Final Study Guide - Courtney Travers PDF

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Courtney Travers...

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Final Exam Study Guide Format: multiple choice, short answer, fill in the blank, T/F, and short essay questions Date: April 25 @ 12pm OR May 1 @ 9am Be familiar with the arguments of the following readings: 1) Keith and Lundberg, Chapter 4 2) Hollihan and Baaske, Chapters 6, 10 3) Trent, Fridenberg, & Denton, Chapter 6 4) Ott and Mack, Chapter 5 5) Jamieson and Campbell, Chapter 2 6) Moscowitz, Chapter 4 7) Kolker, Chapter 7 8) Bineham, “The Blind Side” (SJC) 9) Campbell, Chapter 10 10) Boyd, Chapters 1, 8 a. Interested in the way that young people circulate their identities online- and very audience specific (based on forms) b. You don’t always just target one audience online c. Electronic media easily collapse seemingly disconnected texts d. Anyone in the public must regularly navigate disconnected social contexts simultaneously, balancing what they say with how their diverse audiences might interpret their actions e. Context collapses- when people are forced to grapple simultaneously with otherwise unrelated social contexts that are rooted in different norms and seemingly demand different social responses i. ex. Running into teacher at a bar ii. solution: imagine the audience they’re trying to reach b/c impossible to account for the full range of plausible interpretations iii. hard to change online, easier in person b/c you see people approaching iv. we hate when this happens, but more susceptible online f. the context of social media sites is socially constructed – norms are shaped through network effects g. impressions we make on others are a product of what is given and what is given off h. impression management- social process i. the context in which teens are operating are also networked. Contexts don’t just collapse accidentally- they collapse because individuals have a different sense of where the boundaries exist and how their decisions affect others i. publics are the fabric of society j. people develop a sense for what is normative by collectively adjusting their behavior based on what they see in the publics they inhabit and understand k. digital flâneurs- choose to share in order to be a part of the public, but how much they share is shaped by how public they want to be – seeing and being seen

l. what makes a particular site or service more or less public is how it is situated within the broader social ecosystem m. people lashing at teens for acting politically online n. technology makes the struggles you face visible, neither creates not prevents harmful things from happening, but mirrors and magnifies many aspects of everyday life (good and bad) o. “bedroom culture” – teens used to put up posters as form as expression, but now “posters” are being posted online 11) Palczewski, Chapter 2, 3, 4, 9 (select pages) You should have familiarity with the following material—the context and culture they present, the targeted audience(s), the rhetorical strategies and constraints for each that we discussed in class  Clinton-Trump debate clips o Pre-debate Trump- lowering his expectation reinforced his image o Post-debate Trump- his surrogate trying to attack Clinton for focusing ads on Trumps bad comments o Relating issues to an overall them/thesis o Developing an image  Identification (with audience)  Personification (personify a definite role)  Development of leadership style  Panzani ad (Barthes) o The linguistic message (text)  He sees two kinds of linguistic messages at work: a denoted message comprising of the caption and the labels on the produce, and a connoted message – the word ‘Panzani’ connotes Italianicity. o The symbolic message (or connoted image)  Four signs are then identified from the non-linguistic part of the image and the constitute the symbolic message, or connoted image:    

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The half-open bag signifies return from market tomatoes and peppers signify Italianicity the collection of objects signifies a total culinary service the overall composition is reminiscent of, and therefore signifies, the notion of a still life. o The literal message (or denoted image)  This is non-coded in that the image of the tomato represents a tomato, the image of the pepper represents a pepper, and so on. He remarks that in this case we have a signifier and a signified which are essentially the same – this is a message without a code o The linguistic message o Connoted image vs. denoted image Ivy League Trailblazers o Cacophony of voices with black screen o Perspective: individual experiences, program emphasis over student focus

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o Individual struggles, community empowerment o Shots that complement message o Genre de films: natural scenery The Blind Side clips o Black token characters being saved by the white hero o Postracism / American Dream ideology  Postracism- colorblind, equal opportunity = success (believe that racism is in the past and so belittle idea that subordinated individuals are still being discriminated against)  Individual vs. systematic racism  American dream – pull yourself up by your bootstraps  Encourages the belief that contemporary racism exists only in imaginations of black people o Sports movies build character and teach discipline  Reinforces thought that African Americans achieve the dream through athletics (where few make it) and not through business, politics, etc.

