In the modern world competition and
hierarchy surround us. In order to fit
in one has to wear the newest clothes and shoes, listen to the newest released
album, and speak in the modern slang.
Not everyone will wear those clothes, listen to that music, or talk with
that vocabulary and those that do not are bullied. Individuals that fit in the LGBT group are
the ones that get bullied the most. They
already do not feel like regular teenagers because they are not heterosexual
like the majority of kids their age. Conforming into the recent top music, clothes,
or language would not benefit them. Bullies
are everywhere and will never become extinct, but it has recently become an
evident problem occurring daily nationwide.
In order to decrease the rate of bully incidents people have created
organizations promoting anti-bullying.
These organizations put up videos, posters, pictures, speeches, and
articles to address this problem. Different
techniques bring about different results.
A video is more viral and more viewed then say an article in a
newspaper. The world today is more
intrigued and understood through technology, but that does not mean to say that
an article carries no value. An article
is for a more select audience. It is published in a certain magazine that has
certain readers. A video on the Internet
is accessible to everyone, expanding its viewers. Both texts, a video or a magazine article, promote
anti-bullying but follow through with that in different ways reaching different
people
Each style of text has a different
effect on its viewers, but there are a few reoccurring rhetorical tools that
make up each text, such as reasoning, pathos, tone, and language. These tools all create an effective pattern
that raise more and better awareness of LGBT bullying. Lady Gaga best accelerates the LGBT movement when
delivering her “Prime Rib of America” speech, due to her use of logic and
reasoning throughout her speech demanding equality given to LGBT individuals
everywhere.
Rebecca
Salcedo, a rising artist from Georgia, painted a picture called “Beautiful
life” in plans of donating all the proceeds she received to a scholarship for
gay youth. She painted this picture for
the GSBA, the Greater Seattle Business Association, which holds an annual
scholarship giving gay kids financial aid to go to school. At first glance this picture is simple and an
onlooker can understand what is happening inside the frame. After a closer look and dissecting each
element created in this painting there is a quantity of significant meaning
hidden in Salcedo’s picture. She
sublimely hides it in her use of lighting, landscape, use of color, focus,
language, and subjects.
Her most important
element is her subject, who is a wavy haired boy. He creates a window/mirror effect that the
observer can be involved in. This boy
could be anyone, which is the window effect.
I could be that boy, and that could be my city behind him. However, this subject might possibly not even
be a boy. There is no sure way to tell
who or what gender this subject is. All
we can see is a face with hair.
Salcedo’s lightning is very unique because it also works together with
her use of color and the point of focus.
The left half of the picture is lighter and turns darker as you slowly
glance towards the right. Her subject
looks towards this light, as if something is better over that way. He faces towards the LGBT rainbow flag as it
reflects off his glistening eyes from the light. She uses light to encourage the continued
success of the homosexual community.
Salcedo uses the color blue as a background color to better illuminate
this light. The brighter light to the
left of the picture that the boy looks at makes that side of the picture light
blue. Light blue is a color that stands
for healing and understanding. The
subject, a LGBT individual, sees understanding in this light. She pushes LGBT students to keep following
the light to understanding. The only
other colors are in the window of an office building where a rainbow flag
hangs. The bright blue, green, red,
yellow, and orange quickly draw your eyes to acknowledge the flag’s
presence. It is something so small, but
very noticeable. This is symbolic for
the LGBT movement’s hopeful position of being acknowledged. They are not asking people to join them
creating a bigger flag. They just want
their group that is small now to be seen.
