Writing Process Analysis

There were multiple steps I took when I was completing this assignment, but it is generally what I do for every paper I write. First, I brainstormed on what exactly I would like to focus on while writing the rhetorical analysis essay. Then, I looked to the outline we were provided and started to fill it in step by step. Once that was finished, I started to connect the different parts of the outline into an essay format. This usually helps me get started, and give me a decent amount of writing to build off of. The result of this process was what I called my rough draft. Then for the final draft I just added some extra grammatical corrections, and made it flow much smoother.
One of the main things I learned about this topic was some of the effects of poverty, and more importantly, who it effects. I also saw how it is portrayed through different media outlets, and the fact that there is a specific image of poverty that is shown, that might not represent all of the people that are currently living in poverty. While I was writing my essay I also began to realize that rhetorical analysis is, to me, a more advanced form of critiquing someones writing or piece of media in a very detailed way. I think this essay also solidified the fact that I have a real problem with procrastination. However, it motivates me to work harder, and do it faster. Usually when I am working under a time crunch it serves as motivation, but I end up missing things that I could have corrected if I had given myself more time. I think in order to quit procrastinating so much I need to find other motivating factors in order to encourage myself to finish my projects early rather than right before they are due. I am happy with the final product. While I may have needed to use a different style of sources, I think the paper itself turned out pretty strong.

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Rhetorical Analysis Final Draft

Granlund, Dave. Poverty USA

In this article there are many different aspects of strong rhetoric being used. The picture is designed to promote empathy and sadness, but is also made to make one think about the deeper meaning of the comic. While it displays a family that is in distress and has seen better times asking for help, the person to the right that is in a similar condition is supposed to be representing the entirety of the United States as “Uncle Sam”. This cartoon is a great representation of what many people are seeing in the United States lately, which is a large amount of media showing the current financial trouble in the United States. Atal Bihari Vajpayee quote, "Poverty is multidimensional. It extends beyond money incomes to education, health care, political participation and advancement of one's own culture and social organisation." clearly is referring to the exact problem this image is trying to address.

This political cartoon draws from is the historic image of the United States as “Uncle Sam”. What was once an image promoting the United States army and was a symbol of strength and power, in this depiction of him, he is nowhere near in as good of condition. Although Uncle Sam is an old reference, it is still used today for many politically motivated things such as this cartoon. Since it is used throughout our culture currently the representation is drawing from the past, but people in the present can relate as well.

Looking into the credibility of the author of this cartoon, Dave Granlund, it is notable that he has a long list of credits towards his merit throughout the 39 years he has been making cartoons. He has also won a long list of awards for his comics and has been entered into the pulitzer prize multiple times. One of the best ways to track his credibility and reputation however is through his website where there is a list of all the accomplishments he has earned towards his political cartoons. Although the only real authority to write on these subjects is a college degree and personal experience, he does seem to appeal to more of a politically involved audience.

One can recognize the emotional connection that is made in this political cartoon because it is the focus point of it. The entire family with their children and dog are all begging for money, or asking for help while “Uncle Sam” or the United States responds with “I was going to ask you the same…” This forces the audience to interpret the fact that the rhetor does not believe the U.S. is in good financial standings at all. One of the main presuppositions might be that the U.S. is struggling as much as it is depicted. Another presupposition the rhetor makes is the image he uses of the family in need. This most likely is not what all the families in need look like, and it may not be so easy to determine who is, and who is not struggling. The rhetor actually highlights the audience's concerns, or gives them something to be concerned about. For many, seeing a visual interpretation of what the rhetor sees in the U.S. is a powerful enough image in itself. Since it is a cartoon there can be no real source of information. However, the newspaper that it was featured in could have some impact, and who the author of the comic was could pertain value as well.

The message in this cartoon is fairly direct. It is strongly suggesting that the citizens of the U.S. are struggling to make ends meet, and are asking for ‘help’. The country itself is showing how poor of a state it is in by turning out empty pockets and offering no help. The purpose of the rhetor’s message in this piece would most likely be to show the audience how he feels about poverty in the United States and controversy over the debt the country is in. The cartoon is serving as a reminder of how bad the financial status of the United States is right now as a whole, not just individuals below the poverty line. Although this image does address a lot I feel that one of the things that it lacks is representation of how this problem is possibly solvable. Bertrand Piccard was once said, "In the 21st century, I think the heroes will be the people who will improve the quality of life, fight poverty and introduce more sustainability." While it is just a cartoon, it should elude to some hint of hopefulness rather than just using pathos to make people feel uncomfortable and sad. The evidence shown in this cartoon is displayed through the clothes that the family is wearing, and the sign they are holding that is begging for help. Some of the counterarguments to this stance could be people who do not see the U.S. in a bad position currently. Although our debt is becoming enormously high, the country is still functioning and is not at all showing signs of weakness.

Finally it is important to remember what the primary message this cartoon sends is. That while there are a large portion of people in this country living below the poverty line, the country itself is also still struggling in many ways, and if it is not addressed it may go on unnoticed. As the famous African American actor James Baldwin once said, "Anyone who has ever struggled with poverty knows how extremely expensive it is to be poor."

Rhetorical Analysis Rough Draft

This cartoon is a great representation of what many people are seeing in the United States lately. More than likely the cartoon was addressing the readers of whatever newspaper the cartoon was featured in and it would have appeared in a political cartoon section, or accompanying an article involving debt and possibly poverty. Some of the things that could have pushed the author to depict this could have been from the news the author has observed recently through current events.

