TOW #14- "This put a big smile on my face" (Visual)

Unfortunately this is less of a purposely constructed visual and more of a spontaneous image captured by a redditor who was kind enough to upload it. This image was uploaded to the subreddit /r/gaming by /u/RVA_GOP a few hours ago. RVA_GOP clearly used some rhetorical strategies when uploading this image to receive the maximum amount of karma possible which as we all know is the goal on reddit.

The image depicts an elderly man, amidst his morning breakfast at the local dinner, hunched over and squinting at his Pikachu decorated Nintendo DS, playing what we would assume to be Pokemon. With the intended purpose of the photo to show just how far and wide video games has spread and how impactful it really is. It also wants to convey that every man or woman no matter how old, is a kid at heart.

The lighting and aperture of the photo act as a beam of nostalgia and enlightenment being poured down and installed upon the elder man. The crux of the photo is captured in the man's ruffled hair and plain yet enthralled look on his face revealing the sheer amount of engagement this man has for the game. He cares more for how he his doing in his game than how his looks are perceived by others.

Since /r/gaming is a subreddit dedicated to all posts about gaming and reddit is the place for the typical 18-35 year old web browser, this post positively foreshadows our, the redditors, future, and how video games will always remain apart of it. Many redditors are already beginning to age into the latter part of life and society constrains video games as a childish activity but this helps to show that we should just embrace our gaming livelihood. Overall, RVA_GOP did a brilliant job snapping a photo to help inspire his fellow redditors embrace their inner child.

(http://imgur.com/lAaqmgu)

TOW #13- "ISIS Cancels Plans for Fnatic CS:GO Sponsorship" (Written)

ESEX, better known as eSports Express, is a satirical news site that posts articles pertaining to electronic sports or video games. This specific article was written about one of the most popular current first-person shooter games, Counter Strike:Global Offensive. Some backstory necessary to understand this satire is needed.

About a week ago, CS:GO had one of it's three major tournaments of the season. DreamHack Winter took place at Elmia in Jönköping in the southern parts of Sweden. All of the best and the biggest teams compete at DHW one of those teams being fnatic. Fnatic, a local Swedish organization, used some highly questionable tactics in the quarterfinals of the tournament. While facing of against LDLC in a best of three series on the last match, fnatic used a boost that allowed their player to essentially see the entire map. From that vantage point olofmeister, a member of fnatic, was able to see LDLC's setup and where they were going to attack. Olof could also shoot many players while they couldn't see him at all. This boost that fnatic used utilized something known as pixelwalking, where the player in game is walking on an invisible ledge. Fnatic went on to win the map but then withdrew from the tournament because of all the backlash they got from fans across the globe.

ESEX uses this occurrence to their advantage to joke about an issue that the majority of the CS:GO community completely despised. The article revolves around the fact that even ISIS a terrorist organization dropped their sponsorship for fnatic due to how the community reacted. The author then also went on to make fun of flusha, one of fnatic's players who has recently done some shady things in game that make it appear like he is cheating. "ISIS had already reaped some benefits from the potential partnership, as Fnatic professional player Robin “flusha” Rönnquist was sent to train ISIS insurgents in Iraq, increasing their weapon accuracy by 40% through smoke and walls." ESEX intertwines a virtual video game with a real life terrorist organization and joke about how a video game hacker was able to teach and improve a terrorist's gun skills with real life cheats.

(http://esportsexpress.com/2014/12/isis-fnatic-csgo-sponsorship/)

TOW #12-"The Week 14 Mailbag" (Written)

This week I decided to read and analyze an article published by Grantland. Not only was it published by this famous sports analytical and statistical site, but it was the founder himself, Bill Simmons. Simmons is an American sports analyst who is featured on many of ESPN's shows such as NBA Countdown, SportsCenter, and is the visionary behind 30for30. Every week so far this year of the NFL season, Bill Simmons does something called a mailbag where he attempts to answer as many questions as possible sent in to him from all different audience members. The questions range from on the field actions, coaching decisions, locker room disputes, best candidates for a position, postseason outlook, and more. Simmons typically has a main focus or topic that he hits upon the most in the article each week although a kitchen sink of stuff is covered.

