Category: WFP Blog Posts Summer 2017

I am planning on writing about the potential harmful effects of radiation emitted from electronic devices throughout the semester. Although this issue can be applied to a wide audience, I will focus on the group that includes teenagers and young adults. This group has been bombarded with advances in technology; however, many people are unaware of the risks of overexposure to these devices.

From the work of Bowdon and Scott, I will be working with the idea of “Technical and Professional Communication as Rhetoric.” To express the concerns related to overuse of electronic devices, I believe it would be best to use persuasion as my primary focus. With that being said, I want to make my argument with a strong audience-based orientation as well. Relaying this information to millennials will be much easier through the internet and social platforms; how to persuade them is different scenario.

It would be beneficial to use the persuasive appeals that Aristotle identifies as logos and pathos. Since this is a technical topic, appealing to the audience’s sense of reason and logic makes the most sense. Since the topic reveals that electronics can be dangerous, I will tie my reasoning in with an emotional appeal.  

My definition of rhetoric is somewhat limiting because persuading millennials on social media is a real challenge. On Facebook, millions of articles circulate (from animal videos to food recipes); most with the intent of entertainment. I get the feeling that younger generations react negatively to being told what to do or how to do it. I have to structure my argument in such a way that the rational text and emotional appeal will evoke action from my audience, rather than simply telling them what to do.

I plan on using social media and possibly brochures to reach my audiences, as stated previously. I will try to engage with this age group more effectively by using viral memes, videos and additional social context. The best way to relate to my audience is to understand how they currently receive news/information and media that they are drawn to.

 

Logos, the appeal of reasoning and logic, is one of the three general means of persuasion that Aristotle describes in On Rhetoric. Logic is essentially the study the principles of reasoning, meaning that if the audience agrees with the reasoning behind the argument, it could possibly not need any more support. However, to make such an argument there must be a claim and reasons to support this claim. Those reasons must then be then backed up by evidence, which will be the most important part in passing my argument to the audience.

The argument I want to make is that America is running out of water. Water is the quintessential liquid – it keeps the food that we eat alive, it keeps clothes on our back, and most importantly, it keeps us alive. So, why are we wasting it? This is a question that has been constantly asked for years and has yet to have found an answer. Well there may not be an answer, maybe there is a solution. This is exactly where I will focus the attention of the audience. The appeal of reasoning and logic can be a crucial factor when trying to communicate this argument to the audience. If I could give enough evidence to support claim, I believe that the reasoning and logic of the audience would persuade them into changing the poor water habits and conserve more.

The second and most important of the three-general means of persuasion is Ethos. Having the proper character and the credibility can be a key factor for the communicator when trying to persuade an audience. Through my campaign, I plan to give the audience as much factual evidence as possible. It is important my character stays strong and does not compromise credibility along the way. Another important aspect of ethos is choosing language that is appropriate for the audience and topic. Using the proper language is important because using language that is too scientific can confuse the common audience member or being too aggressive can make the audience member want to back away. Forming a perfect medium will be the most effective way to portray this crucial issue.

In summary, combing both ethos and logos could prove to be beneficial when making a claim. It is important to be both credible and appeal to the reasoning of the audience. Perfecting these persuasive appeals could prove to be life-changing for both America and the world.

 

Often times, in order to communicate well, it’s appropriate to state the obvious, namely, declare what that communication seeks to do. Bowdon and Scott underline what they call a purpose statement, and they define said statement in the following way: The purpose statement is the line which “tells readers what the text is intended to do for them.” Without such a statement, readers and hearers alike may be left guessing the communicator’s intent. Explicitness is the fence which keeps an audience out of the bad land of ambiguity. To me, a purpose statement screams clarity and compels the writer or speaker to be fixed on what he cemented in the purpose statement post holes.

Regarding the practical nature of communication and my own campaign, I must be super clear about what my intentions are when engaging my selected audience. I must employ a purpose statement in my materials, so as to make the purpose for which I communicate with them obvious. In other words, I want my audience to know my purpose and, thus, I employ a purpose statement. My campaign will seek to make Bellefield Presbyterian Church aware of mental health issues facing the universal church and the world at large. As a seminary graduate and peer support specialist with UPMC, I plan to deliver a speech at Bellefield, a place where I will undoubtedly declare my purpose loud and clear. (This is a scenario I hope for. I am a seminary grad and pray for the stated position.) The speech may read like this:

“The purpose of this message is to make known the mental health issues that plague the church as a whole and the society at large. Many problems are tied to poor mental health, among the people inside and outside these walls, and if we are going to reach the world with the good news of Jesus Christ for the glory of God, then we must be aware of mental disorders that afflict many of us, so that we deal well with our fellow Christians and those we seek to reach with the message of hope.”

