REHUGO Analysis - Political Cartoon

Samira Haikal
Mr. Soeth
P2 AP Eng Lang
24 February 2011

REHUGO Analysis: Political Cartoon

A. MLA Citation: 
Smeltzer, Steve. "'And you honey, how was your day at the playstation?'" Cartoon Stock. http://www.cartoonstock.com/cartoonview.asp?catref=ssen4. Cartoon. 24 February 2011.

B. Societal Trend:
Smeltzer uses satire to criticize the dominance of videogames and electronics in the life of America's twenty-first century youth as compared to the formerly active lifestyle of the child and teenager.


C. Effectiveness:
The viewers of this social commentary cartoon see a typical American family at dinner, clearly discussing the day's events with each other. Before the technology age, a common question and answer at the dinner table would regard a sports game, a test at school, the workday, friends, homework, upcoming plans. However, Smeltzer substitutes "your day at the PlayStation" in place of another, more mind and body engaging activity. The mother's quote conveys a certain irony with the typical American family discussion at dinner, and what it has emerged into over the past few years due to technological changes and changes in youth culture. In this cartoon, the visual itself does not depict much like other other cartoons usually do, but rather, the verbal sect of the image typifies the new and modernized meal discussion. Furthermore, the casual tone of the dialogue reflects the unfortunate acceptance of society of an Internet-and-videogame-dominant youth culture. Another aspect of the satirical attitude of Smeltzer lies in the diction of "day," which demonstrates that children and teenagers spend several straight hours in front of a television or computer monitor instead of spending hours playing outside with friends or studying as previous generations did. The genial expressions on the mother, father, and son's faces further represent the social acceptance of and lack of action against this new and negative impact of twenty-first century techonologies on today's children.


D. Implications of the Trend
Indeed, today's technologies have positive and negative impacts on society as a whole. New and shocking advancements improve medicine, education, and business, yet negatively influence the lives of people all around the world. Industry and entrepreneurs create all these videogames and internet trends for children for the sake of money, but few people tend to recognize the cultural dependency on and dominance of the digital world, which are not always a good thing. Children need to live the active lives that preceding generations lived not only for their own health and intellect, but also to feel and witness the endless "childhood" that is ever so typified as exhilerating and spontaneous by older generations.

Samira Haikal - REHUGO: Speech

Samira Haikal
Mr. Soeth
AP English Lang/Comp
03 February 2011

REHUGO Analysis - Speech: Community

A. Elie Wiesel, an inspirational Holocaust Survivor and famous author, delivered “The Perils of Indifference” on April 12, 1999 in Washington D.C. as a part of the Millennium Lecture Series.

B. Background Information - The occasion for this speech was that Mrs. Hilary Clinton, the First Lady at the time asked Wiesel if he could give a speech as part of the Millennium Lecture Series. The series’ purpose was to offer outstanding individuals an opportunity to speak in front of the world. Because the United States of America was considered a world superpower at the time, President Clinton was considered the most powerful man in the world. Wiesel chose to speak about this topic because he knew his audience and what their potential was. He wanted Clinton to avoid the “perils of indifference” and to take action against the current atrocities around the world to avoid the affliction that was felt by Holocaust victims. This specific date, April 12, was chosen because it was exactly 54 years after President Franklin Roosevelt’s death. This is significant because Roosevelt was the president at the time of the Holocaust who, according to Wiesel, held a dangerous indifference to the horrors under Nazi rule in Central and Eastern Europe during World War II.

C. Relevance - It is appropriate to say that Wiesel’s speech effected America’s policies and outlook on foreign intervention. Before, America lent a helpful hand to other countries such as enforcing the Truman Doctrine to fight communism in other countries. One motive for this was to prevent the Soviet Union from becoming more powerful. However, after 1999, the year the speech was delivered, the U.S. involved itself in Afghanistan to support freedom from Al-Qaeda rule and helped a countless number of countries like Haiti, Pakistan, and Liberia to keep peace. It is evident that after the speech, the United States felt it was their duty to not become a victim of indifference and to help victims around the world. The reason for this is because of the effectiveness of Wiesel’s speech and his use of thought-provoking use of rhetorical questions, his use of personal experience, and brilliant use of claim of policy, to name a few.

