TOW #19 The Old Guitarist by Picasso

            The Old Guitarist, painted by Pablo Picasso in 1903, is a painting that encapsulates many of the key characteristics that were featured in the artist’s paintings at that time in his life. Set against a backdrop made up of shades of blue and gray, the main focus of the painting is an older-looking man sitting cross-legged and playing the guitar. The skin of the man is light gray and almost seems lifeless. He holds a simply painted acoustic guitar with gnarled hands that indicate his age. The rip in the shoulder of his blue tunic gives an impression of poverty, possibly even homelessness. Pablo Picasso was undergoing an intense period of depression at the time when he painted The Old Guitarist; this period is commonly known as his blue period. Prevalent in many of his works during this time were themes of loneliness, destitution, and despair. Scenes featuring the homeless and most desolate members of society that Picasso produced during this time, including The Old Guitarist, express his bleak sentiment on life and society in his home country of Spain at the time.

            Obvious though it may seem, the colors used in this picture convey the themes that Picasso intended more effectively than anything else. Though some of the details of the old man’s body indicate his age and destitution, the melancholy tone set by the blue color scheme really gives the viewer of the painting a sense of loneliness. Picasso uses his color scheme to set a tone that appeals to the reader’s sense of human emotion. He also draws on the collective cultural memory of his audience, knowing that many of his viewers would recognize the figure of a lone man, sitting on a sidewalk, playing guitar to earn a meager pittance. Picasso’s appeals to emotion and a collective cultural memory are very effective in impressing his intended feeling of desolate loneliness upon the viewer of this painting. 

IRB #3 Intro Post

For this marking period, I am planning on reading Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. From what I have read and heard of this book (and Gladwell's work in general), it will be unlike anything I have read before. This book examines in detail all of the factors that contribute to high levels of success across many different fields and cultures. I have been recommended Gladwell's works many times by different teachers and fellow students alike. I hope to gain a new and interesting perspective on things that I may have not previously understood from my reading of this book.

TOW #18: Betty Crocker Gingerbread recipe

            While baking with my mom recently, I came to the realization that a recipe would be a very interesting text to analyze rhetorically. Consequently, this week I have chosen to analyze a Betty Crocker recipe for gingerbread cookies, which is one of my favorites. The author of this recipe is Betty Crocker, which is a globally known and respected brand of food products. The name Betty Crocker gives immediate recognition and credibility to any recipe that it is attached to. The intended audience of this recipe is generally common people, as it is fairly simple and easy to follow. Anyone who is interested in baking specifically would fall within the target audience of this text. As any good recipe does, this recipe gives the reader step-by-step instructions on how to take the list of ingredients and turn them into a finished product. Recipes are interesting types of types, being that they are extremely relevant and useful in daily life.

            An essential aspect of every good recipe is the organized and logical arrangement. This recipe lists the ingredients first, followed by the steps that need to be done in order to achieve the correct results for the recipe. An organized arrangement like this one is extremely crucial for a recipe, because if the steps are listed out of order the recipe will likely not be carried out correctly and the reader will not be able to create the desired food. This rhetorical device also generates an appeal to ethos. When the audience of the recipe sees the text being well organized, it immediately affords credibility. The author’s purpose in this recipe (and any recipe) is clearly to enable the reader to create a specific food product. I believe that this recipe is effective in achieving its purpose due in part to its well-organized arrangement. I can personally attest to the fact that is recipe achieves its purpose, as I have made and really enjoyed the gingerbread cookies several times. 

TOW #17: Twelfth Night Review by Ben Brantley

For my Text of the Week this week, I chose to read a theater review. From the New York Times online, I found a review of a current Broadway showing of Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night”. Once I settled in on a theater review as my text of choice, choosing this particular review was a logical choice for a theater-lover like myself. A Broadway showing of a Shakespeare play is always a special event for theater fans, especially when the show is imported directly from London’s Globe Theater as this one is. This review covers all conceivable aspects of the production… notably the acting, costuming, staging, and comparison to other productions. This review is clearly written for avid theater- goers and fans of Shakespeare’s work. Emphasis being placed on this incarnation of Shakespeare on Broadway is relevant when one considers that it is an inordinately authentic version. Solely male actors are used in this version, which is true to original Shakespearean productions.

The rhetorical device that author Ben Brantley, respected chief theater critic of the New York Times, utilizes most effectively is evocative diction. One line that jumped out at me in particular was his description of his reaction to the show being “pure, tickling joy”. Such deeply descriptive language evokes an emotional response from an audience. This emotional response helps to get the reader invested in the work being described and works towards the author’s ultimate purpose: to review the show effectively and either persuade or dissuade others from going. In the case of this review, Brantley’s diction is very effective in striking my interest. Such strong descriptive language makes me feel as though I am having the experience of seeing the show myself and definitely makes me want to go and see this particular production.