Final Project Presentation

For my final project, I decided to do an analysis of a couple of speeches by President Bill Clinton. These speeches interested me because I was only nine-years-old when all of the controversy with Clinton and Lewinsky was occurring and I hadn't really watched the speech since then. As far as presidential speeches go, this one is definitely one of the most interesting to me. I find this speech quite funny just because it is a well-delivered speech and President Clinton is doing quite well with it until he completely shifts his topic to his allegations.

Despite his obvious distress over the allegations being held against him, President Clinton is still a very talented public speaker. He seems to have notes he reads from, but he relies a lot on memory for this speech. He uses inartistic and artistic proofs to try to emphasize his point.

"Every child needs someplace to go after school. With after-school programs, we can not only keep our kids healthy and happy and safe, we can help to teach them to say no to drugs, alcohol, and crime, yes to reading, sports, and computers. My balanced budget plan includes a national initiative to spark private sector and local community efforts to provide after-school care, as the Secretary of Education said, to half a million more children."

Although it is not what this speech is famous for, this is all about improving educational standards and the welfare of the country's children. He has states many issues with our school systems during this time and he uses logos and pathos quite a bit throughout this speech to appeal to his audience. The above quote is just one example of how he used these proofs to appeal to his audience. The audience here would be the American people, but the people initially watching were most likely middle and upper-class citizens.

I feel as though the President's credibility and ethos as a speaker really came into question during the time this speech was delivered and during the months following. In another speech, he later came out and admitted that he was guilty of the allegations and was put through impeachment trials for lying under oath.

This speech became famous after its delivery and has been parodied many times.

Blog Post #10

We all have different identities throughout our week. For me, they are constantly shifting to suit my surroundings. I would say my main roles are friend, daughter, sister, girlfriend, student, waitress, and co-worker. 

I have just gotten this job at a newer restaurant and I really want to make a good impression. I've only been working here for about a month and I try my best to be the most polite and efficient waitress I can be. Obviously, I'm not going to act the way I do at home towards my tables. They want someone to take care of their needs first and maybe entertain them as well. I am still a little shy at my new job because I am still getting a feel for everyone's personalities and how the restaurant runs. I always show up to work in a good mood and try my best to speak to every table and co-worker with the same happy disposition.

At home, I am a daughter, sister, and girlfriend. This is where I feel the most comfortable, with my family. I can say anything to my family and boyfriend. They love me just as I am and I have never felt the need to censor much of anything or change my mood for them. If I'm upset, they know; if I'm happy, they know.

As a friend, I feel as though I am different around each group. One of my friends has a six-month old son. When I spend time with her we usually just lay low and spend time with the baby. My childless friends prefer to go out to restaurants and stay up fairly late. 

As a student, I want to finish my degree as soon as I possibly can. I changed my major a while ago and I set myself back a year or so. I'm usually all business when I'm on campus. I come to class, participate, and go back to Chesapeake to do homework and go to sleep. I used to be more concerned with meeting new people and having fun on campus, but I have gotten a lot more focused the last couple years.

Technology definitely influences my personas throughout the week. I feel like my computer really helps me to focus on my schoolwork throughout my school day. I usually do my homework during my breaks and I am able to see emails from professors so much quicker with my blackberry. My phone helps me keep in touch with family and friends throughout my week. I'm not sure if I could say that television really influences me, just because I hardly have time to watch it. 

I think just about everyone can say that their cultural environment affects the way they act and talk throughout the day. I really can't think of any everyday specific examples, but when I spend time with my family from Wisconsin I end up speaking as though I never left the dairy state for days. 

Blog Post #8

I chose to analyze an entertainment website found at this link
Collegehumor is an entertainment website that is mostly aimed towards college students, many of them male.

What is the most important feature of an effective website? I feel that, first and foremost, a website needs to be easy to navigate and have good usability. A website can look awesome with fonts, graphics, and colors, but if it is really difficult to figure out how to navigate then no one will use it. I feel that collegehumor is relatively easy to navigate, but it may require some previous knowledge and use of the site in order to be able to expertly navigate it. For example, they post the featured articles, pictures, and videos on the home page of the site but, in order to see all of the articles and other features, you have to find the link for what you are looking for.