Language is an
element in “Beautiful Life” that Salcedo uses to portray her thesis
through. The only words in this picture
form a sentence that reads, “There’s no such thing as small change.” Rebecca argues and asserts that any change is
big change, especially the LGBT movement’s goal for change. However, there is nothing to fear because it
is a friendly subject that is mislabeled as dark and wrong. The sentence is divided up into two parts;
one part is on a banner attached to a flying plane that reads, “There’s no such
thing as,” and part two is on the bridge that covers the bottom of the picture
that has “SMALL CHANGE” written over the two hump supporters. The placement of the words “small change”
signify the big change the subject would have to literally make in order to
cross the bridge to reach the lighter side of the LGBT social acceptance. Salcedo incorporates many different elements
that are all interconnected making up a phenomenal picture. The meaning inside “Beautiful Life” is
magnificent and Salcedo demonstrates her artistic talent to support and fund
the LGBT movement.
My next text is a political
cartoon illustrated by Chan Lowe that has no title, but uniquely there is a
question written across the bottom. The
question is Lowe’s use of language in his political cartoon. The picture is
three coffins, all with American flags draped over them sitting next to each
other in a row. The question on the
bottom reads, “Which one is the gay one?”
This cartoon hits hard for any American who views it. The observer knows immediately that there are
three dead soldiers, which can be painful to look at, weather it is a cartoon
or not. The question at the bottom
raises a powerful line of thinking.
There is no possible way to tell which soldier who lost their life was
gay. More then one of them could be gay
or even none of them could be gay. The
simple fact is that it does not matter.
The instant reality is that they were all soldiers, who died for America
and its citizens. The gay soldier does
not have a rainbow flag on his coffin.
He/She has an American flag because that is what they are, an American,
united under the same stars and stripes.
This cartoon also raises a valuable question challenging homosexual
respect. Does our nation only respect
gay soldiers after they have served and died?
Do we socially accept that it is okay to verbally and physically attack
LGBT individuals everywhere, but then act like the good guy after the
unspeakable happens?
Ironically
this cartoon only has one sentence when usually political cartoons are full of
bubbles and objects labeled as things.
This strategy of single sentence use that Lowe uses does not illustrate
his thesis like Salcedo’s, but instead reverts attention back to the
subjects. The subjects are the three
coffins, and after reading the question the observer will survey the coffins,
trying to subconsciously answer the question.
Lowe does not use any color, lighting, landscape, or framing. More importantly it is the absences of these
techniques that hold certain meanings that can easily be overlooked. The absence of color explains how black and
white the military’s “Don’t ask, Don’t
tell” policy is. There is no gray area,
there simply is right and wrong and Lowe’s question leads an onlooker to
logically thinking/understanding that the homosexual soldiers current treatment
is wrong.
Both
pictures are very effective in clearly standing up for the LGBT community. Their use of language is the most effective
aspect because it ties every element in the picture together. One sentence is the foundation for both pictures
supporting homosexuals. Also each artist has important subjects imbedded in
their art. Salcedo’s face creates a
window/mirror effect that the observer can be involved in. Lowe’s subjects bring out a feeling of
nationalism reminding the onlooker of the common bond we all share. The subjects in each picture make the topic
illustrated relatable, allowing the onlooker to understand the pictures full
meaning. The two artists use language
and subjects, which are their main effective elements, to explain and raise
awareness for the LGBT community.
The colors
in “Beautiful Life” and the absence of color in Lowe’s political cartoon is the
clearest different between the two pictures.
However, the vast difference does not devalue the message in either
picture by any means. The colors Salcedo
uses are used to better illuminate the point of focus and the lighting. Blue is an odd color to paint everything, but
Salcedo incorporates and makes the color fit well. The blue is very different, and almost a
little two different. Her picture would
be clearer if appropriate colors were used on the different elements. The absence of the real colors of subjects
makes the picture seem dull and undeveloped.
More colors would brighten the picture making it more appealing. Lowe’s absence of all colors also works
against him. Since his picture is black
and white there is nothing to memorable about his cartoon. While looking at it, his art is thought
provoking and interesting. After looking
away it is hard to remember the cartoon because there is nothing unique about
it. The colors Salcedo uses and the
colors Low does not use, do not devalue the pictures message, but do devalue
the pictures effectiveness of reaching its full popularity potential.
