Reading Blog 17

December 1, 2011

Toulmin 1410-1428, Foucault 1432-1436 and 1460-1470

Foucault
When I think of Foucault, rhetoric and discourse don't come to my mind.  I usually think of Discipline and Punish.  The concept of the prison where anyone could be watching is very interesting.  It makes people think they have no privacy, and they are always under surveillance means they never know who is watching them and cannot act out.  I think this is a revolutionary idea, especially in today's society.  Everything in our culture is based on surveillance.  People are being watched at every point in their lives.  Even through the media, America is based on what is seen, whether or not it is the truth is irrelevant.  I think that our culture is too based on the media.  How we view each other is the main judgment people pass.  Even with facebook, we can pass judgment and sit and survey others without anyone knowing.  It is almost creepy.  'Facebook stalking' and seeing what someone else is up to is amazingly common.  It makes me wonder who is watching me at any given point in time.

Essay 3: Rhetoric in the Modern Era

November 29, 2011

Rhetoric has changed in many ways throughout time.  In ancient times, rhetors used memorization and advanced speech-making techniques to create effective performances.  Today, there are countless mediums to provide a rhetorically effective text.  In this instance, Steve Jobs, CEO and co-founder of both Apple and Pixar, makes a successful speech to Stanford University’s class of 2005 using an interesting combination of ancient and modern rhetorical concepts.  Through this analysis, a few observations about modern rhetoric can be established. 

            This speech, given by Steve Jobs, was a written text intended for a live delivery to an audience.  He did not have the speech memorized, as many ancient rhetors did, and he fumbled over many passages.  He may have been nervous or he may have needed to practice the speech a few more times, but it did impact the effectiveness of his words.  Perhaps using a few memorization techniques, such as, spatial metaphors, as Aristotle had recommended to his students would have prepared him more successfully (Bizzell and Herzberg 31). 

            Jobs intended this speech to be very motivating and full of inspiration.  These graduating students are about to embark on a journey that could change the rest of their lives.  He used his personal experiences to encourage and persuade his listeners to not give up on what they truly want to achieve.  While explaining these events throughout his life, Jobs included many modern uses of tropes.  By referring to ‘connecting the dots,’ Jobs metaphorically suggests how the events in one’s life fit together when looking back on them, even though they may not make sense at the present time (Jobs 00:57).  Aristotle claims that metaphors provide style with clearness and charm, as well as a certain distinction (Bizzell and Herzberg 177).  Jobs uses his metaphor to encourage his audience to not question what is happening, but to believe that everything will fit together in the end. 

            Another metaphor used in Jobs speech was his concept of death as a change agent, a way for life to clear out the old, to make enough room for the new (Jobs 12:15).  With this concept, Jobs modernizes the outlook on death.  He brings new light to the benefits of creating new life and new ideas.  By explaining how limited everyone’s time is here on earth, he makes it clear that no one should be doing anything other than what their hearts tell them (Jobs 12:30).  By emphasizing dramatic ideas, Jobs inspires the audience to do what they love.

Jobs used a unique schema to organize his thoughts and ideas throughout this speech.  By dividing his topics into three specific stories, Jobs created a scheme that easy is to follow and entertaining to listen to.  He described this basic story outline as ‘no big deal’ (Jobs 00:50).  This is a modern interpretation of ancient rhetoricians’ ideas that a ‘text’ must be clear, but it must touch on emotions as well (Crowley and Hawhee 329).  Not only does Jobs use his language in a way that college students would use it, but he also makes it very clear and concise.

Irony is used when explaining how he was fired from the very company he created, only to go on to create more influential companies (Jobs 06:07).  Richard Whately’s use of irony in nineteenth-century rhetoric is similar to Jobs use here.  Jobs uses this effect to examine how he worked so hard to build this company, but the employees ended up turning on him.  He continues on to explain that even though this hardship hurt him, it shaped the person he has become and provided him with the means to go on to create bigger and better things.  This is a little bit of a twist on Whately’s interpretation of irony.  He claims that certain forms are fit for ironic ideas as well as certain circumstances (Bizzell and Herzberg 1026).  Jobs employs this effect by turning a negative experience into a positive one.   He is able to adapt this idea into a successful modernized device by relating to the audiences emotions.