I could also use this “The purpose  of this…” format for a blog post or a letter sent to all who attend Bellefield.

Finally, regarding limits to this rhetorical device’s usefulness, sometimes people may get bored with the notion of hearing or reading a clear purpose statement. For some, it may take the “fun” of discovery away. People like their “Jiminy Cricket!!” moments when they realize the meaning of a message without the purpose statement. Another limit to the purpose statement is that in declaring the purpose for a speech or letter or blog post, this may leave out the possibility of allowing the message to be interpreted in a variety of ways. Maybe someone could see a bigger purpose than the one simply stated. Maybe a purpose statement limits the audience, instead of allowing their minds to be thinking more expansively.

Over the course of the semester I will be writing about the possible impact that autonomous cars will have on our society moving forward. Technology today is advancing faster than we can keep up with and that is especially true when it comes to autonomous cars.  We are already seeing Tesla and Uber already putting autonomous cars on the road today, but some people are not completely on board with their implementation just yet. There are still a lot of safety and ethical concerns that need to be addressed and discussed by the government, the private sector and everyone else on the road.

In the reading Bowen and Scott talk about Vincent Ruggiero’s use of rhetoric in the field of technical and professional communications. Ruggiero states that there are three types of ethical criteria when communicating: obligations, ideals, and consequences.  These three criteria are directly applicable to the discussion about the future of autonomous cars.  The companies that are in any way involved in the production of these cars have the obligation to provide a product that is safe to the public, as well as the obligation to clearly define the capabilities of the car. The government has the obligation to properly regulate and oversee their production, especially in the early years of their implementation. The ideal of safety has a huge role to play in the introduction of autonomous cars into the market. They have the potential to drastically reduce the number of accidents on the road and they could save thousands of lives a year.  Safety is a central theme in the business world and in the public space, highlighting it as a benefit of having autonomous cars could be very effective. The last thing to consider is the consequences of the communication.  If the obligations of the any party involved are not met or the ideals are off base, the result could be horrible. However, if the first two criteria are satisfied, the benefits of autonomous cars are endless.

Pathos, the appeal to the audience’s values or emotions, is one of the three general types of rhetorical appeals described by Aristotle. It is used to create an emotional bond with the audience. Emotional appeals can be very powerful as they can galvanize an audience by playing on their innate beliefs, while simultaneously causing them to discount other truths.

The topic I would use this rhetorical appeal for is the critique of government funded school vouchers and education tax credits. This issue is not as prevalent or as known as climate change or health care so the focus should be to inform as many as possible rather than to aim the piece at Congress. This topic would mainly be targeted at parents with kids currently in primary and secondary education as they should have the greatest vested interest in this discussion, but it would also be applicable to every working American as it would be using their taxed incomes to fund this expenditure. Since the intended audience is large, the text has to clearly explain the points in manner that is understandable and convincing without being overly complex. This might best come in the form of a website, news article, blog post, or brochure.

The best way to use pathos would be to focus on the ineffectiveness of the vouchers and the segregation and inequalities they would create in the education system. Readers would be urged to take action and to contact local policy makers if they are strongly convinced. Bowden and Scott state, though, that excessive use or misuse of pathos can create distrust and alienate audiences. The message I intend to impart on my audience could come off as airy and preachy without reinforcing it with undeniable facts. A way to combat this would be to combine pathos with logos. Logos is another form of persuasion discussed by Aristotle that appeals to the audience’s sense of reason by using well-supported facts. An emotional appeal is strongest when it is based on logic and reasoning. By blending pathos and logos, a writer can weaponize facts to build a strong narrative that audiences are more likely to take to heart. This would require presenting and debating the opposing arguments in a fair, yet critical fashion.

The topic I am considering writing about this session (which I will probably tweak) is a constitutional amendment that banning any campaign donations for federal legislators, candidates, or political action committees from sources outside of their district (in the case of House Representatives) or state (for Senators). Two terms that stood out to me in the reading were the two different audiences: invoked and addressed. To me, the former is simply the audience that I want to reach and hopefully persuade. The latter is the audience that not only engages the reading, but uses it in someway. That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s used as a foundational document for a political movement, but it could be just one resource for someone who wants to decide on an informed opinion.