Each text that I have selected has
similarities and one quality they share is reasoning. First, we must define what reasoning is. Reasoning is the use of logical steps to get
from point A to Z in a clear way. Lady
Gaga gives a speech she titles “Prime Rib of America.” The famous songwriter gave this speech during
a “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” rally in Maine.
Her speech script and video can be found here. Her speech is full of reasoning, in fact it makes up quite a bit of her
speech. She sternly starts her speech by
giving a prime example of reasoning. She
confronts the straight soldiers excuse that the homosexual soldiers are causing
tension among regiments. She sternly
says, “in the workplace, in any workplace, there are tensions,
there is even more of a possibility to have tension when you're fighting for
your life.” Gaga is appalled by the fact
that the Senate and soldiers are using homophobia as an excuse to discriminate
against homosexuals. She says that
tensions can be anywhere, but if the person next to you is willing to fight and
protect you to the best of their ability how can one focus on their sexual
orientation? It is wrong that men and
women want to fight for their country but are being denied or sent home. What kind of nation are we if we deny
individuals their nationalism? Gaga is
very passionate about this subject and shows her determination for a change
through her speech.
She also uses
reasoning when explaining the current twistedness of the military when they
send gay soldiers back home. She says,
“the straight soldier who has prejudice in his heart, in the space where the
military asks him to hold our core American values, he instead holds and
harbors hate, and he gets to stay and fight for our country?” She is trying to show the hypocrisy that
floats through this policy. How can our
nation allow men and women full of hate to fight for freedom? Gaga goes on to explain how the wrong soldier
is being sent home and it is trying to bury the LGBT movement. The LGBT community is not going away and this
prejudice in the military is only hurting the “homophobic” soldiers. Lady Gaga builds off this thought with
another reasoning statement. She loudly
and firmly tells the crowd, “If you are not committed to perform with
excellence as a United States soldier because you don't believe in full
equality, go home.” Her tone is
authoritative and pairs well with this statement. She does make sense when saying this. It is hard to imagine an American soldier
fighting for nation-wide individual freedoms while simultaneously holding back
freedoms from certain people. Soldiers
fight for everyone and it is impossible for these brave men and women to
personally know whom they are fighting for.
They fight for Christians, and Muslims, and Jews, and African Americans,
and Asian Americans. They fight for LGBT
individuals. So, she demands these
soldiers to go home for being contradictory.
She is telling these soldiers what to do in her tone. It is a courageous statement to talk that
strongly towards soldiers risking their lives, especially in the modern warfare
situation in Iraq, but she stands tall to show the seriousness of this issue. Her tone adds a more elevated level of
effectiveness when you can hear the change in her voice from these intense
emotions rising out of her.
One of my chosen
texts is a facebook page called “ABC” which stands for “Anti-Bullying
Coalition,” and this corporation uses reasoning everyday with its daily status
updates, photo uploads, and videos. This
page is an online group, which any facebook member can join, that strives for a
solution for bullying and discrimination towards homosexuals. This is their facebook page. The first instance of reasoning is seen in
their status updates. One asks, “What
are you thankful for today?” which was posted on October 24th. Questions like these updated everyday put a
personal level on the reader. It is
asking them what they wouldn’t want to go without in life. These status updates lead to thinking and
realizing that something so precious, such as a child or brother/sister, should
never be shown harm, in any way. This
question reasons and relates with the reading member to give full understanding
of the harsh reality these kids and young adults go through.
Another way ABC uses
reasoning is in the pictures they post. One
picture reads, “Be sure to taste your words before they come out” that is written
on a post it note covering a woman’s mouth.
This picture is asking the observer to match their senses together,
taste and auditory, to think carefully about what they say. It is an interesting technique and a cool
quote. This small picture is very
effective because it is simple, yet powerful and challenges the onlooker to
better themselves for the sake of others.
Back in October, one woman, Stacy Long, wrote on ABSC’s wall telling
about her son’s day at school. A
substitute teacher that day told her son he needed plastic surgery because he
was ugly. After confirming this
statement the only action the school officials are enrolling this sub into
counseling. Stacy then called the local
news to do a report that night at 6pm (the report can be found here).