One of the primary things that this political cartoon draws from is the historic image of the United States as “Uncle Sam”. This was once an image promoting the United States army and was a symbol of strength and power. However in this depiction of him, he is nowhere near in as good of condition. Although Uncle Sam is an old reference, it is still used today for many politically motivated things such as this cartoon. Since it is used throughout our culture currently the representation is drawing from the past, but people in the present can relate as well.

If one was to look into the credibility of the author of this cartoon, Dave Granlund, they would find a long list of credits towards his merit throughout the 39 years he has been making cartoons. He has also won a long list of awards for his comics and has been entered into the pulitzer prize multiple times. The main way his credibility can be noted is through the list of accomplishments he has listed on his website's biography. Although the only real authority to write on these subjects is a college degree and personal experience, he does seem to appeal to more high brow audience. The only real bias he shows is in his opinion of the Patriots football team.

It is very easy to recognize the emotional connection that is made in this political cartoon because it is the focus point of it. The entire family with their children and dog are all begging for money, or asking for help while “Uncle Sam” or the United States responds with “I was going to ask you the same…” This forces the audience to interpret the fact that the rhetor does not believe the U.S. is in good financial standings at all. One of the main presuppositions might be that the U.S. is struggling as much as it is depicted. Another presupposition the rhetor makes is the image he uses of the family in need. This most likely is not what all the families in need look like, and it may not be so easy to determine who is, and who is not struggling. The rhetor actually highlights the audience's concerns, or gives them something to be concerned about. For many, seeing a visual interpretation of what the rhetor sees in the U.S. is a powerful enough image in itself. Since it is a cartoon there can be no real source of information. However, the newspaper that it was featured in could have some impact, and who the author of the comic was could pertain value as well.

The message in this cartoon is fairly direct. It is strongly suggesting that the citizens of the U.S. are struggling to make ends meet, and are asking for ‘help’. The country itself is showing how poor of a state it is in by turning out empty pockets and offering no help. The purpose of the rhetor’s message in this piece would most likely be to show the audience how he feels about poverty in the United States and controversy over the debt the country is in. The cartoon is serving as a reminder of how bad the financial status of the United States is right now as a whole, not just individuals below the poverty line.

The evidence shown in this cartoon is displayed through the clothes that the family is wearing, and the sign they are holding that is begging for help. Some of the counterarguments to this stance could be people who do not see the U.S. in a bad position currently. Although our debt is becoming enormously high, the country is still functioning and is not at all showing signs of weakness.

Finally it is important to remember what the primary message this cartoon sends is. That while there are a large portion of people in this country living below the poverty line, the country itself is also still struggling in many ways, and if it is not addressed it may go on unnoticed.

Annotated Bibiliography

Blow, Charles. Them That’s Not Shall Lose. The New York Times. June 24, 2011. Web. February 10, 2016. The first quote I chose was by James A. Baldwin, whos was an African American novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and social critic. It has a much deeper meaning than simply stating a fact, and coming from someone who has experienced poverty first hand, it means a lot more. His quote states "Anyone who has ever struggled with poverty knows how extremely expensive it is to be poor."

Patil, Pratibha. Speech of The President of India. Embassy of India. January 25, 2011. Web. February 10, 2016. Patil is stating that without taking a more sensitive and practical look at poverty, the issue will never become completely resolved. This quote could be used for a transition into the topic of how to go about resolving poverty in the world in a hypothetical paper. "Our goal of poverty eradication and of inclusive growth that embraces the disadvantaged and marginalized sections of society can be achieved when our actions are guided by a social conscience and are not devoid of sensitivity." Patil was the 12th President of India who had a Master's Degree in Political Science and Economics, and Bachelors of Law Degree.

Perry, Tyler. Tyler Perry's Open Letter to Penn State 11-Year-Old. Newsweek. November 28, 2011. Web. February 10, 2016. Tyler Perry is a very prominent actor, producer, director, screenwriter, playwright, author, and songwriter, and was actually homeless for a number of years. While the source of this quote may not contain any particular merit because it is coming from an article that is not necessarily related to poverty, he is a very accredited person, and this statement provides a very vivid description of what poverty may seem like to some; a very hopeless situation. "I was a very poor young black boy in New Orleans, just a face without a name, swimming in a sea of poverty trying to survive."

Piccard, Bertrand. How We Give. Simplexity Clothing. Simplexity Inc. n.d. February 10, 2016. If I was to include this in a hypothetical paper I would mainly use it as an aspect of ethos. Since he is saying that in the future, a person's character may perhaps be judged on how they fight for the less fortunate. "In the 21st century, I think the heroes will be the people who will improve the quality of life, fight poverty and introduce more sustainability." Bertrand was a swiss psychiatrist, and recipient of the Harmon Trophy.

Vajpayee, Atal Bihari. Looking at Poverty, Beyond Lack of Income. HubPages Inc. February 27, 2014. February 10, 2016. This quote would be a good backup to the logos aspect of the paper. Vajpayee is taking a very logical standpoint and looking deeper into the matter than just the surface of the problem.

"Poverty is multidimensional. It extends beyond money incomes to education, health care, political participation and advancement of one's own culture and social organisation." Atal was a successful poet, journalist, political activist. Atal Bihari Vajpayee