Final Blog Post

1) What information did you find useful in this class?
I found this class useful in the sense that I had no idea what Rhetorical Criticism was. It was interesting to find a new form of writing to express/analyze an item.
2) What was your favorite part of this class?
My favorite part of this class was when we had class discussions/oral quizes. It was nice to see how everyone was understanding the material.
3) What do you think was the most challenging aspect of this class?
The most challenging aspect of this class was reading the text. It was a little dry. The example essays were fun to read.
4) How might you incorporate the knowledge and experiences gained from this class into your life beyond this classroom?
In the future, this class has helped me think about things more critically. To really look at artifacts, or items in general and question their motives.
5) Think of a question or issue that is most pressing to you right now. How would you use your knowledge of rhetoric and/or rhetorical criticism to gain perspective on this question or issue?
Right now, I am dealing with the issue of getting more scholarships. I could use rhetoric to analyze the scholarship essay questions.

Blog Assignment For April 16th

For the second essay of this class, I have decided to make my artifact a classic, one that most little kids know very well; Barbie. I am intrigued to see what I find out about her using the method of Pentadic Criticism. I am using Pentadic Criticism beacase I think that this method of Criticism is the best for this artifact, and I am very comfortable with this method. I actually enjoy writing about artifacts in this method. In class, I will bring a Barbie, and I think this essay will be very well written and enjoyed by the reader(s).
The five elements of pentadic criticism are the agent, act, agency, purpose, and scene. For the show, these elements are as follows:
The Agent of Barbie is Barbie herself. She is the sole character that is being discussed.
The Act of Barbie is to be the best friend to little girls all over the world.
The Purpose of Barbie is to be an example of what girls should be like, or want to emulate.
The Agency of Barbie is through intense marketing and appealing to little girls form every walk of life.
The Scene of Barbie is everywhere. Barbie is all over the world.
As for the ratios, that can be a bit more complicated. It's a bit more time consuming. Comparing the five elements to see which one is the more dominant one is done as follows:
Scene-Act: No
Scene-Agent: No
Scene-Agency: Yes
Scene-Purpose: No

Act-Scene: No
Act-Agency: No
Act-Purpose: Yes
Act-Agent: Yes

Agency-Act: Yes
Agency-Scene: Yes
Agency-Purpose: Yes
Agency-Agent: No

Agent-Agency: Yes
Agent-Act: Yes
Agent-Purpose: Yes
Agent-Scene: Yes

Purpose-Act: No
Purpose-Agency: No
Purpose-Scene: No
Purpose-Agent: Yes

So, according to my calculations, the Agent has the most direct influence over the other elements.

Fantasy Theme Will Rock You

Buddy you're a boy make a big noise
Playing in the street gonna be a big man some day
You got mud on your face
You big disgrace
Kickin' your can all over the place
Singin'
We will we will rock you
We will we will rock you
Buddy you're a young man hard man
Shouting in the street gonna take on the world some day
You got blood on your face
A big disgrace
Wavin' your Banner all over the place
We will we will rock you
We will we will rock you
Buddy you're an old man poor man
Pleading with your eyes gonna make you some peace some day
You got mud on your face
Big disgrace
Somebody better put you back into your place
We will we will rock you
We will we will rock you

When one goes to a sports event, one will typically expect to hear a rousing song to get the crowd and the athletes motivated. A perfect song for this type of atmosphere is “We Will Rock You” by Queen. Queen’s song shows symbolic convergence because when people think of this song, they think of sport events and getting “pumped” for an event. Whether it is cleaning the house, or playing football, everyone knows that this song is a motivator. It is interesting, because the lyrics to the song do not necessarily give off a motivational tone, but regardless, it is known worldwide as the sports song for the century.

When examining the artifact carefully, one can find the three references to setting, character, and action themes.

The setting is where the action takes place, or the characteristics of the places in which the action occurs. In this song, the setting theme would be the street. I would also say the world, but I am not sure. That is really the only settings that are mentioned in the song.

The character themes for this song would be Buddy (as a Boy, a Young Man, and an Old Man), and We (The Narrator). In this song, I know that there are some nonhuman entities, but I am not sure who or what they are. I suppose an example of that would be “You got mud on your face” would be an example.

When it comes to the action, in this song, the action is “Playing in the street/kicking your can/shouting in the street/wavin’ you banner/pleading with you eyes”.