TOW #10: iDiots- iPhone Parody

iDiots- iPhone Parody, is a stop motion video of robots who are obsessed with a new phone called the “iDiot.” They message each other on it, watch videos of cute cats, buy pointless apps, and share everything on their social media accounts. They never seem to interact with each other unless it’s with their phones. Then, a giant robot, who we find out later is from the same company as the “iDiot,” goes around destroying all the robots’ phones. The robots become depressed, but then they are filled with joy again when the next generation of the “iDiot” is released. They line up to buy it and the cycle starts all over again. The purpose of this is to satirize the consumer market revolving around the iPhone and metaphors, parody, and irony are employed to do this.

The video contains parody in order to make it clear that it is trying to comment on Apple’s consumerism. It uses a logo that closely represents that of Apple; it is a head with a “bite” being taken out of the head, representing someone who is brainless. The distributors of the iDiots also where lanyards clearly just like the Apple Geniuses at Apple Stores. Even, the name “iDiot” looks like “iPhone” while also spelling out “idiot,” saying that we are idiots for being a part of this system.

The video also employs the metaphor of the robot. They are supposed to represent us as consumers, showing that we are brainless robots who just buy, buy, buy without much thought. We buy things that take over our lives, so much to the fact that always feel the need to upgrade to the best version of iPhones. This use of metaphor is a stab at us as consumers, letting technology dictate our lives, and in a way, make us robots of the system.

Lastly, irony is used, when we find out that the huge robot that goes around destroying the iDiots is from the same company that the iDiot is from. One would not expect the company to want to destroy their own phones, but it shows that they are focused on maximizing profits because they know that consumers will just buy new phones. This is mocking both us for being idiots to fall in this trap as well as the companies who will do anything for more money.

Overall this video is meant to satirize on the consumerism Apple created to rip its customers off and the pure idiocracy (though a bit exaggerated) consumers have to be a part of this system.

The Red Consumers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbmgV7Oyp0w

Independent Reading Book for Marking Period 2 (Intro)

For the second marking period, I will be reading The Grand Design by Stephen Hawking. This book discusses and answers some of the most fundamental questions to the universe and life itself through physics. It also proposes many theories that may seem controversial to traditional ideas, such as the "multiverse" theory. The reason I chose this book because I have always been intrigued by the very basis of space and the existence of Earth.

Book Cover
(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51UfvNQsMgL._SX331_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg)

TOW #9- "Can Debt Spark a Revolution?" by David Graeber

In “Can Debt Spark a Revolution?” David Graeber discusses how the “top 1%” is controlling American politics and abusing it in order to become wealthier, while the rest of America, who seemingly has little say in the government, is drowning in debt struggling to pay off student loans.  Many felt strongly about this topic, as this article was written around the time of the Wall Street occupation (OWS) where people dubbed the “Bottom 99%” protested against unequal wealth distribution. His intended audience is the bottom 99% and his purpose is to rally them up to fight against what he believes to be a corrupt government. Mainly, he argues for the government to pass a debt forgiveness policy so people in deep debt don’t have to struggle economically anymore. Graeber, a well-known social anthropologist and anarchist activist, establishes ethos early on by claiming he started the “We are the 99%” movement during the OWS.

Throughout “Can Debt Spark a Revolution?,” Graeber uses many rhetorical questions in order to achieve his purpose. In just the title of the article itself, it asks a question that makes people who are in debt think deeply about their debt situation. He asks questions like, “ What kind of promises do we want to make as a society?” and “What could be more obviously insane?” making readers ponder about how how they really want their country structured. These questions, which have a strong appeal to readers’ pathos, are meant to rally up the people who share the same concerns that he does.
Graeber also uses condescending diction and syntax towards the American government and the top 1%  in order to achieve his purpose and make the bottom 99% feel like victims of an unjust system. For example, he calls the US political system “legalized bribery,” making it seem like it is controlled by rich people who are able to leverage their financial situation to advance their place in American politics.  He also refers to the bottom 99% as “refugees of the American debt situation,” contrasting the rich people who can advance themselves in the system to the non-rich people who are stuck in a system of debt.

