WP2 Post 1

The comic that I chose comments on the medical paranoia prevalent in modern society. The picture within the comic is a single panel illustrating the random light red spot, presumably on skin. This kind of red marking can be found on everyone at one point or another in their life because it could represent any kind of medical mystery from a rare deadly disease to a light rubbing from a carpet. The text is handwritten and lists reasons that people could possibly be paranoid from a seemingly uninteresting red spot on their skin. The list appears to be a train of thought from the audience or “everyman,” attempting to logically process why there should be such a spot on their body. The humor in the comic derives from the ending of the list, when it ends with”oh god I'm gonna die,” suggesting that the red spot is being over exaggerated to the audience making it humorous. Juxtaposing the image of an insignificant faded red spot with the embellished text adds to the humor, since it seems silly that such a small thing could push whoever is thinking about the spot to the conclusion that he/she is going to die.

The text in this particular comic is crucial to communicating the pun to the audience, otherwise it simply looks like a multicolored smiley face. The icon of the smiley face combined with the supposed red spot on skin humanizes and lightens the situation, allowing the audience, strangely, to connect with the spot. Typography plays a prominent role in this comic because it helps tone down the gravity of the situation. The type appears to be almost childish handwriting, suggesting that the lightheartedness associated with a child or a certain levity found in most comedic acts and shows. The comic simplifies the hypochondria that the United States has developed in the past few years, due to terrifying epidemics such as swine flu and anthrax. The situation has been oversimplifies by the artist who communicates that Americans over-analyze, therefore overreacting because not every red spot, bump, or bruise signals a deadly disease. If this happened in real life and someone had a nervous breakdown about a measly spot the reaction would reflect the person ailing from such a malady. Comics simplify a situation that reflects the feeling of an individual and this comic exemplifies this by mocking a situation which everyone secretly wants to scoff at for the other person's exaggeration. With popular medical shows such as House, nightly news blathering about pandemics sweeping the globe and even antibiotics turning deadly; it is understandable that people would be paranoid about their health, but if every small formation on our body turns into a cancer is absurd to an outside audience as it should. Every person in the world is afraid of death (associated with disease) so we try to avoid it at all costs, but there lies the absurdity in that everyone must face death at one point in life.

WP1 Final Draft

Author's Note

This assignment was very emotional once I started researching the Rwandan genocide; I had never really learned about the history of Rwanda and as soon as I did it greatly impacted me. Finding a common theme within the photo was difficult for me because I appear to have a purpose besides the catharsis of the child taking the photo, since that is what the collection of photos proved to do. It helped once I started researching Rwanda and the effects of the genocide on society because I could then start making connections between the rhetorical appeals and the possible effects of history, such as an altered state of mind/emotions.

I drastically changed the structure of my essay from the rough to the final draft. The first paragraph I split into two, so the reader would not be as overwhelmed by an excessive amount of background information at the same time. The break in between paragraphs provides a small pause between segments of information, so the reader can better process what was just said. I also split the last paragraph into two paragraphs due to differing content in the initial paragraph leading to confusion and incomplete thoughts. The paragraphs are split into one, an explanation to my argument of the photo, and two, the thesis of my argument. The photo that I am analyzing was enlarged to be bigger than the other photos incorporated into my essay, so the reader would know which photo I was analyzing since it is not the first photo introduced in my essay. The body of my essay was changed so the more prominent arguments wold be first and the lesser arguments would be near the end, so I changed the order of the rhetorical appeals to lighting, as the main argument, vectors of attention, and coloration. Vectors of attention and lighting arguments were split into multiple paragraphs in order to better analyze specific parts of the photo, differentiate between the foreground and background for example. Since I split some of the paragraphs into smaller arguments I added more to the paragraphs to further my argument and try to get the reader to see the rhetorical appeals in the photo and how they applied to my thesis. I added another photo to the body of my essay to illustrate the soldiers that were still present even after the genocide ended, to diagram the people the people of Rwanda have to fear. I actually added a substantial conclusion to the essay to talk about why whoever reads my essay will care about what I am talking about in my essay and how the rhetorical analysis applies to them. Lastly, I added a works cited and put all of the web sites I used, to give them credit for the information I used in my essay.

Second Draft
First Draft
Statement of Purpose

WP1 Final Draft

Violence has permanently stained the history of Rwanda from before the establishment of its independence to the modern day, the three primary tribes that inhabit the country constantly fight over land and power over the country. The Tutsi and Hutu, the two prominent tribes in Rwanda that together cause the most damage, have fought over governmental positions since the time that Germany and Belgium ruled with the “domestic” feuds escalating into one of the largest wars and genocides of the twentieth century.