John Locke has a similar philosophy to that of Jobs’ style.  Locke presented his ideas in easily accessible language and used common experiences and common sense to explain his concepts (Bizzell and Herzberg 814).  The concept of reflection examines how one person relates ideas to another by mentally forming associations and processes individuals are aware of, this includes thinking, doubting, and believing (Bizzell and Herzberg 814).  This idea relates directly to Jobs presentation.  He personally relates his ideas to those of the audience.  By including personal experiences, Jobs was able to let in his listeners to motivate and persuade them to always believe in themselves.

In his speech, Jobs includes his battle with cancer (Jobs 10:40).  This is a very personal subject for both Jobs and perhaps many students who may have family or friends fighting the same battle.  He refers to the threat of oncoming death as a tool for the motivation to make big choices in life (Jobs 09:55).  By associating a common trait that all people will encounter, like death, Jobs was able to persuade the audience to not wait to find what they truly want.

This speech truly exemplifies the modern use of rhetoric.  Jobs uses many ideas that were created by ancient rhetoricians to persuade his audience.  Using personal experience as a main contribution to this motivational speech, Jobs creates an intriguing view of the future for graduating students.  At this point in the audience’s lives, anything can happen.  Jobs uses different tropes, an original scheme and various examples of irony to make that idea clear.  He makes the point that simply believing in one’s self, and knowing that in the end everything will work out will motivate one to keep moving forward.

Modern rhetoric is really not as different from ancient rhetoric as one may expect.  Jobs’ speech is an example of the personal experiences and casual language that are regularly used in rhetoric today.  These two components are very important to the development of modern rhetoric.  The ability for audiences or readers to relate to the material is crucial.  Jobs’ use of his personal experiences as well as the ability to use the real language of the students was what made his speech extremely effective.

Reading Blog 16

November 14, 2011

Modern and Post-Modern Rhetoric Intro. 1181-1205

The fact that rhetoric was considered to be in a decline is a very interesting concept.  It truly is a valuable interdisciplinary theory of language and meaning.  Rhetoric really is everywhere.  When asked 'what is rhetoric?' there are many answers.  Is there only rhetoric in writing or performance, or anything literary related?  Or is rhetoric about how you present yourself and how you want to be seen by the world?  It could be considered both.  Picking out what I am wearing in the morning could be considered a form of visual rhetoric.  It would be saying one thing to people if I was wearing sweatpants to school, but something completely different if I was wearing a ball gown.  It seems as though cultural influences are very important in determining different types of rhetoric and their meanings.  For example, comedy is very different in various cultures.  Something that we think is funny here, or appropriate for one type of situation can be completely wrong for a different culture.  I find it interesting how this concept was rooted in such ancient ideas and it is still so valid to life today.

Reading Blog 15

November 10, 2011

ARCS Ch. 12 and Maria Stewart pp. 1031-1044; Frederick Douglass pp. 1061-1085

Delivery: Attending to Eyes and Ears
Delivery is the first time the audience sees and hears the tone of a presentation.  At the very beginning of a speech, one can determine how the rest of it will go.  The voice of the rhetor is very important, as is the facial and body language used during the presentation.  I think this is one of the most important aspects.  If you are leaning on the podium while trying to talk about an important issue, many people aren't going to take the speaker seriously.  Many ancient rhetors insist on rehearsing the speech out loud.  I think this is a very effective way of practicing.  It will be the most appropriate way of knowing how the speech will sound when speaking.

Maria Stewart
Maria Stewart was left as an orphan then became part of a Protestant family as an indentured servant.  Starting at a very young age, this woman has had a hard life.  She went on to marry James W. Stewart when she was only 23.  Walker was an advocate for African American rights as well as an abolitionist, an important part of the development of Maria started publishing comments in the Liberator to battle African American rights.  She also wrote religious meditations.  She also started preparing public speeches to give about issues that concern her. Because women were not supposed to call so much attention to themselves, this caused a lot of issues.  I find women's rights very interesting.  It has taken so long for women to have 'equal' rights in society, when even today there are still divisions.  I feel like there are many intellectual women who never had the chance to express their opinions.