This anecdote is actual proof that bulling is not limited to a child’s fellow
students. A teacher harassed this
twelve-year-old boy, and there is no excuse.
The story posted gives logical steps to show that no one should be
against this anti-bullying movement. The
story gives a reason to join ABC.
Lady
Gaga and the ABC facebook page are both very effective in raising awareness for
the anti-bullying movement. The facebook
page adds a little mote attention and a bigger viewing audience then Gaga’s
inspiring speech. Facebook is a daily
activity that many account holders practice throughout their day. The publicity of this page is huge and the
variety is has in its posts make it more appealing. Something new everyday is an attractive
aspect that the ABC page uses to stay away from being dull. Gaga is very successful during her fifteen
minutes, but there are more facebook users then people watching Gaga
speak. Although her video is on the Internet
it does not reach the viewing audience of ABC.
It would be cool to see ABC put her speech on their website, and see the
two texts work together. Both texts are
very effective, but ABC is more viewed and easier to access then Gaga’s
speech. The use of reasoning found in
both texts is a special element that makes up and demonstrates the meaning
behind the anti-bullying movement
Another
important technique that ABC and Gaga develop their message around is pathos.
Pathos is the emotional appeal an author uses to trigger the
feelings of their readers. Lady Gaga
includes pathos in her public
speaking further developing her speech, and in return making it more
professional and informative. Her most
effective emotional appeal comes at the conclusion of her speech. She begins her final statement by saying, “My
name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta. And I am an American citizen. Equality is the prime rib of what we stand
for as a nation.” This is one of the
rare times that Lady Gaga refers to herself using her original name. She casts away her fame to show she is as
equal to the people listening to her.
She leads by example and relates herself to her audience. She establishes a connection creating a
friendship with her crowd. She
disregards her high status as a sacrifice for the LGBT movement. She puts herself on the line by being the one
speaking and labeling herself as the most basic thing she can, an
American. This is emotional because she
is giving up her title, when hierarchy and popularity make up the modern world,
for the homosexual community. Another
emotional appeal is found when Gaga says, “You are not included. You are not
included when we say, "equal." You are not even fully included when
we say "freedom." This is a
very harsh sentence and is said with a stern tone. This sentences shock the listener with its
rawness and brutality. The audience is
filled with a deep helpless emotion.
They feel as if they need to do something immediately to reverse the
actuality in Gaga’s sentences.
The first example of pathos found on the ABC facebook page is
in a picture they uploaded on October 29th. The picture is a paragraph containing six
simple sentences, and the words are all decorated in a different font and
color. The two middle sentences are the
most important as they read, “Be a blessing.
Be a friend.” These six words
are the solution to end bullying. The
solution is so simple, but requires global participation. If everyone was a friend and a blessing there
would be no need for bullying. This
targets the observer’s emotions because finally can be reminded why he/she is
making sacrifices to further the LGBT movement.
It is a reminded for the reader to do their part in helping achieve the
solution, and fight for their inner beliefs.
A
video uploaded on October 25th on the ABC page just recently passed
17 million views. It is a video one
girl, Amanda Todd, made and the news station found it after her suicide. Her video is located on the ABC news website and can be found here. She made a video explaining her struggle. It is a very sad video, but this story
greatly hits the people watching it. It
makes you feel uneasy and extremely sad inside.
The watcher hurts for Amanda. It
is hard to watch a teenager admit they are not happy with their lives and what
to get rid of it. This hits the reader
hard and in a deep spot. It is an
inspiration to fight harder for the LGBT community’s goals.
Gaga’s use of pathos when speaking is much more effective then ABC’s use of pathos.
