Pre- Writing Assignment 3

This historical context in which this photo was taken helps reveal more about the time period in which these people are living and how this time period reflects on the people within the image. This context also adds to the rhetorical devices that were implemented in the taking of this photo.

This photo was taken on June 5, 2004. This photo is reflective of modern-day American culture including the everyday fashion, the American beer of choice, and one of the American sports of choice. In 2004, the latest female fashions included mini-skirts and graphic t-shirts. (Nellis) Male fashions for 2004 included cargo pants and a lot of collared shirts. (Holgate) Another important cultural element in 2004 was the beer Americans were consuming. In May, Miller Brewing Company sued Anheuser-Busch for “engag[ing] in false or misleading advertising activities." (CNN.com) This legal dispute caused Miller to launch a new and aggressive ad campaign. Baseball in 2004 was one of the most popular sports in the United States as well as shown by sales of the video game MVP Baseball. (Redmann) These cultural elements allow the photo to speak to the period of time in which it was taken.

These historical observations of just six years ago have given insight into the lives of the people within the photo. Both of these people are stylish and are wearing clothes that are reflective of the fashion trends of the day, but they are wearing the most casual version of these trends. This casual look allows me to think that they are middle-class citizens, not wealthy, but also not poor as they are following cultural trends. These people are also hooked into the other common cultural trends of the day as well as shown by the case of Miller Light in her hand and the MLB and Cubs logos on the man’s and woman’s clothing respectively. Now that I have this background information on the society that these people are living, I have a more accurate understanding of the kinds of lives they lead.

In respects to the rhetorical aspects of the photo, I have also gained a better understanding about the decisions of the photographer when taking it and the pathos engaged as well. The society in which the photographer and the subjects were living is very similar to the one to the one we are currently experiencing– the Iraq War was in a very similar state as it is today with a lot of progression towards Iraqi political freedom, Olympic enthusiasm, and (but not limited to) political issues with same sex marriage licenses. (2004) The vector of attention with the subjects engaging the audience through eye contact is a common vector within modern society. The ethos of the photo also makes sense in the context of modern society. These people as evidenced before are great examples of the 2004 middle-class American, much like those many Americans live next door to and see in the grocery store aisles. This appeals to the ethos of the photo, the photographer using the photo to represent average American “strangers”. The pathos of the photo is also easier to understand with a historical context as well. The subjects are Chicago Cubs fans as evidenced by the logo on the woman’s t-shirt. There was a game at Wrigley Field against the Pirates on the day the photo was taken and the Cubs won the game six to one. (Baseball-Reference.com) The happy and relaxed expression on the people’s faces could be due to the win that was immanent for their home team.

After research on the time in which the photo was taken has given me significant insight into the lives of the “strangers” within the photo. This allows the purpose of the photo to become even clearer from these observations. The rhetorical techniques used in the photo are also made clearer by this modern historical context.

Works Cited

Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC, 2009. Web. 17 Feb. 2010.

Holgate, Mark. “U.S. Male, Delivered.” New York Shopping. New York Media, 2004. Web. 17 Feb. 2010. .

Nellis, Cynthia. “All About Spring 2004.” About.com. The New York Times Company, 2010. Web. 17 Feb. 2010. .

Redmann, Alex. “MVP Baseball 2004.” Game Vortex. Game Vortex, n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2010.

“Sudsy brouhaha to court: Miller sues Bud Light.” CNN 28 May 2004: n. pag. CNN.com. Web. 17 Feb. 2010. .

“2004.” Wikipedia. Wikipedia Foundation, 5 Feb. 2010. Web. 17 Feb. 2010.

Pre-Writing Assignment 2

Roark Johnson worked through many rhetorical elements when taking his photographs of a “Stranger a Day”. Each of these rhetorical devices speaks to the decisions that the photographer made when portraying the image to communicate his purpose and focus on the subjects within his images.

One of the most important visual aspects Johnson took into consideration when snapping his shots was the vector of attention of his subjects. In the June fifth photograph, he placed his subjects in the center of his lens, facing directly into the camera. This placement caused the vector of attention in the photograph to be right at the audience, including and engaging them with the people in the photograph and in turn in the lives of these “strangers”. This straightforward approach to attention fosters a variety of rhetorical appeals. In the way of ethos, Johnson presents an edited and polished photo with a definitive vector of attention that allows the audience to trust his opinions and perspective, thus allowing them engage with the photo. The photographer also might have chosen these individuals because they look like average, young white Americans, “strangers” that most everyone in his audience “knows” and would encounter on a day-to-day basis, also appealing to the ethos of his audience. The vector of attention focuses the audience to connect with the subject through eye contact. This eye contact, as well as other parts of the subject’s faces, allows the audience to feel the emotion (pathos) of the subjects– relaxed and tranquil. Included in the logos of the photograph, is the visual hierarchy created by the elements of the photo, as well as the placement of the individuals within the photo. The individuals are centered with a head to toe presentation that logically focuses the attention of the viewer and allows them to create a story for the individuals in the photo from all of the elements. These elements in the photo are placed in a way that allows the audience to gain more and more information about the subjects as their eye travels from the vector of attention downward, from the Cubs logo to the 24-pack of Miller Light in the woman’s hand.

Many other rhetorical devices are included in the photo– from the techniques of framing to the coloration of the photograph. The photograph is framed in a black edge that enhances the vector of attention on the people within the photograph; furthermore since all the other photographs in the collection have this same framing, it creates a unity throughout the collection. The photograph is also framed so that the audience is eye to eye with the people in the photo, like how you would encounter them while approaching them while walking down the sidewalk. Another aspect of the framing that ties in with the placement of the subjects in the photo, is the distance from which the photo was taken. This distance is appropriate for someone labeled as a “stranger”– you are not encroaching on their personal space, but you are close enough to examine them fully. The cropping of the photograph is essential to communicating the purpose of the image. This photo is cropped so that the people are centered in the photo with very little of their environment showing. Both of these decisions keep the focus on the people and do not distract from the portrayal of them. The focus of the image is on the people and their bodies in space as well. Their faces are sharpened and their surroundings, particularly those that could be distracting, have been blurred and faded around the edges, again, creating the focus on the individuals. A final rhetorical device employed by Johnson was the coloration of this photo, as well as all the others in this collection. This photo was colored black and white, the same as all of his others. This creates a unity (logos) among all of his photos in the collection.

Each of the rhetorical devices discussed above work together to create a purpose and focus for the photo. Johnson has created a piece that appeals to his audience in a variety of ways and fits in with the theme of his “Stranger a Day” collection.