Hello, my name is Brittany Bower and welcome to my e-Portfolio. This portfolio is a collection of works that I have compiled as an undergraduate student at Penn State University, spanning from written works that I have composed to multimedia assignments that I have completed. These works represent how I have grown academically as an undergraduate student. Over the past year alone, I have made great strides in my writing abilities, my public speaking skills, and retaining knowledge in general. Not only have I learned to make my writing more cohesive, but I have learned how to correctly compile a research paper and even use new methods of communication, like blogging. In addition, since enrolling in the course Rhetoric and Civil Life, I have learned how to become a better public speaker. I now know different methods of organizing and compiling speeches so that they are appropriate for my target audience. Before, I was afraid to speak in public, but now I am more comfortable speaking in front of an audience. Also, over the past year, I have improved academically in my ability to remember information. As a result, I received a 4.0 my first semester this year.
I believe that over the past year, I have made great improvements in my academic abilities and I plan to continue to do so in the future. The pieces of work that I have included in this portfolio demonstrate my growing ability as a writer and also a as student. I plan to continue my education in the future and to grow even more academically throughout this time as well. I believe that the work I have included show not only my growing academic skills, but also my adaptability to different assignments and also my ability to work with other people or alone.
Click below to see my portfolio:
Brittany Bower's e-Portfolio
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Friday, April 29, 2011
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Rockin' the Heels
I was working on my motivational speech today, and I came across a very interesting article about men in high heels. To be more specific, they are men of Penn State walking across campus in high heels. Wouldn’t that be something to see?
Well, for everyone who’s ever wanted to see an event such as this happening on the Penn State campus, this is their lucky month! Because April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, Penn State’s Men Against Violence are holding a walk called “Walk a Mile in Her Shoes” to raise awareness of sexual assault and any other types of violence inflicted against women. The IFC, the Center for Women Students, UPUA, UPAC, athletics, faculty, and staff are also sponsoring this even that will take place on April 29th and will begin at the Boucke Building. Men who attend this even will walk around campus in high heels. What is the purpose of doing this? As their Facebook page states, “By walking in high heels, men will begin to experience some of the pain that women go through. Are you man enough?”
Not only is the message behind the campaign a great one, the message it sends is even greater. It’s not every day that men get to experience the pain of high heels (most girls know what I’m talking about!) and it’s interesting that the campaign tied the pain felt while wearing high heels to the pain women suffer from sexual assault and violence. I also find it very interesting that the campaign asks men if they are “man enough” to do such a female stereotypical act as wearing high heel shoes. It feels as though it is a challenge to men to stand up for the rights of women in a new and attention grabbing way. It’s not every day that we get to see athletes and Frat boys walking around in high heels (well at least against their will!).
The best part is that the first 100 boys to sign up will get a free pair of high heels and for $10 they can purchase a t-shirt too!
Thursday, April 7, 2011
No Brainer
Most college students have been exposed to drugs and alcohol at one point or another. Whether it’s running into a fellow drunk student on College Ave. or at a football game, or going to a party on the weekend, many college students have been exposed to illegal substances. Even if students haven’t done drugs themselves, they’ve been around it or know about it.
In the following ad sponsored by Above the Influence, the issue of illegal drugs and the effects it has on young adults is demonstrated:
In this commercial, the father questions his son’s actions from the night before and claims that he doesn’t even know his son anymore. He goes on to list some of his son’s bad behaviors, such as ruining his mother’s car and breaking curfew. While his father speaks, he stands with a blank and clueless look on his face. Later, the ad goes on to show a boy, who is presumably this teenager’s friend, sneaking into the garage and handing the son his brain back that he left at the party he attended the night before.
The ad is packed with ethos that speaks out to a younger audience, which the ad is intended for. Growing up, it felt horrible to get in trouble, but the worst feeling was knowing that your parents were disappointed in you. This ad projects the image of a father being disappointed with the negative activities that his son was partaking in. Most teenagers and young adults can relate to the lecture given because at one point in time, they had had a similar discussion with their own parents. Whether it was breaking curfew, failing a test, or even as serious as damaging their parent’s car, we have all seemed to disappoint our parents at one point or another.