The beginning of the genocide instigated when the Hutu took over the government and exiled or murdered the opposing Tutsi tribe to Uganda. For a few years the Tutsi planned their return to Rwanda through the use of violence against absolutely every person they saw get in the way of their dash toward the government. The killing became indiscriminate between ethnicity, age, or tribe; everyone that got in the way was murdered. Eventually the fighting slowed down when the Tutsi regained control over the government and banished all rebel Hutu to Uganda. The war never completely ceased because the banished Hutu continually attacked random villages in rebellion against the Rwandan government. In 1996(the year the photo was taken), the government decided to solve this problem by invading Uganda and killing the remaining Hutu resistance in an attempt to establish equality and safety in Rwanda.

Even though the Rwandan government works toward peace and stable economy, the outlook is bleak since several of the children have been left in the worst circumstances, for example poverty and mental illness. Twenty percent of Rwanda's children were left parentless, forced to care for themselves, and dealing with anxiety disorders from horrific scenes they witnessed daily. For the longest time the children forced to live on the streets have been overlooked by the government, so the kids were reduced to stealing and other questionable means of surviving, leaving them at the bottom of the social hierarchy. A few years after the genocide, several humanitarian organizations focused their energy primarily on the orphans of Rwanda in an attempt to educate and rehabilitate them in order to reincorporate them back into society, in hopes of eventually fixing Rwanda's failing economy. The future still looks bleak for the people of Rwanda as it continues to focus on the present situation rather than the future, so a majority of the children are forced to drop out of school and work in the fields in an attempt to bring in money for themselves or their family.

Striding Girl illustrates a scene two years after the Rwandan genocide, during the time when the government invades Uganda and the rebels randomly attack people and entire villages. Every aspect of the photo reveals the austere nature of the Ugandan people; from the dark, muted hues to the vectors of attention. Rhetorical appeals are woven together to reveal an underlying allegory about the state in which Rwanda finds itself and a circle of events that continually reappear throughout its history. The allegory alludes to the crossroads that Rwanda finds itself at in this part of history, governmental decisions that can lead the country to economic prosperity or continual failure based upon the next generation of children.

Simply the image of the young girl walking up the road toward an unknown destination strikes the attention of the audience as the vectors of attention circulate around the setting of the photo, illustrating the story of the girl and Rwanda in the moment. Striding Girl illuminates the austere mood in Rwanda only a few years after the genocide. The photo attempts to invoke pathos through the logos of the rhetorical appeals of lighting, coloration, and vectors of attention to describe the unfortunate situation that Rwanda finds itself two years after the infamous genocide.

The attention on the girl does not focus on what she is doing rather than where she is going, since the lighting highlights her movement and helps conceal the package she carries. Harsh lighting intensifies the brightness so that the package turns white so the top of the package dissolves into the background of the picture. The attention on the girl does not focus on what she is doing rather than where she is going, since the lighting highlights her movement and helps conceal the package she carries. Again the lighting of the photo plays a dominant role because it subtly steers the eye away from the road toward the darkened forest in the background. Rwanda is primarily an agrarian country, therefore fields such as the one illustrated in the photo are important to society but it appears that there are no people around to farm the land. Low saturation accounts for the almost invisible white buildings hidden amongst the foliage since the hue is almost as dark as the surrounding dark green of the trees and bushes. The buildings provide a plausible answer to where the girl may be going, a village that is hidden within the trees. The fact that a village is hidden from the view of a casual person illustrates the continuing hostility toward random people in Rwanda and the need for some kind of defense. The photo uses lighting to reveal and conceal the buildings in the background demonstrating the potential violence and fear that has not left the country of Rwanda, even a few years after the government supposedly established equality and banished the killers.

Emphasis of the lighting of the photo conducts and influences the vectors of attention, where the eye is directed, through its harsh usage to highlight key components. Looking away from the camera up the broken road, the first vector of attention follows the girl's gaze up the road further enforcing the theme of an unknown future or journey. The attention shifts from the girl and her brightly colored clothes to the road that has been well lit by the sun, making it brighter than the surrounding neutral tones. The road is not parallel to the borders of the photo evoking curiosity from the audience as to where the the girl strides. Peculiarly, the lighting highlights only the predicted path that the girl is to take, while the rest of it lies in shadow making the rubble that lies beside it stand out even more, subtly pointing out the poor conditions in Rwanda evoking a disturbed pathos by those that are not accustomed poor conditions.