Hypertext can make an article slightly confusing when it is overused. If an article constantly has links and photos throughout the text, it can take away from the point the author is trying to convey. I was confused about this site when the article I was trying to read took me to another site entirely when I clicked on the link. This site also has advertisements everywhere they can manage to put them; so when you accidentally click on the space to the left of your article, you will be taken to another site.

Hypertext can really help a website cite their sources or seem more legitimate when publishing their articles. If the site has a few links at the end of the article to the author's website or perhaps similar articles, this can make the article seem more legitimate as well. Collegehumor always has a link to the author's page and usually recommends other works within the site to further one's experience at the site. Many articles have pictures that reveal something if you scroll over them, which seems to help make the article more interesting.

Blog Post #6

The commercial I chose to analyze for this post can be found at this website or below and is advertising for Old Spice body wash and other deodorant products.

   "We're not saying this body wash will make your man smell into a romantic millionaire jet fighter pilot, but we are insinuating it."

The commercial definitely relies on making people laugh but it seems to try to make any man who uses any other hygiene products to be inferior. This commercial is definitely negating this demographic by making them feel inferior and need to be more "manly" by buying old spice. The commercial (in its ridiculous way)  is trying to say that a man is not manly unless he uses these products and if any other product is used, you're just not quite as awesome as the man in the commercial. This is also aimed at women, not for them to use the product themselves but for them to encourage their men to use it. The title of the commercial says it all: "The Man Your Man Could Smell Like," therefore women whose men do not use these products are made to feel a little inferior as well.

These aren't fair standards because they are making ridiculous claims. This was obviously the aim of the writers (judging especially by the description of the clip), but the advertisement gives no proof of these outrageous claims. The commercial aims to use humor to make men who use alternatives to old spice inferior and less manly. The commercial is basically saying that you too could live up to your full manly, awesome potential.

Blog Post #4

Qualifying Arguments
The article I analyzed for this assignment was a New York Times article about states considering ending the death penalty, it can be found at this link 
This article focuses on a few arguments for ending the death penalty in order to save money. The argument is that that the capital punishment cases are more expensive because of the money spent on appeals and trials span much longer. Here is an example of a few qualifiers used in this argument:


Capital cases are expensive because the trials tend to take longer, they typically require more lawyers and more costly expert witnesses, and they are far more likely to lead to multiple appeals.
(pay close attention to the phrases containing "typically" and "more likely")
In New Mexico, lawmakers who support the repeal bill have pointed out that despite the added expense, most defendants end up with life sentences anyway.


I think qualifiers in these excerpts are to account for the possibility that some cases may not pertain to these arguments. Because this article has both sides of the argument, many of the rebuttal statements are to present the opposing viewpoints in this argument.



Opponents of repealing capital punishment say such measures are short-sighted and will result in more crime and greater costs to states down the road. At a time when police departments are being scaled down to save money, the role of the death penalty in deterring certain crimes is more important than ever, they say.

I thought, because this was a newspaper article, there were less rebuttal statements than a typical argumentative piece. This article was meant to educate the readers of the conflict going on between lawmakers. So, although this does present an argument, it shows both sides. I did see quite a few qualifiers, I think this was because this article focused more on the side of the argument that wanted to repeal capital punishment.

I think rebuttals and qualifiers would appear much more in a piece that was exclusively argumentative (i.e. blog posts, campaign literature, or newspaper columns). This article was merely reporting the story and had to still be somewhat objective. If the author of an argumentative piece was presenting mainly one side, there would be many more examples of rebuttals and qualifiers.

Blog Post #3

I felt that the Medieval letter writing was a little more in depth than much of the advice and formats available today. Rationes dictandi, a book written in the Middle Ages, advised people on how to write a letter. Most business was conducted via letters during this time and that really shows in the steps outlined in this book. The medieval letters were supposed to begin with a salutation, followed by the Benevolentiae capatio which was intended to make the reader more attentive and relate to the writer. The letter would then have the facts, or the body, and then a request would be made of  the reader. Finally, the conclusion closes the letter.

