Tow #13 :Sarah Palin Political Cartoon

This cartoon is due to the Republican elections going on in 2012, so it's not really recent, but I think it is pretty funny. Basically this cartoon is in favor of Republicans and it has Sarah Palin in it and someone handing a Fox Newspaper to her. It is really ironic because Fox News is really in favor of the Republicans. The purpose of this political cartoon was to create propaganda for the Republicans and to explain that Republicans basically paid off Fox News to be in such great favor of them.

The author is really credible because Adam Zyglis is a Pulitzer Prize Winner Cartoonist and he works for the Buffalo News of Buffalo, New York.

This cartoon uses a lot of rhetorics such as irony because it is really ironic how Fox News and Sarah Palin are replaced together since Fox News favors Republicans a lot. Also this cartoon uses propaganda to get people into the Republican party. This cartoon is also really amusing because Sarah Palin has become a Political laughing stock due to her various unintelligent comments.

I think that this political cartoon really achieved it's purpose because it explains why Fox News favors Republicans with the money signs and Sarah Palin signing the paper because she knows that Fox News is always in favor of Republicans. 

Tow #12: South Africa after Mandela

The Times Editorial board has composed an editorial about the legacy of Mandela and the effect of his passing on South Africa and what its going to be like. The editorial board consists of various journalists who write about a broad variety of topics. They are very credible and know a lot about their fields.
The purpose of this editorial was to idolize Mandela and to explain the legacy that he left on South Africa and to persuade the present leaders of South Africa to continue Mandela's legacy. This editorial was written in context of Mandela's death. It was a tragedy for many because Mandela helped the fall of apartheid peacefully and he stuck to his principles. He created many changes and reforms and transformed South Africa. His passing was really a huge tragedy.
This editorial calls for the leaders for South Africa to tend to the economical and racial problems going on. The editors want to call for a change in the crime rate and HIV infections. The editors just want to bring it to attention that Mandela has done a tremendous amount of work and the leaders of South Africa should continue that.
The editors use a lot of rhetorics such as comparisons, when they compare Mandela to other powerful leaders. The diction that they use is very powerful because all of the words praise Mandela. This editorial really appeals to emotions. The editorial also provides a lot of statistics.
Overall, I think that this editorial really did achieve it's purpose because it really showed people that something needs to be done now that Mandela has passed, it's leaders still need to continue making South Africa what he wanted it to be. This editorial was not only written for the people of the world, but for the African leaders who should continue Mandela's vision.

Tow #11:The Glass Castle

Jeannette Walls is riding in a taxi in New York City, and she looks out the window to see her mom dig through the trash. Suddenly she feels ashamed of her mom and she brings up memories of her parents and her childhood and how it affects her. She starts by talking about her childhood at age 3 and how difficult it was for her family. The purpose of this was to introduce herself and the book and her past and how it affects her today. Jeannette is very credible in doing so because she is writing about her own past.

Jeannette writes about her past in the beginning of the book in order to explain why her life is the way it is and how her past shaped her.

Jeannette writes for people who can relate to difficult childhoods and families. People who grow up in broken homes. She wants to share her story. In doing so, she uses many rhetorical devices. She uses a lot of imagery to show the audience what her life was really like. She also uses symbolism throughout the novel because the Glass Castle is really symbolic of what her father Rex wants for his family. One of the most important rhetorical devices she uses is irony because throughout the novel it seems as if the children are more mature than their parents.

Overall, I think this memoir is very descriptive and touching and I really think that Jeannette does a great job alluding to her past and tying it in with her present. 

