IRB Intro Post #2 Bossypants

This marking period I will be reading Bossypants by Tina Fey. In the book, Fey explains her life in a tell-all from start to finish. I chose this book because I heard from many people that it was hilarious and appeals to many ages and I love funny books. It's also a very popular book and in the top charts on many websites.

TOW #11- What’s Selling Better: iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus?

Apple recently came out with two new phones known as the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. The biggest difference between the phones is the screen size. The iPhone 6 is about an inch smaller in screen size then the 6 Plus. Ansuya Harjani writes an article about the surprising public preference of the iPhone 6.

            In the article, Harjani uses credible sources and statistics to prove the unexpected popularity of the smaller iPhone. He begins the article by introducing a source known as AppLovin, a mobile advertising firm. A normal reader would not consider this a credible source because most have never heard of it. To make this a credible source, Harjani later says that the firm processes 25 billion ad requests daily, therefore, they know about the preference of iPhones. Although the source is not well known, the provided evidence makes it a trustworthy source. The author also uses a lot of statistics throughout the article. He says that in the first weekend of sales Apple sold 10 million of their iPhones, apposed to 9 million sold last year. It is also stated that for every 5 new iPhones sold, only 1 is an iPhone Plus, which is statistics from AppLovin. It is also stated from AppLovin that “no one expected iPhone 6 Plus to match or surpass the heights of iPhone 6, but usage was less robust then expected”. By proving this source was credible and using numbers from the company, this quote seems legitimate and credible. The iPhone 6 Plus was never expected to be as popular or more popular then the iPhone 6 but it was not expected to be this much of a gap in preference. It is also stated that the gap is not as large in China, Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines. Harjani successfully provides a credible source known as AppLovin and statistics in order to prove his purpose.

TOW #10- Perez Hilton Article

            Perez Hilton is a professional blogger who has been ridiculed over the years for his blog wrongfully bullying countless celebrities. He is known for offensive doodles over pictures and getting right to the point in his articles. His audience is not scholars or scientists, but he still manages to use similar strategies to appeal to his audience, people looking for the juiciest rumors around.

            In this particular article Hilton talks about Justin Bieber’s birthday mishap. He discusses the fight Justin and his crew got into with the paparazzi and how it effected his birthday. Hilton uses pop-culture slang, celebrity ethos, and sarcasm to ridicule Justin Bieber’s birthday fiasco.

            The famous blogger writes for people who aren’t looking for well written, grammatically correct, analytical pieces of writing. They’re looking for things that they can understand and have fun reading. To appeal to this audience he includes pop-culture slang. Instead of saying Bieber, he is referred to as the Biebs. He also uses “the pits” as the slumps or down in the dumps and “ugh” which is a very informal expression of disgust. Hilton uses this language to connect him to his audience. He also quotes a tweet from Justin himself that says “Worst birthday ever.” This gives ethos to the author that he actually did have a very bad birthday and it was not made up. Most people need this proof from the blogger because of his reputation. Lastly, Hilton uses sarcasm to show his mocking tone of Bieber. It is explained that after his birthday was ruined he returned back to his hotel and Hilton says, “that’s seriously SUCH a shame! Especially since it was CLEAR how much he was looking forward to everything!” It’s clear that this is sarcasm because it is explained that Justin really didn’t mention the party at all before its occurrence. Also, afterwards Hilton changes to a serious note by says “but we seriously” wish Justin a happy birthday, showing that before he was not being serious, therefore had a sarcastic tone. This tone makes fun if Bieber and his birthday gone wrong because he is such a fortunate kid and makes a big deal out of one event gone wrong.  

            Through pop-culture slang, celebrity ethos, and sarcasm Hilton is able to clearly tell the story of Justin Biebers birthday and what he thinks of it. It did not make me think the same way about Bieber as Hilton, however I clearly understood his views on the singer.  

Link to the article

TOW #9- Visual Text

            The word graffiti often has a negative connotation. It comes with the feeling of rebellion and recklessness. However, street artists spend a lot of time planning and creating their pieces in order to convey a message. I recently stumbled upon a street artist by the name of Hunter Rodriguez. He is a small street artists in New York City attempting to improve the world one piece of artwork at a time.

            I found three pieces of work he has completed (all three are attached) that are all very unique and convey a powerful message. The one I found most interesting is the “Media Unit” drawing in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The drawing is of a man’s body with a television as a head and the words “Hunt for peace” running vertically down the side. Rodriguez uses a lack of colors, and symbolism to convey that the media is holding humanity back from finding peace.

            The illustration is so detail oriented that color could have been a distraction. The shading makes for a very realistic deep picture despite the fact there is no color. The lack of color in the photo creates a serious tone. Another strategy Rodriguez used is symbolism. As a head, the body has a television and there is a channel changer in his pocket. This symbolizes how engulfed America is in the media. He also clearly conveys his audience by putting an American flag on the tie. The man also looks very stiff and constrained and has handcuffs on. This shows that media is holding American’s back from peace. On the man’s pants there is stitching of a peace sign and a heart. With peace, there comes love. The overall meaning is powerful and effectively shown.

            All of Rodriguez’s street art has a strong meaning however this one stood out because of the fine detail put into every aspect of it. This is the type of graffiti people don’t mind seeing on the street.

(The one I chose)

TOW #8- Hyperbole and a Half IRB

           There certain ways illustrations are able to convey a humorous tone. In Allie Brosh’s case, she uses the characters facial expressions, surroundings, and dialogue in her illustrations to make them humorous. Brosh’s use of original images in Hyperbole and a Half assists to convey her purpose. Throughout the book Brosh’s purpose is not a traditional moral of the story purpose. Her purpose is to try and connect with her audience by sharing her experiences in a humorous and light-hearted way. 

            Previously mentioned, the most original thing about this book is the use of illustrations. Throughout the book there are 1-3 illustrations per page. These illustrations include stick figure characters that are consistent throughout the book. In one story called Identity Part 1 she uses an illustration of her character laying on a sofa watching television. On the television is a man running a marathon. Behind her on the couch is a list of things to do including shower, groceries, laundry, and jog. The only thing she has crossed out is shower. By looking at the small details in the picture it conveys the humor that she had not gotten anything done compared to this man on television. She also uses facial expressions to create humor. In a story called Lost in The Woods, her mother gets her and her sister lost in the woods one night. Her mother tried to hide the fact that she was lost and when Brosh and her sister asked where they were, the terror and exhaustion in the mother’s eyes was witty. In another story called Dogs Don’t Understand Basic Concepts Like Moving, the author uses dialogue in her illustrations. Her dog is referred to as simple dog because it is very dumb. In the story she conveys this through his dialogue. Although dogs obviously cannot talk, there are words of what the dog is thinking. The words make an incoherent incomprehensible sentence.

            Allie Brosh achieves her purpose of conveying her stories in a humorous light-hearted way in order to connect with her audience greatly through her use of illustrations. Many say a picture is worth a thousand words. In Brosh’s case this is definitely true.