This week Bill Simmons focused on all-star defensive end JJ Watt of the Houston Texans. It's important to understand Simmons as an author and what his intentions are for this piece. Instead of just discussing the same old boring facts that any analyst can spit at you, Simmons takes a humorous yet factual approach. After discussing issues presented about Watt's performance and how he will fair up against Demarco Murray, Simmons goes on to talk about a hypothetical fight to the death between Watt and Gronkowski. As this article is obviously intended for sports enthusiasts as myself, we understand the humor in that joke and not the morbid death-fight some might see in it. Gronk and Watt are two beasts of the game and both their statures are immensely large. It'd be entertaining to see something like that go down as Simmons suggests. Simmons also gets tech-savvy inserting various YouTube clips and gifs to go along with his responses to the questions he receives. This interests and engages the audience even more so that they aren't just reading a wall of text.

(http://grantland.com/the-triangle/the-week-14-mailbag/)

TOW #11-"Burger King axes 89 franchises over scandals" (Written)

After previous reports and documentation of the condition of the lack of hygiene at Burger King's in Germany, Burger King finally decided to put it's fist down and end this problem once and for all. Burger King terminated contracts for eighty-nine of it's franchised outlets because of continued poor treatment of staff and workers. German franchise holder Yi-Ko is the man behind this scandal. After being uncovered from an undercover report, Ko allegedly withheld pay from employees for months at a time, and bonuses and sick pay were received only with an extreme delay. Expired food products were also labeled as fresh ones and burgers were often kept warm for hours, instead of being freshly made on the grill as the fast food corporation advertises.

This article regarding the termination of Burger King's in Germany was written by a news site known as The Local. The Local is a news source that publishes Germany's news in English. The Local does independent daily reporting from all around Europe.

Although the news article contained a very formulaic and boring approach, it did achieve it's purpose of providing intriguing news and supporting that with evidence and saying how this could impact society. "This move affects eighty-nine of the fast food chain's almost seven hundred German outlets, and three thousand employees now face an uncertain future"(3). The Local presents the idea of unemployment and how this toll will affect all those who lost their jobs undeservingly.

(http://www.thelocal.de/20141120/burger-king-axes-89-franchises-after-scandals-hygiene)

TOW #10-"7UP Advertisement From 1984" (Visual)

7 UP is a brand of lemon-lime flavored soft drink that is owned by corporation giant PepsiCo. This advertisement created by 7 UP showcases some of the greatest athletes from a variety of sports at that point in time. This marketing strategy is known as a celebrity endorsement, which utilizes a well-known person to help promote a product or service. Using Magic Johnson, Mike Schmidt, George Brett, and Sugar Ray Leonard as promoters of the product on the advertisement, helps appeal not only to logos as in the fact that it is expert testimonial, but also Pathos. Athletes are big figures in American society. They are regarded as people we look up to and admire. When the audience views this advertisement and see's their favorite athlete drinking a 7 UP, they feel compelled and excited to go buy, drink, and look just like them. The use of these athletes also helps to establish the credibility of the product. As a consumer I don't know whether the product is good or bad but after seeing these world-class athletes enjoying the product, I know that it must be good. If they enjoy it, I will enjoy it, is the mindset that 7 UP is creating. The slogan "Feelin' 7 UP" invigorates a feeling of energy and excitement just by reading it. This also plays on the audience's emotions to inspire them to buy one of their drinks.

The purpose of this text was to persuade the audience to go out and buy a 7 UP. I personally believe that 7 UP did a great job marketing their product and was successful at achieving their purpose because of their rhetorical strategies, I now have a hankering for a 7 UP.

(http://i.imgur.com/MZjkSdx.jpg)

TOW #9-"How Unexpected Was Cleveland’s Shellacking Of Cincinnati?" (Written)

Neil Paine, one of the main writers of a famous statistical blog known as FiveThirtyEight reflected on the Cleveland Browns total annihilation of, a supposed to be good team, the Cincinnati Bengals. Paine goes on to statistically explain the likelihood of such an outcome by elaborating on Hal Stern's findings almost a couple of decades ago. Stern found that the margin of victory over the point-spread can be shown by a normal distribution with a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 13.86. When adjusting this scale to the pre-game predicted ELO ratings, Paine found the same result and therefore showing that the likelihood that the Browns would beat the Bengals 24-3 was only a minuscule 1.5%.