With this feeling of guilt in mind, the ad blames the son’s negative behavior on a party that he attended the night before. He “lost” his brain at his party, which is why he broke curfew, didn’t answer his phone, and crashed his mother’s car. The Above the Influence sign then appears indicating that at this party, drugs and alcohol were involved. For this reason, the ad says that the damage of the night could have been avoided if the boy was not under the influence.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Ad
When I was thinking of something interesting I could do for my blog this week, I kept coming to a blank. Then I remembered how interesting it was to look through different print ads and commercials that we focused on a lot in the beginning of the semester. So, this week, I’m going back to look at ads, something that I did a lot when I first started this Rhetoric and Civil Life Blog!
The ad above is for Findus Fraich’Frites. There is a lot of rhetoric going on within this advertisement, especially pathos.
We all have a Great Grandma(s) or Grandma(s). Even if they’re not around anymore, they were probably there for some portion of your life. As most people know, there are differences between most “Grannies,” but, as the ad above shows, the stereotypical classification is an older woman who makes you delicious food and even pinches your cheeks. As the girl’s eyes dart to the side, you can see her annoyance from this action her assumed Granny is engaging in. She is clearly not thrilled by this action.
This ad uses this image to engage pathos in its viewing audience. Like I stated earlier, everyone has had experiences like these wit a Grandma or even an elderly figure I their life. Seeing the Granny pinch the cheeks of the little girl reminds the viewing audience of their encounters of cheek pinching or other things their Grannies did in the past. Also, the mention of Granny’s fries reminds the audience of the delicious (well at least my Grandma’s delicious) cooking!
Wouldn’t it be nice if you could get your Granny’s delicious food without the cheek pinching? According to this ad, if you buy their product, you’ll no longer have to deal with the stress of cheek pinching anymore.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Disney
All week, for our group project, my group and I have been looking through a lot of clips, songs, and pictures from popular Disney films. Seeing so many clips from these popular movies recently, I’ve realized that there is actually a lot of rhetoric in play within the movies, especially within the songs! One of the songs that I kept coming across was from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, one of the movies I watch a lot growing up.
When first watched, it seems as though it is just another innocent Disney love song. In reality, the video is filled with a lot of gender stereotyping! For one, Snow White’s song is about finding a Prince one day. (This seems to be the main topic of every Disney film I’ve ever seen growing up!) It’s not that I don’t like cute love songs, don’t get me wrong, but this song is all about how she will be happy as soon as her Prince finds her again. Why can’t she just be happy even without him there?
Although the lyrics in the song just hint at slight gendered ideas, what makes this clip more evidently sexist is that she is singing about her Prince returning to her to make her happy while she is cooking, a typical female stereotype. For years, cooking, cleaning, sewing, taking care of others, and many other domestic practices have been associated with women. In this video, Snow White is not only cooking, taking care of the Seven Dwarfs (also men), but she is singing about how a man coming I to her life will make her happy. Even though it is not directly evident that this clip is gender stereotyping women, there are still seixist tones within.
However, the context in which this video was produced must be considered when looking at the way Snow White is portrayed. At this time, many women were housewives and took care of their families and other people. So during this time, it was not really a big deal to show women in this way.
So, even though this video segment has sexist undertones according to today’s standards, but when the movie was first produced, it really was the norm.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Strage Presentations at Northwestern
When I went home for spring break last week, I was pretty out of the loop in regards to current events in Chicago. There were elections for a new mayor, a giant snow storm who many referred to as the “Snowpocalypse,” and gas process soaring well over $4.00. While looking at the newspaper to catch up on some current events, one very strange story about Northwestern University caught my eye.
After reading through the article, I was in shock. At this university, a psychology professor allowed his students in his Human Sexuality class were invited to watch a guest presentation after their class ended. This presentation, however, was not lecture. Instead, it was a live sex-toy demonstration in front of 100 Northwestern students. Although the students were told they were going to be spoken to, they were not informed that the lecture would really be a live demonstration.
Northwestern University, however, defended the professor and the presentation because they said it was educational. Many students did not object to the presentation as well, even though the general public seemed outraged by such a scandalous presentation on a college campus. Other professors also believed that this act was pushing beyond the limits of what was acceptable for a teacher to allow in their classroom.