D. Rhetorical Strategies
1. Diction - Wiesel uses diction that portrays a certain mood and tone, such as “...indifference can be tempting -- more than that, seductive” (paragraph 7). By choosing the word seductive, Wiesel demonstrates his views on indifference by relying on the audience’s ability to make the connection between seductive and it’s negative connotations. When thinking about the word seductive, we envision a temptress, a snake, or an evil person who fools others. Wiesel purposefully personified “indifference” to convey a mood of sin and danger, which enhances his point about indifference being dangerous.
2. Emotional Appeal - Pathos is utilized by Wiesel to create a sensation in the listeners to want to take action. One of the strongest uses of pathos is “They no longer felt pain, hunger, thirst. They feared nothing. They felt nothing. They were dead and did not know it” (paragraph 7). The audience could only imagine how the adults and children at Auschwitz felt. These shorter sentences provide a variety in syntax, but also create a more emotional atmosphere and allow the audience to think deeply about the subject at hand. Pathos is the strongest persuasion Wiesel uses because he knew it was the most appropriate when speaking about what underwent in the Nazi concentration camps.

MLA Citation:
Wiesel, Elie. "The Perils of Indifference." Millennium Lecture Series. White House, Washington, D.C. 12 Apr. 1999. Speech.

REHUGO Analysis - Reading: Community

Samira Haikal

Mr. Soeth

AP English Lang/Comp

27 January 2011

REHUGO Analysis – Reading: Community

1. “In Search of the Good Family” by Jane Howard
2. In this essay, Howard clearly argues that humans cannot do without a clan, no matter what their status or condition in life may be. In simpler terms, every human being needs a family. Throughout the essay, she explains the characteristics that define “a good family”.
3. Evidence:

1. Logos - Howard uses logos to enhance her argument when she quotes, “‘If you’re voluntarily childless and alone,’ said the other Helen, who was from Pennsylvania by way of Puerto Rico, ‘it gets harder and harder and harder with the passage of time. It’s stressful. That’s why you need support systems,” (paragraph 8). In this excerpt, Howard conveys the message that people need some type of support system, if not kids to help relieve the stress of daily life. Howard uses this quote from a “social scientist” to provide simple reasoning, but also to reinforce her ethos. This evidence is effective because one would trust a social scientist in speaking about family and community, since that is their specialized and known field.
2. Ethos- In each of the ten characteristics that Howard presents, the information is almost factual. For example, "Good families prize their rituals" seems like a proven fact by its syntax, even though it is simply a claim of value (paragraph 16). The matter-of-fact tone that is evident throughout the piece makes these obvious opinions seem like known facts, even though there is not a recipe for a “good family.” This utilization of ethos and tone shows how confident Howard is in speaking about this topic. Her confident tone alone could serve as a source of credibility because readers often tend to believe someone who is confident in their work.

4. Rhetorical Strategies:

1. Classification/Division - Through dividing the characteristics of both a conventional family and a second family, Howard uses classification. She clearly separates the good family into 10 numbered definitions, which breaks down her thought with a deeper look into the common ingredients for what makes these two different families alike.
2. Extended Metaphor - Beginning this strategy from the first sentence and ending it in the last creates a tremendously effective comparison. Howard could  have used a similar word to clan like flock, group, league, army, or colony, but none would have the same effect that the words clan and tribe have because of the connotations that accompany them. When we envision a clan, we visualize a village where an assiduous, indigenous group works together to help each other survive. The concept of family and survival enhances the argument because Howard’s thesis is that a family is necessary and that one cannot do without one. With tribe, we imagine the former, or maybe a tribe working together to battle and defeat an opposing tribe. Either way, Howard uses this metaphor and imagery so her readers can continually conceptualize a family, primary or secondary, as a group in which the members help each other in life and provide support through hardship. Another reason this extended metaphor is effective is because it relates to both types of families, proving Howard’s overall thesis and argument.

MLA Citation:

Howard, Jane. "In Search of the Good Family." The Language of Composition. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2008. 283-88. Print.