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Argument 1 versus Argument 2 o Argument 1: argument as the initial thing- particular act in which one presents a claim and provides reasons o Argument 2: argument as interaction- is what happens when people engage with those arguments o You can’t have argument 2 without argument 1 Claim- the conclusion whose merits we are seeking to establish o Claim of fact- claim that advances an empirically verifiable statement o Claim of definition- claim that identifies how a concept or term should be defined o Claim of value- claim that advances a statement about what is worthy o Claim of policy- claim that addresses what should be done Aristotle forms of proof o Pathos: emotional or psychological appeals o Ethos: character/credibility o Logos: appeals based in logic and argument Aristotle elements of ethos o Phronesis: social wisdom; good sense o Arête: trustworthiness, virtue; good moral character o Euonia: good will Syllogism & enthymeme o Syllogism: Two true statements validly imply a third statement, the conclusion of the argument  In a valid argument, if the first two premises are true then they imply the conclusion because if they are true then the conclusion has to be true  Formal reasoning can be expressed as a syllogism

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o Enthymeme: argument where one premise is not explicitly stated – not formally valid (a syllogism based on probabilities, signs, and examples, whose function is rheotical persuasion)  Ex.) signs, cause and effect enthymemes, analogies  Informal reasoning is expressed an enthymeme Argument topoi o Topoi: general forms that arguments take; standard kinds of arguments applicable to a lot of situations o General topoi  A tortiori- “more or less likely” (if the strong case can’t happen, then less likely the weaker cases will happen)  Consistency of motives- people act in keeping with their goals  Hypocrisy- standards should apply equally  Analogy- thinks alike in one way will be alike in others o Special topoi- kinds of arguments used in specialized situations  Finances, war and peace, national defense, imports and exports, the framing of law Stock issues o Stock issues- standardized issues of an argument known in advance o Legal stock issues- determine what happened in the past  Fact: what happened?  Definition: what was it? How we are classifying it…  Value: what should be done? Points of emphases put into play based on how we’re defining the act o Policy stock issues: future course of action (ex. Gun safety)  Significance- is the problem serious enough for action?  Inherency- is the problem the result of current policy?  Plan- what should be done?  Solvency- would the new policy solve the problem? Anticipating counter arguments?  Disadvantages- what new problems might the policy create? Elements of rational argument o Data (evidence) o Reasoning (how the data is made sense of) o Conclusion (the “warrant” or outcome of the reasoning process) Types of reasoning and tests of reasoning o (Logical reasoning- formal and informal) o Inductive reasoning: special cases  generalization  By example: if certain cases in a class have common features, then other unknown cases in that class will also have those features  Real examples (own experience or research that support claim) or hypothetical examples (made up)  Tests: o Are there enough examples? o Are the examples typical? (representative)

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o Are there negative examples? Do they overtake? o Is the line of reasoning relevant? Is another reason better?  By analogy: two cases are similar in some way  Figurative analogies: compare 2 things that aren’t alike in kind but have similar characteristics  Literal analogies: compare things that are alike in kind  Tests: o Alike in some meaningful way o Are they accurately described?  From causal correlation: examines specific cases in order to identify a relationship, or correlation among them- “because”  Tests: o Is the relationship consistency? o Is the relationship strong? o Does the cause/effect relationship follow a predictable time sequence? o Is the relationship between cause/effect coherent? Good explanation?  If one thing follows another but cannot be established to be caused by it, it is a post hoc ergo proper hoc fallacy – after this, therefore because of this o Deductive reasoning: generalization  special cases  From sign: identifying certain characteristics or sign and arguing that they are related to a general conclusion  Tests: o Are they indicators of the principle? o Are there enough signs to support the conclusion? o Are there contradictory signs that are evident?  From causal generalization: reverse of causal correlation (argues from a general principle to a specific case)  Tests: o Is the cause sufficient to produce the different effects? o Could the cause result in different effects? o Could intervening factors disrupt the relationship between cause and effect? Argument fallacies o fallacies- mistake sand errors in argumentation and reasoning  the conclusion isn’t implied by evidence  the argument’s reasons do not support its claim o If one thing follows another but cannot be established to be caused by it, it is a post hoc ergo proper hoc fallacy – after this, therefore because of this o ad hominem: attacking person’s identity, not argument o ad populum- if it’s popular and a lot of people believe it, then it must be true o appeal to authority- there are appropriate and inappropriate experts depending on the argument