So why is this issue so controversial? The students were in a Human Sexuality class to begin with, so wouldn’t it be assumed that topics like this would come up in class? Why didn’t the students object if they were uncomfortable or leave the demonstration? Maybe it is just older generations that don’t accept this type of knowledge and learning. There are many factors that contribute to the ongoing outrage of these guest speakers. I believe that generational difference really attribute to the outrage. Modern TV shows are plagued with sexuality and so is our music unlike many of the past. We seem to be an open generation and maybe that is why the students were so accepting of this presentation.
I was shocked by this article myself. I don’t think that I’d want to see this type of presentation on Penn State’s campus, but it seems that other students are accepting of this controversial type of learning.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Healthy Perceptions
With actresses, actors, and models getting thinner by the moment, it is no wonder that many young adults and teenagers today have some type of image problem. Many advertisements in magazines depict women who have bone thin, girlish body builds, indicating that that’s what it truly means to be beautiful. However, the following ad conveys a different, and frankly healthy, message for young women.
The advertisement above deals with a major problem in society today: anorexia. The ad itself appears to be directed towards female teenagers and young adults due to the age of the girl looking at herself in the mirror. The advertisement plays off of the pathos of the viewing audience. The young girl depicted in the mirror appears to be pretty, skinny, and attractive, but very unsure of herself. When the viewer then looks at the back of the girl who is looking in the mirror, they are plagued by the visual of a girl with her spine showing through her skin and legs that appear to be miles apart. There seems to be no fat on her body at all. By depicting this disturbing image, the ad evokes sadness and concern from the viewer for the young girls. Not only is the image uncomfortable to look at, but it is also sad that a girl who is that thin sees herself as much heavier than she is. This feeling of sadness and worry due to the extreme misconceptions that this young girl has of her body urges young girls, as well as anyone else looking at the ad, to help individuals who have anorexia and other eating problems.
Pathos is also employed in another way in this advertisement. Many young girls today, including me, tend to focus on what they see as imperfections in themselves. Weight is one of the main areas focused on. Any young girl who is looking at this image may think, “Sometimes I feel that I’m not skinny enough either, but I would never go to that extreme.” The girl in the ad, however, doesn’t see herself as thin either. The ad itself plays into the negative feelings many girls have about their weight and body image and indicates that you may not feel thin and beautiful, but in reality, you are. This anorexia ad really reaches out to girls with self-image issues and shows that not seeing yourself as beautiful can really turn into a serious health problem.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Hello State Patty's Day!
State Patty's Day
As most Penn State students know, this weekend is State Patty’s Day, an unofficial holiday celebrated by not only Penn State students, but students from all over the region. Over the past week, I’ve received many emails from club leaders and dorm supervisors, as well as warnings from teachers, to be very careful this weekend. Not being from Pennsylvania or the surrounding area, I never even hear of this holiday until I came to Penn State. I heard that there were many extreme measures going to be taken this weekend, and when I looked at the front page of The Daily Collegian this morning, the first article I read about was State’s Patty Day. The article is posted below:
The article above indicates some of the measures that police officers in State College will be taking to promote good behavior during the student created holiday that will take place this Saturday. This includes having police officers and undercover cops monitoring apartment hallways looking for underage drinkers and those committing disorderly conduct.
The target audience for this newspaper article is the student population at Penn State. Not only does the article report actual facts about what police will be doing this weekend to control State Patty’s Day, the article seems to serve another function: warn Penn State students. Many students are terrified of getting underages and disorderly conduct marks on their records. Not only are they in trouble at the time of their charge, but the offense is placed on their record. That doesn’t sound too hot and many students are afraid of these charges. I’ve overheard many students say they’re not even leaving their rooms and apartments for this reason alone. State college police play into the pathos of the students by increasing the amount of police presence to attempt to scare them from unwanted partying this weekend.
Also, this article evokes many emotions from its readers. While some students agree with the police, many are outraged in what they feel in an invasion of privacy. Regardless of what emotions readers have, this article serves as an information source to stay safe this State Patty’s Day weekend.
Friday, February 18, 2011
THON
It's THON weekend!