Gaga gets very personal with her audience and creates a connection with
her listeners. ABC’s facebook page has a
bigger audience, but they are not as connected compared to Lady Gaga and her
audience. The Anti-Bullying Coalition
facebook page is a jumble of stories, videos, photos, and organized events all
thrown together. These are random photos
and videos that all promote anti-bullying, but are not connected anyway else. Lady Gaga speaks to her audience like a
friend so they can experience deeper, more intense emotions. Listening to a friend speak is always more
intimate then watching a news report.
Although ABC uses pathos just
like Gaga, they are not as effective as the female songwriter. Gaga using pathos to be relatable and is very successful in using this
technique to help her speech be more effective.
The
last and final technique that both texts incorporate adding to the quality of
their promotion to end bullying is language.
The styles of language used in Gaga’s speech and the status updates,
pictures, and slideshow videos on the ABC’s facebook page are similar. Gaga uses very common language with a basic
vocabulary. However there are points
where she demonstrates her college education when using a more elevated
vocabulary using words like “inadequacies” and “refuting.” Moreover, she is
very easily understood and heard throughout her search. She says, “Equality is the prime rib of
America, but because I'm gay, I don't get to enjoy the greatest cut of meat my
country has to offer.” This sets the
stage for the rest of Gaga’s speech as she explains how wrong it is that a gay
individual cannot receive the same meat everyone else does. This sentences summaries her entire speech
and it is not full of fancy words or statistics. Instead she uses a simple analogy to better
explain her speech. She also says, “if
you serve this country, is it acceptable to be a cafeteria American soldier?
Can you choose some things from the Constitution to put on your plate, but not
others?” explaining one of her sub points.
She uses another analogy in order to better explain her point of how
certain soldiers get rights that others do not.
The common language and easily understood analogies allow for an easier
path to follow Gaga’s unique way of thinking.
She is very effective in pairing her language, tone, and analogies
together to fully complete a well-structured speech.
The
ABC facebook page does not have as much significant use of language. They change their appearance daily and it is
hard for certain words to stick out and be remember. However the size and placement of their cover
photo allows for language to be better remembered. The cover photo on their page is the photo at
the very top covering the first half of the web screen. The photo has a slogan saying “Together We
ARE.” The significance in the word “are”
being capitalized to show confirm that the anti-bullying movement is not going
anywhere. They will be recognized,
noticed, and a force to be reckoned with.
The cover photo is the most strategic picture since it is the first
thing seen on the facebook page.
Gaga’s
use of language surpasses ABC’s use of language in effectiveness. Gaga is better with being more influential
with her language because it is modern language with easily relatable
analogies. The ABC page is full of
language and that is their main source of communication, writing. Gaga is more effective, but would be even
more effective if she used her elevated vocabulary throughout her entire speech
and not just at some points. This would
raise the seriousness level of her speech because it is more formal and
appropriate for such a touchy subject.
She still is successful in incorporating another rhetoric technique that
adds to her quality of speaking/writing.
Overall
Lady Gaga’s speech “Prime Rib of America” is the most effective texts out of
the three analyzed texts. She uses many
rhetorical techniques that add to her speech, making it easily understood. The most effective rhetorical technique she
uses is reasoning and logic. This
technique makes her whole speech unarguable and confirms the correctness and
accuracy of her statements. Lady Gaga is
a terrific public speaker and does an excellent job standing up for the LGBT
community using analogies, strong tone, reasoning, logic, pathos, and common
language during her speech in the “Don’t’ Ask, Don’t Tell” rally in Maine.
Works Cited.
Facebook Inc. “ABC: Anti-Bullying Coalition.” Last modified
Novemeber 2,
2012. Accessed October 27, 2012. Web.
Germanotta, Stefani. "Prime Rib of America." Don't
Ask, Don't Tell rally. MTV.
Maine, Portland. 20 1994. Speech.
Lowe, Chan. N.d.. 2012. Buzzfeed.com Web. 25 Oct
2012.
Salcedo, Rebecca. Beautiful Life. 2012.
www.ebsqart.com, Atlanta, Georgia. Web. 21
Oct 2012.
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