Tow #10: Bad Mix

This political cartoon is very emotional because it causes so many problems in our society: drinking and driving. This political cartoon illustrates how wrong drinking and driving is. The context of this cartoon is drinking and driving and how problematic it is in our society. The author made this cartoon to depict how bad of a choice drinking and driving is and that it never ends well.
 John Pritchett is an award-winning cartoonist and this image is really credible because it uses rhetorics. The main rhetorical device in this cartoon is juxtaposition because it compares drinking and driving. It shows the outcomes of this are not good. The illustration of this cartoon is very creative because it has the car sinking into the martini glass. This is very ironic because it shows the consequences of drinking and driving and how they are never good. The red color in "Bad Mix" really brings attention to the eye because it shows emphasizes on how bad drinking and driving is.
I think that the author didn't do as well of a job illustrating the irony in drinking and driving because more could have been done to show the disastrous effects of drinking and driving instead of making it look like an ironic satire.

Tow #9: When Police Enter a Home

This editorial was about whether or not police are allowed to enter a home without a warrant, but with consent of the owner. It talks about the privacy of the home being the most important and police really should obtain a warrant.

This editorial was posted on behalf of a case in 2009, when police entered Walter Fernandez's home with the consent of his girlfriend. They found a shotgun, ammunition and a knife that Walter used in a robbery. This was evidence enough to arrest him. Walter appealed because he claimed that this was unreasonable unwarranted search. Well the purpose of this editorial was to show that when police search your home, they will most likely have a warrant with cause.

This editorial was written for people who object searches of their home when they know they are guilty of something. It was composed by the Editorial Board of the New York Times and it is highly credible because the Editorial Board is a group of many journalists who study various topics. Plus, this editorial had a lot of facts.

Facts was one of the rhetorical strategies this editorial used. Starting out this editorial, a reference to the 4th amendment was made and it automatically established ethos. Listing facts and providing evidence for this crime that was committed really provided a lot of evidence and established great ethos. Rhetorical questions such as ," But what if the police lawfully arrest the objecting tenant and remove him from the home may they enter then?" Helped appeal to the logic of the audience causing them to think on the subject of the matter.

I think that the authors briefly achieved their purpose by providing evidence,

but I feel as if they could have included more examples to show that most often of the times then not, the police have a warrant plus a reason to search a home.

IRB INTRO MARKING PERIOD 2

The Glass Castle, is a memoir by Jeanette Walls which recalls her childhood. Her parents had very different ideals and their stubborn noncomformity was what ultimately led to their downfall. It talks about the dysfunction of the family and how Jeanette and her other 3 brothers and sisters had to support one another in order to leave the family.
This book was written to show people about the struggles of life and how everything can collapse all of a sudden. It was written for people who need to learn and value life and understand how hard it may be. I chose to read this book because I feel like it has moral lessons in it and it sounds very interesting to me how kids could live and support themselves with the absense of care from their parents. After reading this, I hope to gain a better appreciation of what I have and how truly lucky and privelaged some people are and that they need to appreciate it more.

 

Tow #8: In Cold Blood

 In Cold Blood, by Truman Capote, talks about the brutal murders of the Clutter family in 1959. Capote learned about the murders and he traveled to Kansas to write about these horrific crimes. He wanted people to know what had happened. Together with Nelle Harper Lee, his friend, they interviewed residents and investigators in order to put together this non-fiction piece about the tragic, unreasonable deaths of the Clutters.
Truman Capote was a very credible author, credible to many short stories, novels, and plays. Most of his works are nonfiction and literary classics. He is very credible because In Cold Blood was put together through interviews of people living near the Clutters, and through investigations done by the police.
Truman Capote is a remarkable writer and his way of writing is really what makes his novel stand out. The first chapter of the book introduces the characters and the situation. It is not very descriptive, but enough to get the reader informed of what the context is. However, throughout the novel, crucial evidence and imagery are provided so that the reader can get a good sense of the event and what happened. Reading this book gave me a lot of anticipation because Capote did such a great job of introducing the scene and making me anticipate of what was going to happen next.
Reading this book, there was a lot of foreshadowing and that, in my opinion, was a very successful technique because it helped me understand and to prepare me for what was going to happen next.
Overall, this was one of the most thrilling books I've ever read. It was also not like any other book I have ever read because it is so remarkably structured together with the diction and the following up to many events. Truman Capote did an excellent job.