Assignment 10

1) What did you think of the ad itself? Did the woman have a symbolic meaning?
2) Did the sections "The Rhetorical History of the Macintosh" and "The Rhetorical Context of the 1984 Ad" help you better understand Stein's essay? If so, in what ways? Or was it a section that confused you?

Summary: Stein introduces "the 1984 Macintosh Ad" by beginning with the time and place it appeared, which was the Superbowl. The ad had a different way of advertising, and it wasn't clear to what the director, Ridley Scott was trying to do. This is where Stein comes in and fill in the gaps that people are still unsure of. Stein talks about the '1984' ad relating it to many of the resources that she had use in her essay.

Why?
>>Stein probably wrote this essay because she says, "Although the 1984 ad has been the subject of ongoing popular media attention, it has not been subjected to extensive critical examination" (280). It seems that she wanted to look deeper into something that caught people's view in confusion. She probably wants to clarify specific use(s) in the ad. Stein also states, "this essay contributes to an understanding of the integral role ads play in contributing to and drawing on ideological and cultural discourse" (280), here she's talking what her essay will be based on. Overall, I think Stein just wanted to inform people about this ad, and why it was done the way that it appeared on Superbowl, 1984. This also leads me to wanting to know what she does, so I searched up her name. The essay about her states her interests, "Dr. Stein's scholarly emphasis is in Critical Media Studies, with interests in visual communication, gender, and new technologies, with particular attention to the rhetorical constructions used by technology advertising and social commentary, and to contemporary popular attitudes toward abundance and rhetorics of immortality." The last part of this phrase made me thought about this essay, "The '1984' Macintosh Ad: Cinematic Icons and Constitutive Rhetoric in the Launch of a New Machine."

Assignment 11

Questions about audience:
What does the composer assume the audience knows or believes?
 >>Stein is probably assuming that the audience believes the idea of the ad has not been examined well, to grasp the audience to what it was trying to advertise. She wants to make it an understanding of the ad for the audience.

Questions about purpose:
Is the purpose clearly stated or easy to determine? If not, why might the composer have decided not to make the purpose obvious?
>>The purpose of Stein's essay is easily determined. On page 280 Stein brings in her view, "Although the '1984' ad has been the subject of ongoing popular media attention, it has not been subjected to extensive critical examination. Its standing as a rhetorical text of enduring power and status warrants a closer look at its internal dynamics as well as its cultural impact, and criticism provides the means by which this may be accomplished. In examining this text for its complex interweaving of ideologies and cinematic icons that elevated the cold rationally of a machine into the realm of fantasy and the mythic, this essay contributes to an understanding of the integral role as play in contributing to and drawing on ideological and cultural discourse." I chose this entire phrase because it clearly states why and what Stein would do to accomplish in explaining the ad in an understanding way.

Questions about logos:
Why might a composer start with particular examples or evidence? To what will these draw the audience's attention?
>>Stein began specifically explaining where this "1984" ad appear, "Half time at the 1984 Super Bowl featured a sixty-second commercial, one that has take on legendary status as the biggest single splash in the history of advertising" (Stein 279). Since she inserted the word  Super Bowl it caught my attention because its something I watch, and she is saying how this 1984 ad was some big change. She states the purpose of the ad, "Its' purpose was to announce the release of the Macintosh, Apple Corporation's new personal computer" (279).  Firstly this drew me to have the idea that the ad probably wasn't showing anything about the Macintosh because of what Stein said, 'the purpose was to announce the release...' The word was made me had this idea.

All these writerly choices work together by Stein providing evidence and examples that are use to grasp the audience's attention to what her purpose is. She wants the audience to see that she is working along them, to make sense of the "1984" ad.

[Group work] Reflection

My group was quiet throughout, until one of us would suggest an idea. I guess its because the article was too long that it easily made us lost interest. Since we all felt that way, it was difficult to come up with one idea and have everyone agree with it. After we were done, we would look at what we had, and ask ourselves questions about our one-pager to see if it made sense. We would discuss about it and ask questions if we had any. My partners' ideas have helped me understand a little bit more about Stein's essay.

Rhetorical History of the Macintosh
In class the group explained their one-pager, so nothing confusing.
---Since Apple was a small company at the time, do you think this helped their "revolution?"

> It seems that the answer is already on the one-pager, "Apple's 1984 ad changed advertisement world forever. It stepped up the level of quality of ads during the Super Bowl." Although, the ad may have been different in its own way, it was popular to the audience(s).

Analysis
Same thing for this group.
---Why did she choose to use so many references when could have gotten to the point?
> Stein's essay did have a lot of references, but I think she did it to back up her analysis and conclusion. Sometimes, some sections seem like the references were repeated too much, but it was probably to get the readers' mind that the "1984" ad did relate with the references she provided. Not only could it be for these reasons, but to show that the director's work have similarities.

>>>These two groups ideas is relating with my groups' idea by covering different topics with the addition of specifically mentioning about Stein's writing.

After reading over the one-pagers, what is Stein's point? Is she saying that this is focused on brainwashing or is it just simply talking about the ad in general? I am seeing these two different views upon the one-pagers.

CP: Stein elaborated on "The 1984 Macintosh Ad" using rhetorical history and context along with her analysis and conclusion to make a better understanding for me.

Assignment 9

After rereading my essay and reflective writing, I didn't connect Orlean's choices I choose to talk about and I didn't state my own thoughts and views once again. In the first assignments, I did not use much examples from Orlean's article. I would just tell what her choices were, and say how it may have helped further her purpose. For assignment 7, I begin to incorporate certain quotes from Orlean's article and I would explain how it helped me understand her purpose. I feel that I do have my purpose stated clearly because at our group discussion, my colleagues point out what my purpose is. Although, I am still debating what is really Orlean's purpose for composing an article like this.