Paine's most prominent rhetorical device present in his article is statistical evidence to help support his claims which falls under an author's logos. Neil Paine writes this article not only to intrigue the audience by showing just how rare that game was but his overall purpose is to show that surprisingly enough that isn't the most unlikely to happen outcome of a game so far this season. Paine goes on to prove that last week when the Miami Dolphins faced up against the San Diego Chargers the Dolphins had a slim 0.3% chance of beating the Chargers by a 37 point margin. Paine is trying to prove that these absurd and rare outcomes of games are becoming more frequent in the NFL nowadays and that it wouldn't be a surprise to see one in this upcoming week of games.

I thoroughly enjoyed Paine's article although some may find it nonsensical. The reason why I cherish and appreciate such brilliant articles is because of my strong passion for sports and my knowledge of statistics which allows me to understand the loquacious mathematical terms Paine throws at the audience.

(http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/how-unexpected-was-clevelands-shellacking-of-cincinnati/)

IRB Intro #2- "A Room of One's Own"

It's kind of funny actually the reason why I chose to read this non-fiction text. I decided that the best way to improve my writing ability both as a reader and a writer, would be to challenge myself with the most difficult task. I thought about what that would pertain, and indeed that's how I came upon "A Room of One's Own." The reason why this is challenging for me is because, well for starters I'm not a woman, which is the basis of all of Woolf's writings which are based on lectures she gave. The text as whole is regarded as feminist which as an individual I am not a big believer or supporter of. Please don't misconstrue my words and think that I mean to objectify women, no I simply feel that the way feminists attack society is less of "women need more rights" and more of "men have too many rights". This will certainly be a text that will put me outside of my comfort zone. I know that if I can handle this appropriately, I can take on the real thing in May!

TOW #8-"In Cold Blood" (IRB)

One down, three to go. I just finished my independent reading book, "In Cold Blood", this afternoon and all in all I was rather pleased with the book.

In the second half of the book Capote delved deeper into the history and the background of the killers Dick and Perry. We learned about their motives for the heinous crime and we learned about where they ventured after the murders took place. From Kansas to Las Vegas to Mexico City to deep on the Gulf Coast of Mexico and then back up into California and back to Nevada, Dick and Perry traveled just about everywhere trying to start a new life after their fortune turned up short at the Clutters. After detective's Dye and Dewey worked tirelessly on this case for the matter of a few weeks, a piece came forth that brought the puzzle together. Floyd Wells an inmate hears the news of the Clutter's and hears about the reward they are offering for anyone who can step forwards with information. Wells was a cellmates with Dick whilst he was in jail and revealed to Dick that Mr. Clutter was a wealthy man. Dick became greedy and spoke of the crime he would commit once he got out of jail but Wells thought it to be all talk. Dick and Perry were found in Vegas, detained, and brought back to Holcomb where they would face trial. It was revealed the perverted intentions Dick had for Nancy and the full clear story behind what took place.

The first rhetorical aspect of Capote's writing that fascinated me the most was the way that he structured and organized the story. In the first chapter of the book Capote told two different story lines; one of Dick and Perry and their mischievous behaviors and the other of the Clutter's and their daily life all of which were activities prior to the murder. The murders then takes place, but Capote does something very interesting where he never really shows the murders happening rather just the police looking over the seen and Dick and Perry reflecting on it as they drive away. In rearranging the facts of the Clutters' murder, Capote was able to not only just retell the true story of them but also put new meanings behind it. Capote's opinions in the story become evident later on when talking about the death penalty as he shows his strong opposition for it.

Capote's purpose in writing this informative yet creative work was to illustrate the complexity and the true improbability of the "American Dream". Mr. Clutter had a wonderful life, with a beautiful family and a great and successful business. Mr. Clutter's and his family's dreams are unexpectedly ended when two criminals do whatever it takes for just money. Capote did a brilliant job illustrating his purpose through the organization and structure of "In Cold Blood".

