Rhetorical Language in the Yemen Protests

Today the BBC ran a story on the President of Yemen, Ali Abdullah Saleh, and his recent orders regarding the protests, which have bee happening throughout Yemen. Saleh has ordered his police forces to protect all of the protestors, who have been getting killed recently during the protests. So far, the number of protestors who have been killed is up to 15 individuals.  Saleh was quoted saying, “The government... will continue to protect the rights of its citizens to assemble peacefully and their right to freedom of expression." My question is why would he want to protect the rights of people who are trying to overthrow his government, which he has retained power of since the late 1970’s?

I believe that Saleh is trying to use his language to inspire a new feeling in the protestors. At first, their protests were being met by violence by pro-government protestors and government security forces, but this new turn of events seems to cry a different message. I believe that Saleh is trying to gain back the trust of the people, a people that are plagued by a high unemployment rate and an extremely corrupt government. Saleh’s words seem very calm and considerate towards the people of Yemen, but can he really be sincere? He may be trying to gain the trust of the global community, whom has been watching his country’s government fall apart for the last several weeks. Nine of the members of the high government circle have stepped down since the recent deaths of protestors. Saleh has tried to meet the anti-government protestors’ wishes by vowing to step down from power in 2013, a whole 2 years away, but the people of Yemen don’t think that is soon enough. Saleh is in a very rough spot and is now trying to gain the trust of the people so that his government doesn’t fold around him. In some cases, concession to the crowd might be a good idea, but I believe in this case, Saleh has implemented this technique way too late in the game and has now made himself look weak in front of his people. A good leader uses his language to inspire and promote a sense of confidence in his group, or in this case, country. Saleh, through his language, has not come across as a strong leader, rather one who is indecisive and in a panic mode as the people of Yemen will soon enough reform the government.


The BBC. "Yemen's president orders forces to protect protesters." February 24, 2011. February 24, 2011.

<http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12564248>

The Rhetoric of President Obama's Speech on The Egypt Situation

President Obama’s speech on the former President of Egypt stepping down from office is very iconic for multiple reasons. Obama’s tone throughout the speech and his word choice were planned very well and the speech was executed with the upmost respect for all parties involved in Egypt. He managed to address the Egyptian peoples’ need for a democracy, without condemning the former Mubarak regime. Obama’s speech was very direct and straight to the point. The Speech is actually only four paragraphs in length, which seems quite short, but I believe that the short length was very effective in communicating Obama’s awareness of the situation, and also his want to see the issue be resolved quickly.

             Obama’s word choice is instrumental in conveying a serious tone, without coming across as condemning on either side of the issue. For example, in the first paragraph, Obama uses the words: concrete, credible, and unequivocal. All three of these words were put into this speech, because they carry very specific meanings. They each explain that the government must come up with a resolution in a very solid and fair way, so that the people of Egypt can be at peace. Obama set a tone for international politics with this speech, that I feel many global leaders will follow in the upcoming months, regarding the series of government revolts throughout the world.

Obama, Barack. Statement of President Obama on Egypt. 10, February 2011. 17, February 2011.

<http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/02/10/statement-president-barack-obama-egypt>

Rhetoric of Jordan Commercial

This week I would like to analyze one of my all time favorite commercials. This advertisement first came to television screens in late 2010. The commercial tells the story of two of the greatest players to ever play the game of basketball, Lebron James and Michael Jordan. Both athletes have had merchandise contracts with Nike for many years and the objective of this commercial is clearly to sell Nike merchandise, but this ad takes a very creative avenue in order to sell its products. The first image that is seen in the commercial is James talking to the camera about some of his recent actions in his career that have upset many fans, especially in the Cleveland area. When he was traded to Miami, many fans were outraged and openly burned James’ jersey in the streets to express disgust in their once, “King of Cleveland.” James briefly discusses quitting the game, or just designing shoes, or possibly just disappearing from basketball altogether. Then something very interesting happens in this advertisement; Michael Jordan chimes in to express his thoughts on the matter, almost as mentor for James. This ad is appealing to a wide range of people, considering that Michael Jordan has been a household name since the 1980’s. Not only can ten-year-olds relate to this commercial, seeing their favorite basketball player on the screen, but their parents who grew up in the era of MJ and the Bulls. The ad then follows the story of Jordan from playing in high school and working out in old, sweaty gyms. Jordan talks over the ad the entire rest of the commercial in a rhetoric series of questions aimed at James’ fans. Jordan serves as the voice of reason in this advertisement, bringing sight into the issue of James’ status among other great NBA players. This commercial effectively addresses James’ struggle, but also works on selling Nike products to fans of the two household names. When you first watch the commercial, it is hard to envision that there are subliminal messages and hidden Nike logos all throughout the commercial. During the minute long commercial, you can see the iconic Nike swoosh symbol ten times. It is absolutely amazing the way that Nike can formulate this commercial in a way to tell a story and also effectively sell their products.

"Michael Jordan's Response to Lebron James What Should I Do Commercial." 26 November 2010. Youtube. 10 February 2011.

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLZzWJxt-LE>

This I Believe Project

http://www.zshare.net/audio/863334562126c385/

Rhetoric in Advertisements

 

IHTad.jpg 

http://kleercut.net/en/files//IHTad.jpg

This advertisement really spoke to me in the way it conveyed certain rhetorical aspects that we have covered during class. Recently, we talked about the use of relevance and timing in what you are talking about. For example, the recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and the recent trouble in South America and the Middle East, has spurred much discussion about our energy resources and what we have to do in order to become more self-sufficient as a nation. This advertisement plays on the issue of deforestation, a topic that comes up every few years, but then somehow disappears back into the abyss of problems we have yet to solve.

The ad itself is a masterpiece in the way that it portrays the tissue brand as truly destroying the ancient forests of Canada. The box is decorated with a print of many stripped trees that have obviously been cut down to make paper, or in this case, it can be interpreted that they will be used to make Kleenexes. On other Kleenex boxes, there are usually cool designs or prints that draw attention to the boxes as more of a stylish accessory, rather than a box full of over-logged forest trees. Another aspect of this add which adds greatly to its overall effectiveness, is the three step process, which the add explains will destroy Canada’s ancient forest. The three step system is a great way to show how easy it is to lose one of the world’s greatest resources, which will be near impossible to get back. It also shows how little thought we put into a daily action, such as, blowing our nose. We could use a handkerchief, which doesn’t harm any resources, and is completely reusable, but instead, we would rather use the tissue, which we will disregard and throw directly in a trashcan in under three seconds. This add does a great job of portraying how effective using only a few words can be at portraying a message.

LA 101H This I Believe Project

http://www.zshare.net/download/8604201647f84d0f/