the public's response to the execution of Troy Davis, than the emotional distress that his family might be going through.

Audience:
The author only briefly discussed the reasons behind the controversial execution of Troy Davis, which leads me to believe that he wrote to an audience already knowledgable about his situation.

Rhetorical Devices:
The authors used powerful words such as "matyr and foot soldier" to describe the impact Troy Davis' death had on the community. Quotes were an invaluable piece of this article. The authors quoted many prominent persons in the community to demonstrate how inspired people were to demolish the death penalty after his execution. Additionally the author uses the "future fact" strategy discussed in chapter 2 of Everyday Use. Since Davis was executed, you will see in increase in the amount of activist activity in regards to the death penalty. He then goes on to support this claim with testimonies from church officials and other activists.