Assignment 8

I read all the ones that had their posts up. It's interesting how everyone's idea were similar, but with different interpretations and specific examples from Orlean's article. Some supported their ideas and gave their opinions, and some didn't. The more supporting and feedback that the writer gives, the better my understanding why they chose certain examples. In my writings, I feel that I used enough support from the text, but not enough of my own reasons of why and how. Therefore, looking at what my colleagues wrote, I feel that I need to connect my thoughts to Orlean's choices. My approach to writing my essay for "Lifelike" will be incorporating texts and explain it with my reactions. Although, I feel that I wouldn't know how to write it in a way to connect with my audience while explaining Orlean's text.

Thinking back to my first essay for "Standing By" I thought of my audience as  a whole, and used commonplace in most of my paragraphs. I didn't really write about my purpose, it was more about Sedaris. I feel that my tone was like insecure. I felt that if I wrote about my views, I would have trouble talking about Sedaris' purpose and connecting his choices. The thing that sets my essay from others was that, I would usually just say, "I think Sedaris' purpose is..." I didn't expand to my reactions and thoughts why and what.

Assignment 7

1) What did Orlean achieve to provide the history and progress of taxidermy?
     The topic of Orlean's article was about taxidermy; I thought to myself who cares about this exotic topic.  I didn’t have much attention about this topic, until Orlean gave a time frame of when and what was happening with this exotic topic, “In the late nineteen-sixties, a sort of transformation began: the business started to seem cleaner and less creepy” (Orlean 2).  By providing history background about taxidermy, it came to me that this topic is not exotic, because it’s something like art and people did go to school for this, “Taxidermy schools opened; previously, any aspiring taxidermist could only hope to learn the trade by apprenticing or by taking one of a few correspondence course available” (2). Since Orlean included certain year of what happened to taxidermy, “In 1974, a trade magazine called Taxidermy Review began sponsoring national competitions” (2) I feel she is knowledgeable of the topic. She collected her own resource and put it in her article to show the reader when taxidermy national competition began. As a reader, providing facts about a topic that I have never heard before made me looked up the topic taxidermy. This could have been a way to connect with her audience, to make us do more after reading this topic, research more about it.
     Later in Orlean’s article, she provided the progress of taxidermy as of the time when she wrote this article. “Taxidermy is now estimated to be five-hundred-and-seventy-million-dollar annual business, made up of small operations around the country who mount animals for museums, for decorators, and mostly for the thirteen million or so Americans…”(Orlean 3). When she stated a high amount of money made for a taxidermy job, it was unbelievable at first, but when I searched up the annual business income; it came out to be high numbers. Orlean achieved an informative connection with me about taxidermy through these two choices. She provided me the history background and progress of taxidermy where I trusted her to a certain point because it makes me uncertain about the information and question myself; did a taxidermist tell her this? Did she actually found a website or book about taxidermy? Overall these two choices connected together by informing me about when this exotic topic became well-known and the growth of it.

2) Why did Orlean use different dialogues throughout her article, was it to express or entertain her article OR was it simply to make the readers feel something?
     In Orlean’s article she used different dialogues, but for what that was my question. When I read the article the second time, I was getting the idea that she inserted dialogues to share the moments of how taxidermists feel about taxidermy, “I like doing recreations of these endangered animals and extinct animals, since that’s the only way anyone’s going to have one” (Orlean 4). I chose this quote because it gave me the impression that sometimes without these artists, I probably will never see a polar bear for example. Taxidermists do have their own creative way to make something that people would wonder about, "...You aren't likely to get hold of a panda that has met a natural end, so everyone was dying to know how he had done it," (4). This statement connected with me because I was wondering about the same thing as well, and so Orlean included that artist's answer, "The panda was actually pretty easy, I just too two black bears and bleached one of them--I think I used Clairol Basic. Then I sewed the two skins together into a panda pattern" (4). It was nice to know how these artists came up with their own ideas to make a mount so life looking. Taxidermists also had there own way to help one another, "Three thousand visits to Taxidermy.net every day, where taxidermists can trade information and goods with as little self-consciousness as you would find on a knitting Web site: 
"I am in need of several pair of frozen goat feet!"
"Hi! I have up to 300 sets of goat feet and up to 1000 set of sheep feet per month. Drop me an email at frozencritters.com...or give me a call and we can discuss your needs" (3). Orlean provided this example of conversations to show me a way that they ask for help from others, and how one would reply to offer. This made me feel that taxidermists do want their own art work to be the best recreation of their animal, and they do take it seriously.

Assignment 6: Choices

      Orlean used many effective choices in her article. She chose to talk about the background of taxidermy, inserting quotes of the taxidermists, and in general talk about the competition and artwork of taxidermy. As a reader, Orlean’s choices were useful because she supported her topic and purpose well. 

     When someone provides the history of a topic that no one really knows about its valuable because as a reader, I know that my author is knowledgeable about their topic. She provided the history of when taxidermy began, and what made it the way that it is now. Orlean also included how taxidermy may be like in the future, and how it is now for these taxidermists.

     Since Orlean experienced a competition of taxidermy, I think the use of dialogues were to make the readers feel as if they were there to hear the taxidermists talk.  These specific quotes that Orleans caught overhearing made me understand that these taxidermists are serious about sharing their artwork with the world. They know that it may be disturbing to some people, but it is something unique they share and do.

     The choice to talk about the competition of taxidermy is something that I think Orlean used, so she has a topic to talk about.  She tells how taxidermists would do at competitions, and what a taxidermists should posses to become a good one. Her purpose was to inform her audience that taxidermy is a form of artwork people do. Taxidermists makes dead animal to life again, by designing a replica of a specific animal.