Elle YSL

For the video, watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTWmUItM01c

When I first saw the commercial for this new perfume, I was extremely impressed by the power and fierceness that the model seemed to give off. I found myself wishing that I could give off the same aura as the model.

This ad campaign is different from previous perfume ads by YSL.  The women featured would wear beautiful dresses, their hair would be styled, and the overall ad would seem to describe people living an extravagant lifestyle.  In the picture above, instead of having curls, the model has her hair pulled back in a sleek ponytail.  She wears a simple and clean-cut business suit rather than a lacy dress. 

Elle embraces the modern woman, one who is strong, smart, bold, and fashionable.  The bright lighting allows the model to full of energy--ready to take on the world.  The background is abstract rather than old-fashioned, which emphasizes the fact that we are living in modern times. 

On the bottom are the words elle, le nouveau parfum.  In English this translates to Elle, the new perfume.  The word 'new' not only symbolizes a new product, but also a new image and a new kind of woman. 

Protests Powered by Twitter

How can you follow the riots of Cairo in real time?  Surprisingly, the answer is not necessarily a news website or a TV broadcast.  Amongst the chaos in Egypt, more and more young individuals are revealing their voice through Twitter.

Twitter, along with other social media, is a new way of delivering rhetoric that can have a significant impact on the future.  It is one of the reasons why the outcome of the current movement can be radically different from that of the ones before.  

One result of Twitter is that the total population is much less organized.  In movements before, a well-structured vertical hierarchy would exist.  The leaders would sit at the top, their close friends would be slightly below them, and the crowd would follow.  The organization in Cairo now is more horizontal, meaning that most people stand on the same level.  While some people have more authority than others, Twitter allows the voice of each individual to be heard.  Information does not come dominantly from propaganda, companies, and corporations; thus, the truth can spread faster than lies.  Each person has the opportunity now to develop and share his own ideas.   

One could argue that Twitter and other forms of social media are helping Egypt to move closer to a democracy.  Thanks to the Internet, "Ideas arise, are very quickly market-tested and then either take off, bubble under, insinuate themselves into mainstream culture or, if they are no good, disappear."  Democracy depends on openly sharing ideas, so that the best ones can stay and benefit the majority.  Twitter thus provides a way for the people to have open and free rhetoric. 

Private Conversation in the Digital Era

Charlie Brooker, a columnist for the Guardian, writes that "We shouldn't have to feel paranoid about snoops listening in to everything we say." 

In other words, he asserts that honest, open, and natural conversations are now in danger thanks to today's extensive use of technology. 

He first references Andy Coulson, who landed headlines after hacking the phones of celebrities like Sienna Miller and Steeve Coogan.  Brooker then moves on to the incident between two sports commentators Andy Gray and Richard Keys that led both of them to lose their jobs.  While off-air, they made sexist comments about a female linesman, claiming that females were incapable of understanding the rules of soccer.  Unfortunately, their public conversation was recorded secretly on tape and released to the public. 

Although Brooker does not condone their comments, he argues that it is a mistake Gray and Keys were fired for simply holding a private conversation, lamenting that "We've entered an era in which private conversation is impossible."  The two were smack talking others, but nothing they said was illegal, and everyone has said rude and objectional things in private. 

Although many will disagree with Brooker for defending sexist comments, he does raise an important concern.  Private conservation plays an important part of rhetoric.  Democracy depends on open conversations and voicing beliefs because "in a democracy, people must call into question the opinion of others, must bring them into the light for examination and negotiation. 

These days, people tend to be more afraid of holding private conversations because word can spread arround fast, but unfortuantely, restricting private conversations also restricts expression, creativity, and ultimately freedom.  

This I Believe Podcast

http://www.zshare.net/audio/860708022308b838/

La Fille du Rer

On Thursday I watched a film for my French class called La Fille du Rer. In English, it translates to The Girl on the Train. The story centers around a young woman named Jeanne Fabre and the public outrage she caused with her story, which she told using ethos and pathos.

Although Jeanne herself is not Jewish, she has close connections through her parents with a Jewish man named Samuel Bleinstein, the owner of a Jewish law firm. Jeanne spends one night watching a news program in which Bleinstein expresses his unhappiness towards the anti-semitic problems France is currently facing. From his speech, she begins to spin ideas in her head.

Jeanne goes through a series of unfortunate and traumatic events, which include failing to obtain a job at Bleinstein's firm, seeing her boyfriend get stabbed by a stranger, and finding out that he had secretly conducted drug deals. One night, she gets up from bed and carves scars on herself with a knife. She draws with a black marker three swastikas, the symbol of the Nazi party. Finally, she cuts off part of her hair.

The next morning she shows up at the police station and files a complaint. She claims that while she was on a train station, six young men cornered her. They searched a bag and found a business card with the name “Bleinstein” on it, causing them to assume that she was Jewish. They then began to beat her, and she shows the police the marks on her body and her hair as proof. Finally, she ends by adding that other passengers were standing nearby, but no one made an effort to save her. The news soon spreads, and Jeanne manages to win the support of the public, Jewish groups, and even the president.

By playing the victim, Jeanne is using ethos to make herself become likable and appealing to the public. She paints herself as an innocent girl and describes repeatedly how traumatized she felt. From this way, she easily draws sympathy from the public.

Jeanne also uses pathos to appeal to the French people's conscience and emotions, by taking advantage of the current anti-semitic situation. She reminds the public of how many young girls her age face similar persecution and discrimination. She expresses how wrong it is to see another person in trouble but not extend a helping hand.

Thus, Jeanne is able to gain huge media attention and public support by using ethos and pathos in telling her story. 

 

Friday, January 21, 2011

Islam extremists have received such a large amount of bad press that anti-Muslim feelings have become almost normal and accepted in society. According to the chairwoman of Britain's Conservative Party, Lady Warsi, this new trend had “crossed the threshold of middle-class respectability” in the UK, and it was commonplace to view Muslims as dangerous and suspicious.

In her speech against what she calls Islamophobia, given recently at Leicester University, Warsi stirs up emotions in her audience by describing the helpless and dejected feelings Muslims are currently experiencing due to “the patronizing , superficial way faith is discussed in certain quarters, including the media.” She continues to strengthen her argument with real, everyday examples. A boss who hires a Muslim worker may tell his other employees: “not to worry, he's only 'fairly' Muslim.” In another case, when speaking about their neighbors, a family might say: “they're Muslim, but they're not too bad.” A woman who wears a burqa in public are often described by others as either “oppressed” or “threatening.”

Her comments have sparked a debate across Great Britain between Muslim councils and anti-Muslim groups such as the English Defence League, which has a reputation for its violent protests.

Ibrahim Mogra, a prominent figure at the Muslim Council of Britain, agrees with Warsi and supports her main ideas with his own rhetoric. He logically connects the current situation to events of the past, such as the Holocaust. He relates the racism faced by Muslims to the persecution of Jews, reminding his audience about that time period when “the drip, drip of hatred and bigotry by the Nazis led to them being described as rates and murdered in a horrible way.” He then appeals to the audience's emotions and conscience. "This situation is nowhere near that but there is always a beginning for everything. I hope this is not the beginning of something that could be horrendous. We said 'never again' and we have to nip this in the bud."

The full article can be found at http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jan/20/muslim-leaders-lady-warsi-islamophobia?INTCMP=SRCH