There is nowhere on the Penn State campus this week that you could go where everyone wasn’t talking about THON. Many students spend most of the year preparing and fundraising for the Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon to combat childhood cancer. Like football, THON is a way of life at PSU.
The video above is a preview of THON and what this event is all about. The video itself is a culmination of video, text, and music to promote THON. Since this is THON weekend, videos like the one above have flooded Facebook newsfeeds and it’s all that anyone is talking about.
Although the video shows what THON is, the video actually seems to be a brilliant marketing technique to gain supporters to donate to this charity. Every aspect of this video plays on pathos of the viewing audience. Even though THON is student run, the video is not just targeted towards the college students on campus, but rather to every single person who cares about children and fighting cancer.
For instance, the text present in the video states how and why we THON. By using inspiring words such as “hope,” “strength,” and “love,” the prime motivations of THON are conveyed. Also, the video shows the BJC with all the students dancing and supporting the children in unity which conveys the message that together we can help fight childhood cancer. The children with cancer are also shown dancing and smiling which reminds the audience who they are donating money for and who they are supporting. The video pulls on the heart strings of the viewers and plays into their emotions. The chosen music also plays a large role in the message that this video conveys. The song relates to childhood cancer because it sings about seeing the enemy and keeping hope because the fight isn’t over yet. It is about miracles and THON is an effort to make miracles happen. The video is truly inspiring.
I never stopped to think that promotional THON videos contained so much rhetoric, but by playing on the pathos of those involved, this video strongly convinces its viewers to support and even donate to THON.
Happy THON weekend! FTK
Friday, February 11, 2011
The Other Type of Abuse
Recently, I’ve been looking through a lot of different ads. Many of the ads were interesting, bright, thought provoking, and some were even downright strange. However, this print advertisement below from Association of Women for Action and Research really caught my attention.
Today, more people pay attention to domestic violence than ever before. This issue is no longer considered to be out of sight out of mind. This ad, however, takes another perspective on the role of domestic violence in everyday life that goes beyond the common perception of what violence is.
When thinking of domestic violence, an image of a husband beating his wife or a woman with bruises on her body usually comes to mind. However, domestic violence, according to this ad, is more than just physical abuse. It’s verbal as well.
For one, the ad is strictly black and white. This indicates that there is no gray area in abuse. Verbal abuse is still abuse and is not less threatening than physical harm. This image also indicates that verbal abuse is just as horrendous as physical abuse by using a man’s fist pulling a woman’s hair to represent spoken words. His clenched fist juts out of his mouth which represents the words he is speaking to her. The woman’s face screams pain and suffering from the man pulling her hair which plays on pathos of the audience. The audience can actually see the pain that the woman is in from the words the angry man is directing towards her.
This advertisement seems to be directed towards a female audience, especially those who are in an abusive relationship. It seems as though many women don’t recognize abuse unless it is physical, and this ad tells otherwise. I believe that it is also directed towards women who are being verbally abused because there is a hotline for women to call if they are in this type of situation. In addition to providing a hotline number, the advertisement also is sponsored by Association of Women for Action and Research, which adds to the ethos of this domestic violence awareness ad.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Teenage Girls
Are all teenage girls the same? Are they bad drivers, highly emotional and rash decision makers? The following Allstate Ad appears to be making this point.
The Allstate commercial above uses comedy and common stereotypes of teenage girls to market their insurance agency. For instance, in place of a teenage girl, there is a man who is referred to as “Mayhem” in her place. As he is personified as “Becky” the teenage girl, not only does he use his cell phone while driving and speak in common teenage lingo, but “Mayhem” seems to be over emotional about a boy. It is also depicted that “Becky” is not able to drive, which is obviously indicated by her crashing into another woman’s car saying “Oopsies!” and driving away. This accident doesn’t seem to faze her, which implies that she doesn’t care about the damage she’s caused. This implies that her own emotions and problems override her ability to think, and drive, clearly.