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o appeal to ignorance- when originators of an argument do not meet the burden of proof o guilt by association- mistake occurs when an arguer jumps to conclusion based on evidence that is irrelevant to the point of issue o red herring- speaker deliberately takes the argument off point o slippery slope- domino effect Academic debate terminology, format, types of argument o A place to practice skills of argumentation – specialized rules and format  Affirmative burden: burden of proof (presumption) favors resolution – prima facie case  Negative burden: obligated to rebut the story advances by the affirmative – burden of rejoinder o The resolution:  The focus of any debate is the proposition – expresses subjects of dispute o Types of academic debate:  Fact- involves giving some descriptive characteristic to a referent – yes/no  Value- affirmative asks audience to agree to a judgement – object and value  Policy- affirmative asked to present a specific proposal to implement the change  action o Format:  Balances competition- affirmative opens and closes speech b/c negative has advantage of presumption o 3 types of speaking:  Constructive speech- any argument you think is relevant; constructs the positions that each side believe should be the focus of the debate; first opp. To respond to arguments of opposition  Rebuttal speech- extend own argument, rebut opposing argument, but no new argument  Cross examination- question period; trying to find o Policy elements:  Significant harm/ill (drawing causal linkage)  Inherency or blame (current policy is causing harm)  Plan or cure (the specifics of plan)  Solvency (who does it affect? how?) o Types of debate arguments:  Procedural: topicality argument – claims that affirmative has offered a proposal that doesn’t support the resolution – not proven your case  Substantive: focus on the advantages and disadvantages of the worlds constructed by the affirmative and negative  Affirmative o Needs case- present a significant problem that exists and plan will solve o Comparative advantage case- present plan and argue that the advantages of it compare favorably to the status quo  Negative

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o Solvency attacks- challenging the plan through practicality or circumvention o Disadvantage arguments- it will create new problems, exacerbate existing problems, or might be step in bad direction o Burdens of disadvantage arguments- clear link and affirm/ plan must be the sole cause of the disadvantage Evolution of political debates o Technology, federal regulation (creating image)  Ex. Kennedy/Nixon debates o Evolution of political campaigns (what to consider)- close election, suffer, good debater, 2+ candidates, disadvantage, incumbent, equal time provision o 5 essential elements:  Confrontation (clash of ideas)  In equal and adequate time  Matched contestants  Stated proposition  Gain audience decision Political pre-debate, debate, and post-debate strategies o Pre-debate  Importance of minimizing expectations on own candidate and maximize expectations on opponent  Determining the target audience  Devising and rehearsing possible answers (studying opponent’s Previous debates) o Debate  Relating issues to an overall them/thesis  Developing an image  Identification (with audience)  Personification (personify a definite role)  Development of leadership style o Post-debate  Who best influence audience perceptions  Offering a large, well-coordinated surrogate effort  Surrogate spokesperson who will claim their candidate won the debate to the press  Using ads to underscore debate themes  Using audience members to project a positive view while explaining what your campaign is focused on Impact of political debate o Increase audiences o Reinforce audience opinions o Shift limited number of voters o Help set voter’s agendas o Increase voter’s knowledge of issues

