"A Thin Line" Episode

                                                          Criminal Minds

My all time favorite TV show is and always has been Criminal Minds. I am being dead serious when I say that I could watch it all day and night long, regardless of whether it is a new episode or even a repeat that I have seen several times before. It never fails to capture my attention and interest me. The fact that Criminal Minds is my favorite show actually makes a lot of sense considering the fact that I am a Crime, Law, and Justice, as well as Psychology major. I plan on studying Forensic Psychology and becoming a criminal profiler someday and having a career very similar to the one displayed on Criminal Minds.

I always spend an hour of my Wednesday nights each week very intently watching Criminal Minds; last night that is just what I did. This week’s episode particularly intrigued me as a result of the kairos of when it aired. It happened to deal with rhetoric this week, which is quite coincidental since I’m in this class right now. A few weeks ago before I began this class, I could not even pronounce the word “rhetoric” properly let alone be able to understand and explain exactly what it is or what it deals with. Now that we are several weeks into this course, I have a much better understanding of the term and just hearing the word on my favorite show actually caught my attention and got me slightly excited, not gonna lie.

The episode incorporated rhetoric in the following ways. The FBI profiling team confronts a mayoral candidate about his use of rhetoric when he addresses the public to speak out on behalf of his political campaign for office. The profilers suspect that his rhetoric that is captured on camera and then aired on the news is effectively altering the mindset of the unsub or perpetrator that they are searching for and persuading him to act on his racist remarks and beliefs. This criminal is acting out and committing a series of heartless and gruesome home invasions and murders, while making them appear to have been committed by gang members or members of various races. It was cool to see rhetoric in action and just how effective and powerful it really can be.

2/14

Rhetoric of Valentine's Day Ads

Is Valentine’s Day really different from any other day? Or is this just what others want us to think to create unnecessary, exaggerated excitement? In my opinion, Valentine’s Day has become one of the many holidays in which companies take advantage of consumer’s willingness and eagerness to participate in special events just to make more money. This ad is a perfect example of that. It advertises the holiday of Valentine’s Day itself using all of the hearts, not only products being sold to celebrate it. In addition to the colored hearts that attract the viewer’s attention, when you look at the advertisement up close you notice that some of the clouds form hearts as well.

The ad also tells us that Valentine’s Day is not just a regular day of the week. It is supposedly special and requires special attire. Therefore encouraging people to go out and purchase just that for this unique occasion. People will also need to buy various gifts, such as jewelry, chocolate, cards, and/or flowers, for their valentine or valentines.

Is this the way it should really be though? Going along with this approach for this particular holiday is basically transforming love into something that is viewed as temporary and short-lived. This is a major contrast in ideas for those who believe in true love that is supposed to last forever. We should not need a single dedicated day of the year to show or tell people that we love them. Feelings as intense and important as love should be expressed on a daily basis regardless of what specific day the calendar reads. I mean sure its cute how romantic everyone acts on Valentine’s Day, but I think that it tends to get slightly out of hand. People take it a little too far at least for my taste that is.

Saving Lives One Drop at a Time!

THIS IS AN AWESOME ADVERTISEMENT! It is a very effective way of communicating the message it is trying to get across. Today, it seems like all we ever hear about is preserving the environment and that if we don’t make some serious changes the world is going to end. Yes, I think we all know that humans are largely to blame for facilitating and speeding up global warming and the current conditions of our planet. I am also sure that everyone is somewhat sick of listening to lectures and rants about this. This advertisement is an extremely creative way of advocating conservation. Its technique is so important because instead of boring the audience, it actually grabs their attention and interests them.

My first reaction to this was not surprisingly, “Awwwww.” This just shows us that this is a great example of a use of pathos, or emotional appeals. Your eyes are drawn directly to the brightly colored goldfish in the bowl because of the color scheme and the way the lighting is set up. They make you worry and feel bad for the poor, innocent little fish because the water is being removed from his bowl. Thinking about the fish dying and it being mostly our fault are great emotional appeals that definitely make me want to go out and do something about it. Their message is “Save water. Save life.”  It is perfect because although it is very basic and simple, it is short and sweet making it more effective.

Just remember that water is vital for everyone and everything to sustain life, and when it runs out there is nothing that can replace it. Therefore, raising awareness for the potential water crisis that could occur in the near future is both necessary and important. If everyone makes an attempt to save water, we can and will be saving not only water but also lives. :)