This is relatively close to contemporary writing styles. Today, however, all business is not conducted through letters. I would say much of our business today is carried out through phone calls and short, informal emails. So, it makes sense that we have lost some of the formalities outlined in Rationes dicdanti. 
I found a site with various types of letters and the formats to use for each specific purpose.
http://www.letterwritingguide.com/

Here are the instructions for writing a letter of appeal:

The first paragraph should introduce yourself and explain why you are writing the letter. Although it may be difficult, be sure to keep your tone and emotions in check so that you can show that you can present an objective viewpoint. Keep the first paragraph as concise and clear as possible so that the reader can immediately understand its urgency.
The next paragraph(s) should narrate the account of what happened, and why your appeal should be granted. Include all the necessary facts in order to legitimize your case. You can start by referring to your handbook or guidelines as member of that particular group or institution. Also, provide specific times and date when particular events occurred. To make your letter more reader-friendly, use bullet-points every time you need to enumerate. After doing this, refer to testimonials from people related to your work, transcript of records, and medical certificate, if necessary. Be certain to cover all the bases necessary to
The last part should summarize everything you have stated above. Repeat the necessary points that need to be elucidated. Also include the contact details and where you can be reached. Close out the letter by thanking the reader for their time.

As you can see, this letter format is very similar to Middle Ages writing. It introduces the writer, gives the facts, makes a request, and then closes by thanking the reader. 

Even a basic business letter stays fairly close to the guidelines that were followed in the Middle Ages.

The most important element of writing a good letter is your ability to identify and write to your audience. If you are addressing your letter to the department of human resources, avoid using highly technical terms that only engineers would understand, even if your letter is addressed to an engineering company, chances are that the personnel in human resources does not have an engineering background.
The next element is that you make sure your present your objective in a clear and concise manner. Don't be vague about your objective, most people will not have the patience to sit there and guess at the meaning of your letter or the time to read a long-winded letter, just get to the point without going into unnecessary details.
Another important element to remember is to remain professional. Even if you are writing a complaint letter, remain polite and courteous, simply state the problem(s) along with any other relevant information and be sure to avoid threats and slander.


It is fairly easy to see how the advice given today still stays close to what Medieval writers were instructed to do. All letters begin with a salutation, which is even true for more informal emails today, they are then followed by a basic appeal and presentation of facts to support one's case. The writer then closes their letter by thanking the reader for their time and pressing any final arguments. I think these are still similar today because business is still conducted very formally, especially when writing letters described on this site.

Technology has affected letter writing in a really big way. As I mentioned earlier, letters just aren't written as much as they used to be. Formal letter writing is reserved for business reasons and, even in business settings, much easier forms of communication have taken over. Many times, a short and informal email will work much better than trying to write a lengthy and formal letter just to get one piece of information. Text messages and phone calls are much more widely used today, letters have become an almost dead technology.

Blog Post #2

While choosing a speech from the president's website, I stumbled upon the speech President Obama gave at the welcoming of the Green Bay Packers for the start of this season. I, being a Green Bay fan and a former Wisconsin resident, really enjoyed reading and viewing this speech. I would say this was a demonstrative speech because it was praising and welcoming the Packers. The invention of this speech was fairly straightforward, the President was praising the team in their superbowl win and he supported this cause with citations from the season and the big game. The speech is arranged by first addressing the audience and introducing his topic. President Obama then gives a summary of why he is celebrating this team while citing the sportsmanship and superior athleticism of individual players and the team as a whole. He then has conclusive remarks and closes his speech by having a little bit of back-and-forth with some of the audience. I would say the style of this speech is simple. The president does not use complex word combinations, he is frequently addressing the audience and cracking jokes. The president seemed very laid-back during this speech. This speech's delivery was strong and mainly stayed in the conversational range. I think memory played a large part in the delivery of this speech, it was very conversational and not very formal. I thought this speech was very effective in completing its purpose, which was to congratulate and welcome a team. The president did this by treating his audience as conversational partners.