TOW #7-"Harvard Students Believe U.S. Is Bigger Threat Than ISIS" (Written)

I happened upon this FOX News article whilst browsing the web and I couldn't help myself but to laugh at how humorous the article was. FOX took to the streets at world-renowned Harvard University to ask whether the U.S. or ISIS poses the greater threat to world peace. Three highly intelligible students respond by saying the U.S which is quickly criticized and bashed by the FOX News crew. Three student responses very quickly became a sweeping condemnation of ALL of the “liberal” campuses. And it surely didn’t take too long for FOX to get in a shot at Barack Obama! The first student spoke specifically to American imperialism as being the root problem, not “America” itself. So in the end the debate became too simplistic, the panel wanted to focus on the current and undeniable threat/evil of ISIS, whereas the students were more focused on the historical PAST and some “American” foreign policy decisions in the Middle East that played a definite role in creating the current situation.

The author's (FOX) purpose behind this article is to condemn these alleged "smart Harvard students" by misconstruing and taking their statements out of context. I can certainly tell you what rhetorical devices FOX News DIDN'T use. For starters, they never established any credibility the entire time that the panel was claiming that ISIS is the bigger threat to world peace. Just because they are news anchors and one is a country singer doesn't mean that there opinions have any validity. In fact, the students at Harvard University established more credibility by citing their sources and stating cold-hard facts. The strongest rhetorical device that FOX used was that they strongly appealed to anger Americans into feeling like these students are "unpatriotic". FOX really emphasized their support for this gracious land to make the reader feel patriotic.


http://insider.foxnews.com/2014/10/08/video-harvard-students-believe-us-bigger-threat-isis

(I also found this satirical online newspaper that did an article on this http://satirev.org/harvard/fox-news-confirms-majority-harvard-students-seem-have-paid-attention-history-class#.VERD3lboYci Might have to do this written text as well!)

TOW #6- "Americans' concern over EBOLA" (Visual)

Jack Ohman a cartoonist for the small Sacramento Bee newspaper, drew an interesting cartoon depicting the hysteria that has struck America because of Ebola. Ohman's intended audience was the standard newspaper reading Sacramento citizen that has heard enough about this "Ebola" crap. The basis of the cartoon is to make fun of the stereotypical morbidly obese, cheeseburger chomping, cigarette smoking, beer guzzling American and their reaction to this vicious disease Ebola.

Ohman's purpose behind this cartoon is to bluntly state to America that Ebola is being too "hyped up" and it is the least of our worries. Ohman is trying to point out just how hypocritical Americans are being about Ebola and their deep concerns with how badly it is going to affect them as they continue to pound down liters of beer and fly through packs of cigarettes in a day.

Ohman used a bunch of rhetorical devices including satire, hyperbole, and I would even classify the cartoon as a whole as a parody of American citizens. Every facet of the cartoon contains extreme exaggeration in one way or another. Standardizing Americans as that severely obese holding a burger and a beer in both hands, with a big gulp and large fry in lap, and a cigarette protruding from the side of the mouth is all in one an embellishment of American citizens. It is important to note however that the standard, plain black text in the background displaying the numbers of deaths per year in the United States is actually very accurate. According to the National Institutes of Health all of the numbers Ohman put were exactly correct. By contrasting the havoc that the primary focus of the comic brings with the subtle background text, it makes the meaning and purpose of the comic much more distinct and powerful. At first it is a humorous piece to look at and have a nice chuckle about but then after staring at it for a little longer you begin to think about the severity of obesity, alcohol, and tobacco on American society.


http://www.sacbee.com/2014/10/09/6771205_a6771204/jack-ohman-americans-concern-over.html

TOW #5-"These people I interviewed in Iran clearly loved the country. So why did it put them in jail?" (Written)

Anthony Bourdain is host of CNN's "Parts Unknown" and author of "Kitchen Confidential". To say he is a culinary expert is an understatement as Bourdain has traveled country to country across the world to taste the food that country has to offer. In his most recent trip that he took in mid July of this summer, Bourdain traveled to Iran. This isn't the first time Bourdain has traveled to somewhere that most Americans wouldn't travel for pleasure. He has also been to countries like Egypt, Iraq, and Turkey.

This op-ed piece that Anthony Bourdain wrote for The Washington Post regards the Washington Post's Iran correspondent and his wife. While in Iran Bourdain met Jason Rezaian and his wife. Rezaian had nothing but great words to say about Iran and when asked if he'd ever consider coming back to the US he replied that he never thinks he'll ever go back because it's too easy to love the city and country (Tehran, Iran). Oddly enough, Rezaian and his wife were mysteriously arrested and detained by Iranian authorities just a few weeks after Bourdain's trip. Bourdain is simply exclaiming his confusion and outrage at what has taken place.