I can promote this idea across a fairly broad spectrum of media, which might be contingent upon research looking into the consumption habits of constituents most likely to lobby or contact their legislator to support the amendment. Although, considering the upswing in populist support during the 2016 presidential campaign, particularly for Senator Sanders and then-candidate Trump, there may be  or more activity from diverse demographics going forward that will necessitate a greater variety of media. There will be challenging limits to the usefulness of projecting or relying on the invoked and addressed audiences. I will have to prepare literature that is data dependent-enough that I can show that there is a problem that needs to be addressed, while simultaneously not treading so deeply into wonk world that the layman won’t understand, or lose interest, or feel like the solution excludes their potential contribution. I can only prepare to an extent with regards to audience, so creating the most accessible pieces possible will be my greatest concern. I understand style as a major component in accessibility. Since my invoked audience will likely be broad, the language I use will have to reflect its diversity.

This semester I would like to write about the importance of immunizing newborns. I would mainly like to target expecting parents. There are five constituent parts of rhetoric that classical rhetoricians have distinguished including style, memory, delivery, invention, and arrangement. One of the most important rhetorical terms for this topic is style. It is crucial for first time parents to understand what they are reading. If the text is too demanding, too complicated or unclear, the writing will not be effective. It is important to have the readability to be at their level (maybe less than a medical professional). This term of style might limit how much detail can be placed within the text. Some examples of texts might be brochures, emails, websites, or news articles.

Another rhetoric term that is important is memory. If the audience is able to read and comprehend the piece, all is lost if the audience cannot recall what they read. Many rhetoricians believe there is an inclination of persuasion related to rhetoric. In this case, I would like to convince my target audience of the importance of immunizing newborns for their safety and health. Memory is important so that expecting parents can act upon this issue. Expecting parents might also already have an opinion on this issue, so it is necessary to address their concerns in an appropriate manner.

Perhaps the most crucial aspect of rhetoric is delivery. After all, the quality of the piece is irrelevant if it does not reach its target audience. Each topic will have a different most effective mode of delivery. For the immunization of newborns issue, the most effective delivery modes include, but is not limited to, brochures, emails, websites, and news articles. Each method will reach a slightly different portion of the expecting parents population.

Invention refers to the actual message of the piece. It consists of three subsections: rhetorical analysis, three appeals, and research. All the data, research, and studies relating to newborns’ immunization will fall under this term of rhetoric. This is important because of the amount of negative information towards this topic. Not only does the positive information have to be accurately relayed, but the negative information has to be adequately disproved. It is possible that this is confusing to expecting parents, which is where delivery and style come into play.

Arrangement is the final constituent part of rhetoric. This refers to the organization and formatting of the piece. Arrangement helps the target audience understand the writing in its entirety. Clearly, the five components of rhetoric all hold great significance. With only one of these parts deficient, the piece will be lacking and will become less effective.

People who enter a career in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) face many challenges, and women in these fields face challenges from before their career even begins.  From a very young age, girls are not encouraged to pursue their interests in math and science in the same way as boys their age.  From the beginning, girls who are interested in STEM fields are at a disadvantage.

This semester, I will focus mainly on the audience that is given information to help women succeed in STEM careers and why the intended audience is often never given the information.  This is due to larger sociocultural contexts of the communities where these women live.

I will use pathos to appeal to the audience’s emotions and values.  I want them to see that everyone deserves the same opportunities, and everyone is capable of achieving anything they want.  I will also use logos to appeal to the audience’s sense of reason.  I want the audience to realize that women are given less opportunities.  I hope this opens the audience’s eyes to their everyday comments and actions that could discourage young girls from reaching their full potential.  Although these terms will be a helpful tool to communicate the topic to my audience, they are limiting what I do because there are more effective ways to change the minds of the audience.  But I do not agree with using techniques such as violence or threats to get my point across.

To address this topic with my audience, I think pamphlets and a social media campaign would be most effective.  This topic is not technical, so I think it would be best to give the most people some information that they could research more on their own.  The pamphlet could have internet resources on it that would help in the audience’s research.  I think a series of tweets would be a very effective way to get the information out to a large audience.  This is because people could retweet the entire thread or just a single tweet that they agree with.  This would reach all of their followers, and then their followers would also be exposed to the information.

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