Obama and McCain

From watching the speeches Obama and McCain, they are both impacting, but in a different way with different content and style.

Obama, first of all is very effective with his voice. He uses different tones which creates dynamics in his speech. He criticizes the past eight years of America, and says that "we" are going to make a change and excites the audience. On the other hand, McCain's speech is more personal. He credits people who are close to him such as his family and secretary, and the tone of his voice is more passive than exciting. Because of these reasons, I personally think that Obama is a better rhetor than McCain is.

Everyday Use: Rhetoric in Our Lives

Activity 1:

Randall Leigh approaches the three people that he tries to persuade to lend him $1.50 for the bus fare all differently. For Brandon, he sounds more casual and rather desperate to get that bus fare to get to the job. He tries to tell him how "important" he is to the store and how much he needs that bus fare to get to the job.

For Kim, he tries to flatter her by calling her the "best friend in the whole world" and telling her being seen with her would make all the men in the school jealous. He compliments her in every way as possible before even mentioning about the money. Also when he asks for the money, he belittles himself.

Then for Nate, Randall reminds him of his previous behaviors and remind him how honest and dependable he is before asking for the money. He makes sure he has Nate's trust first before asking for the money, and when Nate says "You were the best lab partner I've ever had.", he mentions the money and it turns out that Nate has an extra $1.50 to lend Randall.



Activity 2:

-What kind of persona did Randall try to present to each of his three audiences - Brandon, Kim, and Nate?

To Brandon he tried to seem like a good buddy, and to Kim he tried to seem like a sweet gentleman, and to Nate he tried to seem like a dependable person by reminding him how good of a lab partner he was.



-What assumptions do you think Randall made about each of the three audiences- Brandon, Kim, and Nate- that led him to make decisions about how to present his case?

Randall probably assumed that Brandon would be nice enough to lend him $1.50 since they're good friends. He assumed Kim would like his flattery and lend him the bus fare. For Nate, he probably assumed Nate would remember him as the dependable lab partner.



-What kinds of plea, evidence, or proof did Randall employ with each of the audiences to try to peruade Brandon, Kim, and Nate to lend him the bus fare?

For Brandon, he says how he is important at his job, having to answer all the customers' technical questions that the manager can't answer. For Kim, he says that if she does the favor for him it'd make him very happy. For Nate, he reminds him how he should know Randall is an honest, dependable guy from the project they've worked together on.

-What do you think Brandon, Kim, and Nate knew about Randall- his personality, his job, and so on - that led them to react the way they did to his entreaties?

Brandon seems like he's been good friends with Randall for a while, so it seems that he knows him well enough to say no to his entreaty. Kim also seems like she knows Randall well, she knows that he is only trying to flatter her so she would help him out. On the other hand, Nate does not know Randall as much as the other two, however he knew he's a reliable person from the lab they've worked on, so he lent him the money.

Miu and Bithiah's Rhetorical Questions

- If you could be someone you know for a day, who would you be?

- What is your passion?

- If you were to die tomorrow, how would you spend your last day?

- Why do you think you exist in this world?

- What will satisfy you? In other words, what do you want the most?

- Do you know who you really are? If not, what are you going to do to find out?

The Color of Water: James or Ruth

In the book, James seems like the type of person who likes to talk about himself. However, his mom doesn't like to talk about her past and likes to keep things to herself. I think that I am more like James because I like to talk about myself to others. I am not a good liar therefore I cannnot lie or hide about myself or my past. When I meet knew people, I like to let them know as much things about myself. I think that it is very important to know the person's past if you want to make the relationship a good one. I also like to talk to my mother about my problems because I like to have a close relationship with my parents.

Arthor , Orator, Philosopher, Teacher, Actor, Artist, Musician?

I think of myself as more of an artist. I have been dancing since I was a little kid, and it is still my passion today. I like to express myself through dancing, and I like to make the audience feel something from my dancing. I do not always think of what the audience would want to see me do, but I think of what I want to show the audience. I feel that the way I think is like an artist, because artists don't create what people want to see, but they create what they want to create and to show the world. In other words, artists are risk takers. Artists create what they believe is something meaningful or interesting, and they show the world; they express themselves to the world through art. It is not easy to show the world who you are and what you believe in, because there is always the fear of them not accepting you as who you are. However, artists are brave risk takers who love to express themselves. And I am one of them.

Skateboard, Sailboat, Airplane, Truck, Train, Bicycle?

I think that I am more like a sailboat, because I am always floating around not knowing what to do; I often need someone to lead the way for me. I am indecisive; it takes forever for me to make even a small decision such as choosing what to have for lunch. I am also spacy; throughout the whole day, half the time I am daydreaming or drifting off from whatever I'm supposed to be doing. Therefore, I always have my mom or my friends telling me what I should be doing, or sometimes even making the decisions for me. However, I try to concentrate when I am in the middle of a serious situation, and I take my time making the important decisions. But other than that, I am a sailboat who just likes to go with the flow.

French Deli

French Deli is a sandwich restaurant located near Taipei American School. They have sandwiches with all kinds of breads such as panini, focaccia, french bread, etc. I recommand this place because it's healthy but also tasty. Healthy things tend to be less satisfying most of the times, but these sandwiches wich a lot of vegetables and the meat of your choice(or without the meat) make a perfect, satisfying lunch. If you look at Mary's Burger, which is right next to French Deli, they cook your food with brown oil, and with roaches running around the kitchen. Therefore next time if you're looking for a place to eat near school, I recommand you to go to French Deli instead of Mary's.