TOW Re-Write- Beyond 2012: Why the World Won't End

There are few who have not heard that this Friday, December 21^st, 2012, the world is supposedly coming to an end. However, The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) argues that December 21^st will not be the end of the world, which is contrary to what the Mayan calendar predicts. Instead, there will be another winter solstice. In a question and answer format, NASA explains the origin of the theories behind the end of the world, and refutes these proposed explanations. NASA, an agency of the United States government that is responsible for the civilian space program and for aerospace research, wrote this article. For this reason, the article is certainly credible. NASA was prompted to write this article in response to the recent uproar concerning the end of the world. Therefore, NASA’s purpose in writing this article is to present a scientific approach to explain not only why the world is NOT ending this Friday, but also to answer frequently asked questions to help settle people’s nerves about this upcoming event. Thus, it is only logical that the audience for this article is those concerned about the world ending.

            There are several rhetorical devices used in this article to help the author achieve his purpose of convincing society that the world is not going to end this Friday. The most prominent device used is concrete language that assists a logical appeal. Concrete language is language that describes specific, observable things, people, or places, rather than ideas or qualities. In response to every question proposed, NASA uses specific, observable facts to present their argument that the word is not ending, rather than abstract ideas like those supporting the Mayan Calendar claim. This language pulls people away from the Mayan myth and towards logical and factual science. Another subtle rhetorical device that assists the reader’s understanding is the informal, conversational diction accompanied by minimal scientific jargon. Although the author did incorporate scientific reasoning, the author kept the scientific terms to a minimum. Instead, he used layman’s terms to explain the same general concept. If the author were to have written a report packed with scientific terms, it would have become confusing, dull, and distant. However, with the conversational, informal diction, readers were able to follow along without difficulty, and stay engaged from beginning to end.

                        Overall, I do believe NASA accomplished their purpose of presenting scientific reasoning to explain why the world is not ending on December 21^st, 2012. By using a conversational style accompanied by concrete language, NASA was able to provide a logical explanation to convince the public that the world will continue to exist like it has for 4 billion years. Without the use of these rhetorical devices, the author would not have been able to convince those believing in the Mayan calendar that it is indeed false.

Trapped

            If you are anything like me, getting trapped in a closet, Ferris wheel cart, or even an elevator is a long-standing fear. The idea that you may be forever confined to the place you are trapped carries with it daunting emotions. Think about being trapped half a mile below the Earth’s crust in a small shelter with 32 other men. Placing yourself in that situation would be equivalent to the circumstance that 33 Chilean Miners were forced to undergo. In his book, Trapped, Marc Aronson details this unforgettable rescue of 33 heroes from beginning to end. Marc Aronson’s experiences as an American author, editor, publisher, speaker, and historian make him a credible author to attack this story.

            Marc Aronson wrote this novel a year after the Chilean Mine incident in order to take readers beyond the simple headlines of this story, and into the minds of those involved. However, rather than writing this story for the purpose of providing readers with an interesting tale, Marc Aronson writes this novel in hopes of detailing to his audience how the WORLD rescued these men, not just the workers on the mine. Individuals and companies from, “Australia, Austria, Canada, Japan, South Africa, South Korea, the United States- everyone from experts on undersea and underground to outer space- helped out” (Aronson 92). This rescue would not have taken place if all corners of the Earth did not lend a helping hand in whatever way possible.

            In order to attract the global audience of all ages, Marc Aronson utilizes various rhetorical devices to keep his audience engaged from page one. Significant devices that aided the purpose of the story were theme and point of view. Theme is simply the central or dominant idea of the work. The author constantly reiterates the theme of this novel to emphasize the global effort to rescue these men. Aronson makes the point to connect every action, whether seemingly significant or not, back to the overarching theme to emphasize the global picture. In doing so, Aronson achieves his center purpose. Additionally, Aronson employs an effective third-person point of view to assist his purpose. By telling this story from the outside looking in, readers get a sense of this story from the miner’s perspective, the rescuers perspective, the family’s perspectives, and the world’s perspective. Using this point of view, again, made this a story that branched beyond the mine in Chile. It made it a story about the world pulling their talents together to contribute to the cause anyway possible.

            Overall, I do believe the author was able to successfully show how the WORLD rescued these men, not just the people on the work cite. Through the use of a repeated theme and an effective point of view, the author achieved his purpose fully.

           

            

Child Health Foundation- The Scream

    

           It is unquestionable that child abuse affects thousands of children daily. To put this into perspective, 3.3 million cases of child abuse are reported in the United States every year. This image is yet another advertisement displaying the horrors of child abuse. The Child Health Foundation, a non-profit, public charity to prevent and treat life-threatening communicable diseases of infants and children, released this advertisement to continue their efforts to end the fight against child abuse.

The exigence of this ad is simply that children are being abused. Even though this ad specifically states that in Germany, over 100,000 children are being abused, the power of the Internet has made it so everyone has access to this breathtaking picture. The overarching purpose of this advertisement is to make people aware of how prevalent child abuse is, and to inform those on what to do if they suspect anyone of domestic violence. Therefore, it is only logical that the audience for this image is the general public with a specific target on those  being abused or who are seeing abuse occur.

There are several rhetorical elements in this image; however, the most prominent are pathos and logos. Pathos is clearly displayed in the body of the girl. Looking clearly, there is an allusion to Edvard Munch’s The Scream painting. The painting helps to portray how horrifying child abuse really is. The use of a small, skinny, bony child also helps appeal to emotions because she already looks very frail, and adding additional abuse makes it seem as if she will crumble any second. This appeal helps bring pity and remorse for children who are abused daily. Seeing this ad also prompts people to think of the children around them who consistently have marks and scars on their bodies. It is not worth protecting a friend or family member if they purposely injure children. Wondering how they can prevent this from happening leads to the next appeal of logos. In the bottom right hand corner of the ad, there is a statistic and what to do if you suspect abuse. The use of logos assists the pathos in attaching numbers to child abuse that support the emotional appeal as well as provides the answers for the question brought on through the pathos. This logical appeal makes the topic seem more real, and that it is not just a national problem, but an issue everywhere. Lastly, considering this is visual text, it is important to recognize the colors being used in this image to assist the purpose. In order to create the horror that the body conveys, the background is pitch black. Clearly there would be an emotional difference if the background were yellow rather than black. The dark color certainly adds that extra punch to the image. Also, the use of pink to highlight the information box makes it seem like there is a loving, motherly, hope in the contacts present in the box. It is almost like there is a light at the end of the dark tunnel.

            Overall, I do believe the author achieved his or her purpose in making people aware of how prevalent child abuse is, and to inform them on what to do if they suspect anyone of domestic violence. Through an emotional, logical, and visual appeal, the author created a horrifying scene that is terrible to look at, but hard to pull away from.