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 Far too often, public’s concerns aren’t addressed in journalists’ questions o Modify candidate image  Especially when candidate isn’t well known and image isn’t formed yet o Freeze the campaign (debates in short window of time) o Build confidence in US democracy History of mass media o Started out with print and restricted to that until TV, radio, and video were introduced  and then the internet Trends and issues in mass media o Loss of aura  popular culture Theorists of the sign o Ferdinand de Saussure  Semiology- study of role of science in social life- is there a structure for understanding signs?  Sign = signifier + signified  Signifier- thing itself  Signified- broader, mental concept we assign to the thing o Charles Sanders Pierce  Semiotics- there are actually relationships among signs that aren’t arbitrary (relationship among signs, meanings, and referents)  Included all models of communication, not just language  images  sign = term, interpretant = someone doing something with the sign (“the dogness”), object = itself (canine)  signs aren’t arbitrary according to him o Roland Barnes  Denotation- literal things  Connotation- things they stand for (message)  Denotation = dog, and connotation=family, pet Elements of a sign o Arbitrary- just a word people use to describe that thing (product of social agreement) o Linearity- words have to follow each other- can’t say 2 at the same time; changing the arrangement, changes the meaning o How to analyze:  Synchronic analysis- language in general  Diachronic analysis- evolution of language or changes in sound over time Categories of signs o Icons- meant to resemble the thing they claim to represent, the likeness (crucifix) o Indexical signs- linked by association (smoke = fire) o Symbols- linked by social convention, learned rather than intuitive (flags) Structuralism- each element in a cultural system derives its meaning in relation to other elements in that system, moreover, it tends to regard such systems as relatively close and independent o The meaning of text derives from internal or immanent structures; the producer and receiver have very little to do with the meaning of the text

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Poststructuralism- sees meaning as a complex interaction among texts (intertextuality) as well as between audiences and texts; texts are more open (inviting multiple meanings) Denotation vs connotation o Denotation- literal things o Connotation- things they stand for (message) Clusters o Texts- set of signs that are related to one another (have an effect or meaning) o Clusters- what goes with that in acts and situations; how they become associated with values, meanings, ideas, attitudes, and consequences  Ex.) in films, repetition of what types of roles are played gives a certain association to them  can devalue or give value Definition and types of rhetorical media forms o Forms- the arousement and fulfillment of desire – a feeling of un-satisfaction when doesn’t satisfy generic expectations o Types:  Progressive form- stories advance step by step (narrative); chronological  Repetitive form- restatement of the same thing in difference ways (characters)  Conventional form- an appeal of the form itself (relies on progressive and repetitive forms)  Minor or incidental forms- textual devices (before and after scenes of makeover) Definition and elements of rhetorical media genres o Genre- generic ideas of it o Similarities based on:  Aesthetic- kind of themes  Stylistic  Substantive- the way the narrative plays out  Ideological- nostalgia o Broad categories:  Historical- meets common social needs or situational demands and are recognizable by consumers  Theoretical- the cultural “work” that a kind of text does in society/culture Levels of narrative o Narrative- a series of events, real or fictitious, that occur in often chronological succession o Levels:  Story- the events; what happens to who and when  Discourse- how the story is told  Narrating- the act of recounting events Affect and aesthetics o Affect- modes of sensual responsiveness to the world: bodily experiences o Aesthetics- meaning as not just linguistic, but also sensory  Color, lighting, framing, sound, camera moving Characteristics of hard news

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o News- framed messages for audience, selected by news-workers; framework for understanding reality, rhetorical o Hard news- report of an event that happened or that was disclosed within the previous 24 hours and treats an issue of ongoing concern  It is personalized, about individuals  Human connection allows us to imagine ourselves in the situation  meaning  Simplifies and clarifies  audience identification  Problem: diverts attention from more substantive questions and the choice of whom to cover is skewed by class, race, gender  It is dramatic, conflict-filled, and violent  Drama gains people’s attention  “story”  It is action, an event, an identifiable occurrence  Concrete and discrete, can be explained  News typically covers scheduled events  “photo opportunities”  It is novel, deviant, out of the ordinary  Reports events linked to issues prevalent in the news at the time  There are identifiable forces at wor...