The primary rhetorical device used by Anthony Bourdain in this opinion editorial is personal anecdotes. The whole purpose to his op-ed is based in the grounds of his trip he took to Iran over the summer. All personal recollections and stories were used to help Bourdain support his claim. Anthony Bourdain's purpose in writing this article is to inform anyone in America about this bizarre occurrence even after his amazing trip to Iran. Bourdain was not quick to criticize Iran and the country when he was there. In fact he actually praised how nice the people were that he met and raved about the food that he got to taste. Bourdain simply wants to get the word out about his friend without jumping to any accusations.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2014/08/05/these-people-i-interviewed-in-iran-clearly-loved-the-country-so-why-did-it-put-them-in-jail/

TOW #4- "In Cold Blood" (IRB)

As you already know I decided to read In Cold Blood as my first independent reading book. So far, from what I've read, In Cold Blood is as good if not better than what I expected it to be.

Essentially the story takes place in a small, no-name town, Holcomb, Kansas. In the first ten or so pages, Truman Capote thoroughly and with much detail sets up what will be the main setting of the book. For those who don't know about Holcomb (which is the majority of readers) Capote goes into great detail about the people of the town, the makeup of the town, and what the people of the town are like. First hand accounts of the day-to-day living styles of the farmers of Holcomb. The introductory phase of the book was a very good exposition that Capote created. Not only did Capote lay out the setting but he also shed light onto the characters and the tone that this story is going to be told in. A very ominous tone is created by Capote that strongly foreshadows a terrible outcome for the Cutter's, the main family that is introduced in the first chapter.

Capote sets up the story in a very interesting fashion. There are two plot lines that are developing at the same time but neither plot lines know what is going on in the other. In a sense it is a derived version of parallelism that is built up in a bigger context. Not only is one sentence paralleling another yet with different content, one story is paralleling another that while eventually cross paths. I think Truman Capote does this to install suspense and the want to read more into the reader which is his overall purpose of the first half of the book. As I was reading, Capote would advance one of the plot lines almost to the point where you found something out or one of your questions was answered and then he would switch to the other and do the same thing. Capote does a great job of teasing the reader with these two plot lines that I am assuming, will eventually collide in a dramatic fashion.

TOW #3 "What Happens When A Smoker Quits" (Visual)

I decided to look at an infographic this week that was published by the American Cancer Society not too long ago. The infographic is a detailed yet concise timeline that briefly describes at every time period what happens when a smoker quits. The American Cancer Society is a nationwide voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. This gives some insight without even looking at the infographic what might be on it and what ideas they might be presenting.

The audience of this infographic is spreads from one end of the spectrum all the way down to the other. Of course this image primarily serves to incentivize smokers to quit and how beneficial it would be for them to do so even after not a long period of time. So the direct audience I would have to say would be any current smoker. A secondary audience for this infographic is anyone that has a family member, friend, or anyone in their life that they care about who smokes. It shows them how helpful quitting smoking can be for someone who smokes.

The biggest and most noticeable rhetorical device that is used in this visual is pathos. The only image used in the visual is a shriveled, used up cigarette that conveys a somber tone that parallels the feeling that cigarettes cause to smokers. For anyone who has a loved one who smokes this is something that they see on a daily basis, an used cigarette. That one small image is so powerful that to people that smoke, that little cigarette is the difference between their utmost health and an early death.

The interesting thing to note is that instead of the normal ads that just show the gruesome and horrible effects that cigarettes have, this one is the opposite. It shows what happens to people that stop smoking. The American Cancer Society has shifted their audience from people thinking about smoking or starting to smoke to people that have been smoking and smoke a lot in their lifetime. They recognize the fact that they need to motivate and emotionally drive cigarette smokers to stop. It's so easy to look at this infographic and see how easily obtainable those goals are.

