Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Discourse Communites and Commonplaces/ English Assign #4

My assignment is to define Discourse Communites and Commonplaces.

A discourse community is a group of people who use communication to achieve certain goals and purposes. A discourse community can be a group of friends on an internet sight or a group of Airforce wives getting together when their husbands are deployed. People in these groups all share a common interest and choose to be there.

Commonplaces are places that have meaning and familarity to a group. This could be a group of people who are all associated because they are all alumni from the same University. It could also be the place that a group meets every Tuesday (ex: Ladies Ice Cream Tuesdays at Baskin Robins) Baskin Robins is the commonplace that these women meet for ice cream every Tuesday and discuss common interests.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Argumentative Appeals/ English Assign# 3

Defining argumentative appeals (Logos, Ethos, and Pathos).



1. The text defines Logos as the "logical argument; an appeal to reason". In other words this would be the reason why you should be interested in the product (or idea) the ad is selling. Logos is also the point of the ad. It is giving a good argument as to why you need this product (or idea). It also provides the color, text, dialog, and sound in the ad to get your attention.



2. The text defines Ethos as the "ethical argument; an appeal based on the rhetor's (ethical) character". In other words would it be ethical for you to spend a certain amount of money (or time and effort) on the product (or idea) the ad is selling.



3. The text defines Pathos as the "emotional argument; an appeal to the emotions of the audience". In other words how would buying (or agreeing with) the product (or idea) make you feel.



If I were to choose the Nissan Cube ad I would be able to use all three argumentitive appeals. The Logos of this ad would be- do I (the audience) need this car and why would I need this car. I would explain in detail how the ad touches on this with the use of the people in the ad, and how they behave because they have the Nissan Cube. I would also talk about how the song in the ad grabs the audience's attention. The Ethos would be - should I spend the money needed to buy this Nissan Cube and if I do would it benefit me and the company selling (Nissan) in a positive way. The Pathos would be- how would I feel if I were to buy the Cube. The ad plays on all three of these on the use of music, slogan, actors, and vision.



If I were to choose the "Super Freak" Visa ad I would only be able to use two argumentative appeals. The ad mostly uses Logos and Pathos. The ad uses Logos by getting your attention by the singing and dancing. Then by using Pathos the ad is all about showing how people are nothing but happy because they use Visa. The people are singing and dancing and they make it seem that if you (the audience) were to use Visa you would be happy enough to sing and dance too.



(Links to both ads are in the post below this one, "English Assign#2 Corrected")

English Assign#2 Correction

So I was asked to find a multimodal ad (a commercial) not a poster ad oops :)! So here are two commercials that I found on You Tube that I think would be good to write about.

The first one is a recent commercial for the Nissan Cube. I like how different the commercial is and the slogan it uses "Cube- a Mobile Device". The commercial is using the car like it's an app and a vehicle. It has a very futuristic meaning and a ton of neat computer type words to explain the car. I like how the commercial is screaming to the cyber generation. Here is the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOueYfrrSjw

The second one I am thinking of writing about is the "Super Freak" Visa commercial. I really like this commercial because it is fun and the people in it are also singing the music. It shows lots of different people from different places sharing a common happiness with Visa. I like how this commerical uses a good mood to get the message across. Here is the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8lIRdKrus0

Monday, September 14, 2009

Article Choice/ English Assign#2



For my second assignment I have been asked to pick two picture ads to think about using for my first essay. I have decided to maybe use an ad for Ipod. I picked this ad because the colors grabbed my attention immediately. I also loved the play on words in the slogan "feel the sound". I have put a picture up of the ad but it can be found at,




I also liked a vintage ad about VD in WWII. This one grabbed my attention because of all the metephors used like the gun (loaded). This poster has a lot to say and I am sure I can write a lot about it. It is colorful with a colorful message ;)!! This ad can be found at, http://pzrservices.typepad.com/vintageadvertising/2007/09/vintage-vd-post.html

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Victory Waits on Your Fingers/ English Assign#1


After reading chapter 2 I was assigned to pick a poster and describe the meaning of the visuals in the poster. The poster I chose from the Gallery of WWII poster art is "Victory Waits on Your Fingers". The poster comes from part 1 under the "It's a Woman's War Too" link.
When I look at the picture I am immediately drawn to the patriotic colors. All the red, white, and blue make me think of America, my country.Imagining that I live in the time this poster was put up I become the audience, which is a woman living in America during WWII. I am then drawn to the woman in the picture and the placement of her hand which is a military salute. So I know that this picture has something to do with women in the U.S. Military just by observing the colors and the position of the image (Miss U.S.A.).
After looking at the colors and the woman in the poster I am then drawn to the text. The style of the text is bold black and red letters which makes what it's saying important. The arrangement of the text is excellent, it cuts to the chase in the first line and encourages you in the second line. It doesn't scare you into action but pursuades you. The text then delivers the information you would need should you want to take further action because of the poster.
This poster was an advertisment for women to work as a type writer in the U.S. Military while the troops were at war. It shows a woman working at a type writer performing her duty to her country without getting her hands dirty. After observing the poster I (the audience, assuming that I lived at the time of distribution) would remember her smile and the simplicity of her job. I would be able to do that and do something great for my country. The poster is arranged well and the style of the text and photo is very memorable.

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Welcome

Welcome all to my very first blog. I am doing this as an assignment but I think that it is going to be a lot of fun. I am still trying to figure out how to set up everything so any tips would help ha! I named my blog Wife in Jersey since we are stationed in New Jersey for the time being and I am a newlywed (we have been married a year now but things are still new ha). My husband is in the Air Force and I am super proud of him :)! I am just going to school right now and being a crazy housewife. My days consist of school, cleaning, playing with the dog and watching soap net ha (if only I like bon-bons lol)... I will be posting not only assignments for English class but also my lil adventures that I encounter being a "Wife in Jersey". I hope you all have a blessed day :)...