Saturday, January 28, 2012

Compare/Contrast Paragraph

Kroll's and Mencken's articles both touch on the topic of the death penalty. Kroll's article is more filled with appeal, and Mencken's article is more filled with support for a main topic. However, the Kroll article is more persuasive because of its appeals and fallacies. Mencken's article, while full of logical support, has a confusing, somewhat "red herring" ending that makes me want to stop reading for lack of understanding. It doesn't have that emotion and sense that Kroll inserts into his article. So, the appeals in a persuasive piece matter more than the support for the article.

"Sixteen Military Wives" by the Decemberists

1. This song is about how America isn't fair. It kills troops and breaks down people, like the "celebrity minds". The anchormen talk about these things on the things like he doesn't care at all, like it an everyday thing.
2. The theme of the song is that America does what it wants to whenever it wants to. It doesn't realize the real heroes, like the soldiers. This is because we don't really care about the news, because we are not emotionally attached.

"Race for the Prize" by the Flaming Lips (1999)

The theme of this song is the pursuit of a good life (happiness) and its dangers. One example that can support this is in the first stanza where they sing "Locked in a heated battle for the cure that is their prize". It doesn't say what the cure is for, but I take it as a cure to making life good. The theme is also supported in the chorus, where they sing "Theirs is to win if it kills them; Their just humans with wives and children". This shows that they aren't machines; they have feelings, and the one they are going for is their "cure", although they ignore those.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Speeches and Fallacies

1. Appeal to consequences: "But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when the British guard shall be stationed in every house? (Patrick Henry's "Speech to the Virginia Convention")"
2. The fallacy that the quote above commits is appeal to consequence. It is guilty of committing this logical flaw because it is showing the consequence of not being able to cope with "so formidable an adversary". By appealing to a consequence, people will want to become stronger before something bad happens.
3. A speech that blatantly commits so many fallacies can still be so effective and so famous because fallacies are used as forms of propaganda, so the speech writers, if you will, can get people on their side by appealing to them through fallacies. They are famous for their ease in persuading people.

Monday, January 16, 2012

Duck and Cover

1. The overt message is that ducking and covering can save your life in a bombing attack. Other overt messages are that one should always obey the civil defense officer, and one should beware of the flash.
2. The covert message is not mentioned purposefully, as they don't mention that you can die anyway if you are really close to the center of the blast. You can be exploded or burned.
3. Propaganda, because they are still leaving out some important facts to know. The technique used is fear, as they subtly scare children into ducking and covering so they don't die.

Destination Earth

1. The overt message is that oil and competition are the best things in the world.
2. The covert message is saying that communism is not necessarily ideal, but the video is kind of sadistic in how they express it. The martian world was communist, and the oil and freedom made it (the martians) better.
3. Propaganda, because it is implying something that is not outright said. The propaganda techniques that are used are bandwagon, glittering generality, and transfer.

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Propaganda WWII 1941-1945

1. The overt message is to eat less bread.
2. The covert message is what the rationing is for. The rationing is for the troops because when the industry goes and the people eat less, the soldiers have more to eat.
3. It makes it propaganda becaue the questionable underlying message answers the blatant, in-your-face message.

"Clampdown" by the Clash

1. This song is about the government ruling everything like they have the right to do it. It's saying that one doesn't have a choice if they are with the government.
2. The tempo was kind of fast, showing how they don't really feel sympathy for you in the government. The tune isn't smooth and flowing; it has alot of stops and rigidness.
3. It relates to deception. We see this as later, the person has koined the government, and the government is deceiving them.

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Propaganda, Persuasion, and Deception

Four quotes that I like and understand from the document are 427, 375, 498, and 500. My favorite one of these quotes is number 375 by James A. Garfield, saying, "We are apt to be deluded into false security by politcal catchwords, devised to flatter rather than instruct".I found this one the most interesting because it is talking about how ads in politics don't tell the hard truth about someone/something. Instead, they tell alot of fluff to make the object look good, making people believe it is good. For example, there are certain commercials for things like medicines, and after they tell all the good aspects of the object. Then, at the end of the commercial, a deep voice speaks very quickly, and sometimes unnoticeably, about the side effects and the bad things it causes.
In terms of this quote talking about persuasion, it is saying how ads want people to see the "good" things about the object. As propaganda, the ads are trying to cover up the truth about the object, keeping them under the surface.