(http://i.imgur.com/PGYDt67.jpg)

TOW #2- "On the Field, the Babble Is Usually Towering" (Written)

This week for my Text of the Week I chose to read an article published by the New York Times. The article was written by Bill Pennington and it was just published yesterday. Pennington talks about how much communication is used on the football field now a days as compared to the late 90's. Pennington broke down the New York Giants football team by position while explaining what they do in between each play. He explains that the players now have communication systems built into their helmets on both offense and defense to make the play calling much easier. Aside from that Pennington also noted that the Quarterback and other players are still shouting commands and warnings just mere seconds before the ball is snapped.

Bill Pennington is of course writing this article for the interest of sports fans and even the very rudimentary sports fans who are interested by this information. It is unlike your normal sports article which focuses on the sport itself, the people playing it, the match ups, and the scores. Bill Pennington used logos to help support his opinions. Pennington first started the article by stating "About 125 times during a typical N.F.L. game, an official retrieves the football at the end of a play and places it on the turf for the next play." He then went on to use one-on-one interviews that he had with current New York Giants players. “There’s a lot going on in a condensed few seconds,” quarterback Eli Manning said. This can be considered expert testimony because although Eli Manning isn't an "expert" he is a professional.

From what I could analyze, Pennington's purpose was to inform sports fans of the importance and amount of communication used on the football field. By giving perspective's of all the different players, Pennington showed that everyone uses communication and they use it frequently.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/14/sports/football/on-the-field-the-babble-is-usually-towering.html?hpw&rref=sports&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&version=HpHedThumbWell&module=well-region&region=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well

IRB Intro #1- "In Cold Blood"

The Independent Reading Book that I chose for this first marking period is called In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. Truman Capote is a highly-acclaimed author who is best known for writing Breakfast at Tiffany's. In Cold Blood is a book about four people who were brutally murdered in a small Kansas town. There was no apparent motive for the crime, and there were almost no clues. The reason why I chose to read this book is because from what I heard it is very similar to a murder mystery book except the fact that this actually happened! I'm really looking forward to learning more about this bone-chilling homicide. I hope by reading this book it can help give me insights into the nature of American violence.

TOW #1-"How To Say Nothing In 500 Words" (Written)

How To Say Everything In 500 Words is a short essay written by a English professor and professional linguist, Paul Roberts. Roberts used a central analogy of you, a high school freshman, being assigned a 500 word essay on Friday right before the weekend. The essay is on a topic that must students don't have a particular interest in, College Football. Roberts goes through saying how this "essay" that most students end up writing is horrid and by the end of the five-hundred words it really doesn't get anywhere. After using this analogy to represent what happens to most students when they write class essays, Roberts then goes over stuff to avoid and stuff to include. He states that any obvious argument that most other kids would use, should be left out. Another suggestion he presents is that you should use concretized material instead of the abstracts that most students use.

After reading Paul Roberts' essay I can conclude that his intended audience is composed of students anywhere from middle school to college that are plagued with this very common essay writing problem. One rhetorical strategy Roberts employed is a hypophora. In the beginning of the essay Roberts basically asked the reader, what should you do when you are assigned a paper that's due in a few days? Roberts then went on to answer his own question by stating the various things to avoid and to include into your paper.

I feel the main reason Paul Roberts wrote this short piece was to just overall help students understand how to improve their essay writing abilities. He wants to inform the general public about the common mistakes students make when writing an essay. This was the most intriguing and helpful article for me as a student. Roberts accomplished his purpose because he impacted me with what he said. Now when I have to write an essay, I have this piece bookmarked so I can quickly review over what he said to think about when writing.

Bop by Langston Hughes (190)

Bop written by Langston Hughes is about two kids, one white and one black, listening to a type of music known as Bop (or Be-Bop). The origin of bop comes from the sound that a police club makes when a police officer is beating a negro. The one white boy does not understand bop and calls it nonsense simply out of the fact he doesn't comprehend it. Simple goes on to tell him that he can't understand it because he hasn't suffered much or dealt with dark days so he can't appreciate the art of Bop.

Langston Hughes was an American poet and social activist. Hughes was a black writer and was one of the earliest creators of the then-new art style called jazz poetry. Since Langston Hughes is black like one of the main characters in the essay, he is attempting to send a message about racial segregation at that point in time. Blacks were treated as inferior to whites for many, many years. Simple explains later in the essay that bop is a way of expressing the sounds and emotions a man makes and feels while being beat down, not only by a police officer, but by the world as a whole. That is the attempted message that Hughes is attempting to convey to the reader. That although in this essay it was just literally cops that beat down on Negroes, it is everyone in the whole world that was constantly beating them up.

