For this blog post I analyzed seventeen.com (the website version of the magazine) and I read through the pages and analyzed the set up as well as compared and contrasted it to the magazine version.
http://www.seventeen.com/
First of all, the context of this magazine/website is current fashion, current trends, and current celebrity gossip that is directed to the teenaged girl population of America. Every month this magazine comes out with a brand new spread, and the cover always consists of the same elements. There is always a celebrity or a model that is posing a friendly/inviting way... with surrounding captions that intrigue readers into buying the magazine. For example, an issue might have on the cover "15 Great Gifts for Guys" which is a great way to relate to the current context of time and always makes people buy the magazine. Something I realized while flipping through a seventeen magazine was that the front cover conveys the articles that are hidden underneath the title page with a lot more energy and interest then the actual articles themselves. The captions draw viewers in but then the piece they wish to view seems to not reach expectations... although that could be personal preference it is an observation that I made.
While browsing through the website I took note of all pages and the design of the website. The site is jam-packed with pictures, vibrant colors, and many sections to choose from to browse the site. They have pages for fashion, quizzes, celebrities, love life, and others. Within the tabs the pieces that lay within are quite concise. Compared to the magazine version the online articles are very short and there are twice as many. While the magazine has a few articles but they can be pretty lengthy. In this case I would make the argument that the use of conciseness is a rhetorical device used to reach the editors purpose of drawing as many readers in as possible while making a profit if readers decide to sign up for the monthly magazine. Another rhetorical device used in the website is arrangement. The tabs for the various pages are arranged from fashion, to celebrities/gossip, to personal teenaged stuff like college and prom. Articles are also arranged with pictures on the left and writing on the right side while the pictures are large the captions or articles are fairly short which gives the page a certain picture book feel. The pictures are what most likely draw people in in the first place.
I feel like the editors did achieve their purpose because the seventeen magazine is found in every convenience store nationwide and has millions of regular readers and viewers on its website.
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Blog 14 (week 5) (IRB!!) (MP2)
Independent Reading Post Number 1 or MP2
Title of Book: Heaven Is For Real
Author: Todd Burpo with Lynn Vincent
Section I read: 6 Page prologue with first 9 chapters (Pages 1 - 47)
The book is a memoir about the author's son Colton. Todd Burpo (the father) is a young pastor from Imperial, Nebraska who has shared more then his fair share of medical atrocities in his life. He has a wife named Sonja and two children, Cassie and Colton. The prologue is a scene taken from somewhere near the end of the book, while the first chapter starts a year before the prologue. This section of the book explains Todd's life before his son had his medical emergency that brought him to the brink of death. Todd had suffered a broken leg, kidney stones, and a breast cancer scare all within the same seven months. Then the month came where he was not limping anymore and he took his family to an insect "amusement park" where they were celebrating Todd's renewed health. But the trip took a devilish turn when his son began to get sick. After about five days of non-stop throwing up and two hospitals that gave no answers, Todd and his wife take Colton to a different hospital where they rush him into surgery to clean his body from an ruptured appendix. The section ends where Colton is now home from emergency surgery and is being taken care of my nurses who come to their home and by his parents.
Although the book is about Colton's near death experience and how he begins to have visions of heaven and angels, that part of the book has not happened yet. The context of this section was during a time of needed faith by the Burpo family and their struggle to keep their family together. Todd's purpose for writing this book was to get his true story out to the public to prove to the world that heaven and God IS indeed real. His audience is anyone who picks up the book to read it.
Rhetorical Devices:
Pathos: Todd uses extreme imagery to describe his son and his near death experiences. He uses words like "sunken eyes" and "weeping silently" and uses family to appeal to the audiences emotions.
Anaphora: On page 27 Todd says the words "we wanted" or "we needed" in about 6 consecutive sentences in order to get a point across to audience by using this kind o repetition.
Appositives: Todd uses appositives to explain the doctors and hospitals and situations more clearly.. for example on page 11 he explains who the doctor is by using an appositive.
The purpose Todd is trying to achieve by writing this book is effective because it is already convincing me that heaven and God is real and I am only a fourth way into the book.
Monday, December 5, 2011
Blog 13 (week 4) ( MP2) (Article)
Source: Sciencemag.org (science journal/news website)
Article: Chorus of presidents. rock stars, and industry titans calls for the end to AIDS.
This article was found within a science journal website with the intent of informing readers of the current president and past presidents view points on the standing predicament with AIDS. Singers like Bono and Elton John were present at this affair as well as scientists and authorized MDs. The event to discuss the AIDS epidemic took place on December 1st and the context of the meeting was that it was a national holiday for AIDS awareness.
The author's purpose was to convey that many cultural people as well as political people all take part in the act to raise awarenss of AIDS and to stop the epidemic from escalading any further.. It shows that a bunch of people from different back grounds are able to push differences aside in order to solve a global issue and show unity within the people. The audience is every person in the United States as well as people affected by AIDS globally in order to show awareness to not just this country but to others as well.
Rhetorical devices used :
Pathos - draws the passion for AIDS topic from survivors, people who were affected by it, and it appeals to people nationally who are for unity.
Quotations - quotations are used in order to have proof of the context of the situation and of the actual people who were at the meeting for AIDS
Urgency - urgency could be a rhetorical device in this case because it is used throughout the entire article as a key term to moving the audience to take action in the AIDS awareness cause. Which further promotes the author's overall purpose.
symbolism - this whole event of a bunch of different people from different aspects of culture are coming together for a certain cause and to promote a certain awareness for the benefit of America and more importantly victims of AIDS. This is symbolic to past events that involved all sorts of leaders coming together to make a decision in America.... which could relate to the signing of the declaration of independence, or the revolutionary war where a bunch of colonies that had almost nothing in common came together for a certain cause. So this article symbolizes another step in American unity.
I believe that the author did achieve their purpose because it has reached a public viewer such as myself and has reached others. This event was national and also made the news.
Article: Chorus of presidents. rock stars, and industry titans calls for the end to AIDS.
This article was found within a science journal website with the intent of informing readers of the current president and past presidents view points on the standing predicament with AIDS. Singers like Bono and Elton John were present at this affair as well as scientists and authorized MDs. The event to discuss the AIDS epidemic took place on December 1st and the context of the meeting was that it was a national holiday for AIDS awareness.
The author's purpose was to convey that many cultural people as well as political people all take part in the act to raise awarenss of AIDS and to stop the epidemic from escalading any further.. It shows that a bunch of people from different back grounds are able to push differences aside in order to solve a global issue and show unity within the people. The audience is every person in the United States as well as people affected by AIDS globally in order to show awareness to not just this country but to others as well.
Rhetorical devices used :
Pathos - draws the passion for AIDS topic from survivors, people who were affected by it, and it appeals to people nationally who are for unity.
Quotations - quotations are used in order to have proof of the context of the situation and of the actual people who were at the meeting for AIDS
Urgency - urgency could be a rhetorical device in this case because it is used throughout the entire article as a key term to moving the audience to take action in the AIDS awareness cause. Which further promotes the author's overall purpose.
symbolism - this whole event of a bunch of different people from different aspects of culture are coming together for a certain cause and to promote a certain awareness for the benefit of America and more importantly victims of AIDS. This is symbolic to past events that involved all sorts of leaders coming together to make a decision in America.... which could relate to the signing of the declaration of independence, or the revolutionary war where a bunch of colonies that had almost nothing in common came together for a certain cause. So this article symbolizes another step in American unity.
I believe that the author did achieve their purpose because it has reached a public viewer such as myself and has reached others. This event was national and also made the news.
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