The photo cleverly uses logos in the construction of the vectors of attention to strategically lead the eye of the audience to illustrate the poor conditions experienced on a daily basis. The direction the girl stares leads the audience to look forward, up the road upon which she travels. The vector includes her face, which has a very solemn expression, an emotion which would be the complete opposite of what would be considered good behavior in Rwanda. People from Rwanda usually greet complete strangers warmly as if they have known the other person for years (Longman). So the girl's seeming emotionless gaze sets the mood for the remainder of the photo. Imperfections such as the black stains contrasted against the brightly lit road stand out as if they were obstacles in the road, but there is not sign from the figure that this is irregular as she has a serious expression and unwavering stance. Rubble and supposed oil stains on the road help illustrate the poor conditions daily encountered by the inhabitants of Rwanda, enforcing the sinister and bleak state in which Rwanda stood at the time. With the direct reference through a vector of attention, the girl's unwavering gaze ahead, the road plays a primary part in illustrating the photo by directing the audience away from who the girl is to where she is going. The question is where is the girl going.

The next vector of attention provides an answer to the question the the photo proposes by moving the audience's attention from the foreground to the subtle background and everything that it ultimately serves to conceal. The white buildings nestled within the forest are well concealed and are barely visible but once they are seen they evoke curiosity. Why would buildings so close to the road be so difficult to see? The smoke and the tall trees make the tips of the white buildings difficult to see, but they continue to pose this question. The background serves as another piece to the puzzle of the girl, providing insight into the fear that the people of Rwanda have about the resistance rising. At this time, the Rwandan government chose to invade Uganda in hopes of crushing the remaining rebels, so war and violence was daily on the minds of the Rwandan people. The buildings offer a plausible answer as to where the striding girl is going and how she may be forced to live, secretly in fear of an attack by a rebel that would not regret killing her and her family.

Color plays a prominent role within the photograph as it sets the initial mood with muted and darker hues such as grays, blacks, and browns. The only vivid hues are the dyes on the girls clothes, but the saturation of the picture is also very low further darkening the colors. The obscure nature of the color in the picture invokes adjacent emotions, such as depression and repression, that set the general mood in the photo. The cloudy nature of the photo, due to the decreased saturation of color, dissipates inconspicuous details within the photo forcing all the initial attention upon the foreground and the striding girl. Saturation also helps conceal the buildings in the background of the photo, causing them to almost be overlooked. The color enhances the first point of attention, being the figure in the foreground, through the brighter hues to call attention to her and her actions. The clothes that the girl wears, having the multiple vibrant hues, attracts the attention toward her first and begins the story that the photo begins to illustrate.

The photo works to appeal to the negative emotions of people, such as pity, to make the audience care about the children in Rwanda. The emotion is linked not only to the girl seen within the picture by displaying the poor conditions she works in, but the child photographer who takes the photo and also have to endure the same conditions as the girl appealing to the pathos of the audience. Precautionary elements in the photo, such as the hidden village in the background, hint at the continuing violence and fear people have of being killed. Even though the government attempts to alleviate the situation and cover up a majority of the atrocities, for example forgotten children dying daily. The photo though not explicit hints at the impact that the genocide has had on the country. Rwanda at this point in time needs help recuperating and the people that have been exposed to this photo will be moved to give money to the cause, namely the children of Rwanda. The pathos of the photo attempt to move people with money to give to the unfortunate people of Rwanda, especially children since the main figure is still a child. Ultimately, the photo pulls at the heartstrings of those that can afford to see the horrible conditions and situations that the children have been put through, inspiring them to donate and save an innocent child in need.

Works Cited

"Aftermath of Rwandan Genocide." 2010. Trincoll, Web. 27 Feb 2010. .

"Genocide-Rwanda." Peace Pledge Union Information Genocide. 2010. Peace Pledge Unions, Web. 27 Feb 2010. .

Longman , Timothy. "Culture of Rwanda." Countries and their Culture. 2010. Web. 27 Feb 2010. .

"Rwandan Genocide Aftermath." The Canadian Encyclopedia. Histiorica-Dominion: 2010. Web. .

"Through the Eyes of Children: The Rwanda Project." 2006. Web. 27 Feb 2010.