Overall, I believe that Graeber achieved his purpose to rally the bottom 99% to want change with his strong appeal to readers’ pathos. On the other hand, it is lacking in a strong appeal to logos (which I believe is needed) so some of ideas can come off as radical. Personally, I cannot relate to this problem as I am not an adult struggling in debt from student loans so many of his radical ideas did not resonate with me.

Occupy Wall Street
(http://www.magicalrealism.us/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/o-OCCUPY-WALL-STREET-facebook.jpg)

TOW #8- Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

In Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers, he discusses his theory on the many factors that have led to others’ success. Some of his theories include the “10,000 Hour Rule,” which states that someone cannot master something unless they repeat the process for 10,000 hours (e.g. Bill Gate’s 10,000 hours of coding led to his success in creating Microsoft), and the “Theory of Plane Crashes,” which says that the most effective structure of leadership is where the most assertive people go in the lowest positions and the least assertive go in the highest positions.

When talking about his “Theory of Plane Crashes,” he says, “Planes are safer with the least experienced pilot is flying, because it means the second pilot isn't afraid to speak up.” Just like with this theory, many of his theories can come across as ridiculous and controversial. However, they are well-supported with data and statistics with strong anecdotes, which helps to validate his claims. In effect, this book has little appeal to the readers’ pathos and a strong appeal to the readers’ logos with his strong reasoning. This also helps to build his ethos. His ideas can pertain to the business world, as many of his thoughts align with success in the business world

In addition to a strong appeal to the readers’ logos, he uses ordinary diction, which helps him to achieve his purpose, as his goal is to help show people what it takes to be success, no matter how educated the reader is. His ordinary diction allows anyone to understand his ideas.

Overall, the devices that Gladwell uses in Outliers helps him to build a serious and neutral tone. This helps him to achieve his purpose because if he used an unserious tone, it would ruin his credibility (since Outliers is solely based on reasoning). It is because of this that he is able to clearly get his ideas out and successfully achieve his purpose to teach his readers the factors of success.

Malcolm Gladwell
(http://www.famousauthors.org/famous-authors/malcolm-gladwell.jpg)

TOW #7- Make Mine Freedom

During the Cold War in the 1950s, anti-communism plagued the United States as many believed that communism might take over America. “Make Mine Freedom” is a cartoon that exaggerates the negative aspects of communism and advocates for the benefits of American capitalism. It was made as propaganda to convince the American people to go against the rise in communism and to spread American nationalism.

One rhetorical device that is used is imagery. The American characters in this cartoon are wearing patriotic colors and look like normal people. In contrast, the communist character in this cartoon was wearing all red, the color of communist Soviet Russia, and was made to look very nefarious. This juxtaposition between the “good” American people and the “evil” Soviet communists through imagery biases viewers to have an initial dislike for the communist character.

Another device that is used is anaphora. In one part of the cartoon, the narrator lists the virtues of America, saying, “It’s freedom to work at the job you like, It’s freedom of speech and the right to assemble, freedom of owning your own property...” By repeating the same phrasing throughout a long list of virtues, the narrator shows how America is great. This is quickly juxtaposed when the characters get a taste of what living in communism looks like. “The State” is depicted as oppressors of its people’s liberties. This is a strong appeal to the viewer’s pathos, as it plays on their satisfaction of living in a capitalist system and their fear of living in a communist system. Then, the cartoon shortly shifts to having an appeal to the logos, giving statistics on how America is thriving.

At the very end of the cartoon, the characters drive out the communist character while patriotic music is playing in the background in order to build American nationalism and convince viewers that communism goes against American values.

Overall, this video has a strong appeal to the viewer’s pathos and a little logos (which is common in propaganda) to successfully convince them that communism is a threat to the American way of life.

https://aos.iacpublishinglabs.com/question/aq/1400px-788px/what-are-the-differences-between-communism-and-capitalism_28c1ca4d-ab08-4532-ae00-dfabc198ec6d.jpg?domain=cx.aos.ask.com