Prompt #2: (Un) Media Analysis

Ani DiFranco, the author of this spoken word poem, is clearly a poet with very strong views of our American government. DiFranco would definitely be considered an activist, but not only for specific issues, but for the American democracy as a whole. Whether she is for or against the administration under George W. Bush's reign is not a mystery. She clearly and nearly satirically explains that the truths we hold to be self evident are not what they used to be. Ani DiFranco claims to be "looking out over my whole human family" and assumes that we all agree with her opinion. Aside from the poet's viewpoints, she made it pretty clear who her intended audience was supposed to be. In my opinion, Ani DiFranco intended for her audience to be any generation that experienced the attacks that took place on September 11th, 2001. I think that DiFranco's use of timeliness--as we discussed and read about in The CommonPlace--was extremely well-crafted. DiFranco definitely took into account who would be reading this poem, or listening to it for that matter, and considered what her audience would genuinely care about. And, as we all learned from The CommonPlace authors, to be timely is a necessity when attempting to be persuasive.

Although she makes some references to events before my time, I think that her use of relevance attracts both listeners and readers. Ani DiFranco was successful in capturing her audience's attention and considered who her ideal audience would be. In addition to her timeliness and relevance, DiFranco used analytical tools such as repetition to emphasize her point. For example, she explained that the attack on The World Trade Center "looked more like war than anything i've seen so far / so far / so far" (1). Had she only written or spoken "so far" once, personally I would not have understood what she was trying to say. In my opinion, I think she's expressing that there are sure to be more horrific events still to come in our lifetime. In addition to repetition, DiFranco uses logos in explaining the infatuation of the American citizens with popular entertainment devices. Although in my opinion, her statement that "take away our playstations / and we are a third world nation" is a bit harsh, her rational that we are so consumed with what is the most popular materialistic item, is in fact reality (2).

This type of media was harder for me to analyze in comparison to the music videos, commercials, and songs we have done thus far in class. Although I would have thought that it would be easier to analyze something physically in front of me, it was much more difficult. But, it is definitely important for us to learn rhetorical analysis on different types of mediums. My analysis on this piece of work would be slightly different than it would on a YouTube video due to the fact that with Ani DiFranco's poem, there is no actual picture painted for me. So not only does the reader or listener have to analyze the actual writing, but he or she also has to visualize the writing for him or herself.

Facebook Project

My “ideal” Ohio State freshman is Morgan Klein. I chose this first name because it is not an unusual name and seemed to fit my impression of an ideal citizen perfectly. Although Klein is also my last name, I found it appropriate due to the fact that there are very few Ohio State students with the same or similar last names. For the most part, Ohio State consists of a variety of ethnicities and backgrounds, and therefore last names too. Morgan is, in my words, “the typical Ohio State female student,” which in my opinion consists of being classified as Caucasian. I based my opinion off of what I see on a daily basis at The Ohio State University. Although Ohio State is an extremely diverse university, I still believe—and this is strictly constructed off of what I see—that the majority of students would classify themselves as Caucasian. Morgan Klein also associates herself with the Democratic Party because I feel as though one of the main support systems for the Democrats is college campuses. Morgan is a Christian simply due to the fact that Christianity is one of the major religions in the United States so I felt as though the “ideal citizen” would also associate with that religious belief. Aside from Morgan’s basic information, in the “About Me” section of the Facebook profile, she describes herself as being a nursing major from Columbus, Ohio who has a younger sister, a younger brother, a dog, and a cat. She also restates, as she previously expressed in the “Activities” section, that she loves to go shopping. Although I hate to identify the typical college student as materialistic, I feel as though shopping is one of nearly everyone’s hobbies. In addition to shopping, Morgan enjoys hanging out with friends, including her sorority sisters. I am aware that Greek Life is not a huge part of the Ohio State’s student body, but I feel as though the stereotypes associated with sorority girls’ personalities would apply to my perception of the “ideal citizen.”

Aside from Morgan’s beliefs and basic information, I chose her favorite music, television shows, movies, books, and quotations also as if I was crafting the typical female Ohio State student of 2009. Morgan’s favorite music includes Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, Lil Wayne, The Fray, Dave Matthews Band, Kanye West, and Rihanna. I do not believe that the typical college student solely associates him or herself with one specific music genre, as shown by the variety of artists displayed on her profile which range from hip pop to pop to rap to rock. Her favorite television shows, however, stem from very similar television channels which have very specific types of audiences. Her favorite shows include The Hills, Sex & The City, Grey’s Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, The Real Housewives of Orange County, Gossip Girl, and American Idol. I feel as if these channels—including MTV, ABC, The CW, and Bravo—target teenagers. In her “Favorite Movies” section, Morgan likes chick flicks and comedies the most. These movies include The Notebook, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Twilight, Anchorman, The House Bunny, and Sex & The City: The Movie. Although I have a hard time believing that the ideal college student has enough time on his or her hands to accumulate a well-constructed list of “Favorite Books,” Morgan’s favorites seem to consist of easy-reads. These books, very popular with other teenage girls, include Twilight, Gossip Girl, and Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Lastly, Morgan’s favorite quotations are from teen-idolized female figures such as the women from Sex & The City and Marilyn Monroe.