Also, in this commercial, the rhetorical situation is that the increasing amount of teenagers using technology while driving has increased and has caused more accidents. Although this ad just seems to be poking fun at the common stereotypes that teenage girls receive, it also implies that even though teenagers can’t be kept off the road, everyone else can protect themselves from them. When “Becky” hit another car, she was focused of her phone, not the road. Because of this, an innocent woman’s car was destroyed. For this reason, the ad is directed at all adults who are concerned about the driving capabilities of young teenagers. The ad makes it seem as though it is probable that any young girl would be on her phone while driving and that no one would be safe from her behavior. Adults then might infer that teenagers are dangerous drivers and that they should have better insurance on their cars because a teenage will probably hit their car eventually.
This commercial was also aired at a time when texting and driving was a big deal. In fact, whenever a person was doing anything on their phone while driving they were negatively looked at. In Chicago, for instance, it was made a law that no one could talk on the phone legally within legal limits. Also, there was a lot of research going on at this time about the negative effects of texting while driving. Allstate utilized the kairotic situation of this time and used a teenager texting while driving to promote their insurance company.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Just Another Punching Bag?
When you’re walking down the street, taking the bus, watching TV, or catching the Metra, ads are everywhere. They’re plastered on signs, billboards, and in train cars. We are constantly exposed to these ads, good or bad, on a daily basis. Whether it is realized or not, rhetoric plays a large role in the advertisements we see every single day. As I was looking through ads, I found one that advocates against domestic violence.
In the ad above, an Everlast punching bag is shown wearing a woman’s green dress. Underneath this image is a caption that reads, “It’s Not Acceptable to Treat a Woman Like One.” In one short and simple phrase, this advertisement implies that in any type of relationship, a woman should not be treated like she is a punching bag. Without directly stating that women should not be abused in relationships, this domestic violence advertisement uses the punching bag as a symbol for women who are abused by men.
This ad is so effective simply because it is simple. There is not a disturbing picture of a battered woman, but rather a short, simple message that gets right to the point. Although it does not boldly state, “Don’t abuse women and treat them like your punching bag,” through rhetoric and imagery, the ad implies this message. This ad is also effective because it plays off the pathos of both women and men. Personally, when I saw this ad, I was angered that any man would think it was acceptable to physically abuse a woman or even see them as anything less than who they are: real people. I’m sure I’m not the only girl who feels like they should not be seen or treated this way. Also, the ad directly targets men by using a punching bag in place of an actual woman. Because it states that women shouldn’t be treated like a punching bag, it implies that the men are domestic abusers. It seems to be a warning to men that they don’t want to be this type of guy.
Through the use of rhetoric, this advertisement conveys the message that domestic violence against women is wrong. It is a common place that any type of abuse is wrong, but this ad shows that it is more common that most people expect and fights out against the violence.
Friday, January 21, 2011
"Real" Men
Does not drinking the right type of beer make you an effeminate man? In a fairly new Miller Lite commercial, this is exactly the case. The commercial shows a man talking to a female bartender and he asks for a lite beer. When he says he doesn’t care about the taste of the beer, the bartender mocks him for a skirt that he’s wearing and tells him she’ll get a “real” lite beer for him as soon as he loses the skirt. The commercial then states, “Man up,” and then promotes that if the viewer drinks Miller Lite, they will “taste greatness.”
This commercial plays off of generalized male and female stereotypes. It implies that if you are a man and you are not drinking Miller Lite, then you are not masculine and that women will mock you for it. This commercial is aimed at men, especially at those who are insecure, for this very reason. By showing a man who doesn’t drink Miller Light in a skirt, the ad plays off the commonplaces that not only do men not wear skirts, but that this man would be seen as a girl for wearing such attire. Because of this implication, the ad makes it seem as though only “real” men drink “real” beer like Miller Lite.
If a man likes another type of beer, this commercial may make them feel as if they are not masculine enough. Other men who are insecure may think to themselves, “If I drink Miller Lite, then other people may see me as a confident and great man.” Also, the commercial uses women to enforce the idea that this beer will make a man more masculine and desirable to women. The attractive bartender mocks the man who doesn’t care about the beer and tells him to come back when he gets rid of the skirt for a “real” beer. Also, the other attractive women in the bar give him strange looks as he passes them. This plays on the emotions of men by implying that women will respect them if they are masculine, which can be achieved by drinking Miller Lite.
This commercial is very effective because not only does it draw on the emotions of many men by questioning their masculinity, but it also does so in a humorous way.
(click here for the video!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02p-9SsmRME
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