Hughes intended audience was anyone who was unaware or ignorant to how severe the racial hatred and physical abuse was for African-Americans. Hughes tried to use an analogy through this essay of Bop to parallel what was going on in society at that point in time. I do feel that Langston Hughes did the best job out of all the essays I read at accomplishing his purpose. In this short, very rudimentary essay, Hughes was able to put in his powerful and emotional message about the abusive world that African-Americans live in.

Hughes was trying to use a setting of just two innocent boys listening to music to help demonstrate the awful police brutality against Negroes that took place at that point in time. (Photo found on Pintrest.com)

The Figure a Poem Makes by Robert Frost (176)

In The Figure a Poem Makes, Robert Frost speaks about his own interpretation of how a poem should be made and how a poem should be viewed by others. Multiple times in his essay, Frost states how he believes a poem should run: from delight to wisdom. In the end Robert Frost addressed the fact that poems are eternal and no matter how old they are, they will always have their truth and wisdom.

Robert Frost is a very well-known American poet, who is remembered for his one poem The Road Not Taken. It is key to take not that this poem was written in 1939. By that time in Robert Frost's life he was already fairly well known and was a highly acclaimed poet of the time. Being the highly remarkable and well-respected poet that he was, gave him the necessary ethos to talk about how poems are designed and how they should be interpreted by the readers.

As already previously noted, Frost's purpose is to let everyone know what he deems an appropriately crafted poem and how people should treat poems. I would imagine that Robert Frost's intended audience was composed of anyone that reads or creates poetry. He intends to send his specific message across on how poetry should work to the people that enjoy making or reading poetry.

Clearly one of the major rhetorical devices Frost used was connotation. The entirety of the essay was based around his connotation of poetry. He had a suggested and implied specific meaning for what he believed poetry to be. Also as previously mentioned Frost's ethos played a vital role in this poem. Without a doubt I do believe that Robert Frost accomplished his purpose of the perception of poetry and how poetry should be crafted. The real reason why he was able to accomplish his goal was because he was a reliable source to be listening to this information from.

The entire essay was about how Robert Frost believes a poem should be interpreted. This photo shows how something usually looks and then when you look through the glasses, that's how Robert Frost wants you to view it. (Photo found on joshflom.wordpress.com)

The Future Is Now by Katherine Anne Porter (193)

I was nothing short of intrigued after reading the title to this essay. By stating that the future is now, it contradicts the basic order that our society lives upon. The present is considered what is going on now and the future is something going on later. The title to this essay is a paradox but after further reading the essay, it actually makes sense.

Katherine Anne Porter published this essay in 1950, which is a post-WWII world. In this essay Porter takes a moment to sit back, observe, and realize where we as mankind are in the history of Earth. Porter continuously goes back to the atomic bomb, which serves as a symbol for mankind's deliberate inclination for self-destruction. She comes to the conclusion that life isn't worth doing for the future but for doing for right now.

Katherine Anne Porter was a Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist, an essayist, and a political activist. After reading Porter's essay I truly believe that her intended purpose for this essay was to open people's eyes up and give them a whole new perspective on our society. This essay was intended for anyone that currently lives in our society. She wants people to change how they're living, and how they few such things as war and nuclear bombs. She brings the point up that we invent weapons of mass destruction to use on our enemies yet we get shocked by the amount of deaths that happen by the monster we created.

Aside from creating a paradoxical essay, Katherine Anne Porter also used some other Rhetorical Devices. Porter uses a few allusions altogether in one sentence. "How much of this are we to believe, when with the pride of Lucifer, the recklessness of Icarus, the boldness of Prometheus and the intellectual curiosity of Adam and Eve..." (196). The whole introductory to that essay can also be viewed as an anecdote. Porter starts the story off with a personal anecdote that took place at her workplace. In conclusion, I do believe that Katherine Anne Porter accomplished her intended purpose with this essay because after reading it, I am now definitely thinking about our society in a different way.

 I felt that Ferris Bueller's wise words really helped simplify the message that Katherine Anne Porter was attempting to convey. (Found on Pintrest.com)