Rhetorical Analysis: "Don't Sell Your Hair to a Wig Shop"

Late nights while I would be watching television, the random-est commercials would make their daily appearance. One commercial that has really stuck with me throughout the years is the Direct TV commercial. If you haven't seen this commercial, it features a man who has a difficult time selecting what to watch on television. A simple problem, I know, but what happens after is so humorous and ridiculous that it makes it memorable. As a result of not finding anything entertaining to watch, he falls into depression, which leads him to visiting inspiration seminars. It is through this empowering seminar that the man feels like a winner. This mentality prompts the man to go to Las Vegas, where he loses everything. The last few frames depicts the man with his hair shaved, selling his hair to a wig shop. Keep this in mind, all these events are the result of not knowing what to watch on television.

The video's argument is to demonstrate the results of not having Direct TV, which leads to a variety of events. The purpose of the video itself is to get people to switch from cable television to Direct TV and the author is the company: Direct TV. This video primarily focuses on people who watch television and caters to the humorous side of people. The video can't help but make you laugh because of all the irrelevant events post watching television. There is no factual evidence to support the transitions of these events, but there are numerous amounts of fallacies. The most obvious fallacy is the slippery slope argument. The downward trend of misfortunes that this man faces is irrelevant and unpredictable. There is also the hasty generalization fallacy which corresponds to the depression the man has when not being able to find something to watch on television. The video doesn't mention or acknowledge its television competition directly but subtly. There are different backgrounds and surroundings in each of the frames which draws the attention of the audience.

Overall, this video is pretty effective in making the commercial memorable but is not very effective in selling it to the audience. The slippery slope of misfortunes which has no relevancy to the product being sold can cause some confusion for some people in the audience. There is no factual evidence or statistics on why you should get Direct TV instead of cable. The commercial is hasty to generalize that not being able to watch something on television will cause depression. Unless you're someone who is a strongly affected by television, I doubt that you will get depressed by not finding anything on television. I am not persuaded by the commercial to get Direct TV but I will remember this humorous commercial when the name Direct TV is mentioned anywhere. Watch the video below and comment below if you believe this commercial to be successful in selling its product. That's all for tonight, this is Leonard Yalong, signing off!

Against Meat

The article titled "Against Meat" by Jonathan Safran Foer, was very interesting as it brought up ideas regarding the relationship of loved ones and friends, using the consumption of meat. I resonated with this article because of my personal background. Being boring in the US, I grew up having more than my parents, aunties, and uncles who were born in the Philippines. The consumption of meat in the Philippines was very important in some households. It was only through holidays and festivities that meat was included in breakfast, lunch and dinner. The article by  Foer uses the consumption of meat to describe how we was brought up as a child, all the way into adult hood. For Foer, the transition between vegetarian and consuming meat was influenced by the people he surrounded himself with. It was through the idea from his babysitter, that he questioned his ideals. He was brought up not to hurt family, friends, strangers, and even furniture. It was then that he decided to change his life.

Often times, we relate memories to the food we eat, as depicted in Foer's article. I know most people can relate to having to go to grandma's house and becoming stuffed at the end of the day, only to be given the comment, "Eat more, you look skinny" as if eating a lot will make you healthy. I do believe that food can bring people together. After Sunday church, every third week of the month, we would have a pot luck. A pot luck was basically a little mini gathering full of home cooked meals among friends, family, and strangers. You could could really taste the love and time they put into those dishes. These pot lucks brought everyone closer as people shared their recipes and memories. Choosing to be vegetarian and consuming meat only affect our health, but it shouldn't dictate how we choose to distance ourselves from people. Thats my post for tonight, this is Leonard Yalong, signing off!

"Childish" Thinking

The phrase "childish" thinking has been a phrase long used to demean and indicate a lack of maturity for those of a younger nature. I have never given that much thought to the phrase until watching a Ted Talk by Adora Svitak, a child prodigy who has written full length novels such as Yang in Disguise and Dancing Fingers. Her speech focused primarily on how adults needed to have a childlike mentality: a hopefulness for the future, regardless of boundaries or obstacles. She felt that children had very little say in the rules established by adults in society. She advocated the need for a reciprocal teaching by adults and children that would take into account both needs of the population. Her speech included a variety of historical examples as well as personal background about the topic. 

Overall, I was really impressed by the presentation. Her personal achievements gives credibility and persuades you to take action, on what seemed like an innocent expression. Being a college student, I begin to see the harshness of reality and the burden, as Svitak explained, of failures by modern day society. As children, we are exposed to many of life's obstacles but we maintain this by creating our own perfect little world. We see the optimistic side of things, which Svitak wants adults to learn from. Instead of seeing children as unequal, adults should give children the attention they deserve. After all, adults were once children too and it would be undeniable that long ago they too had that mentality. I agree with Adora Svitak's message, "You must lend an ear today, because we are the leader's of tomorrow", because we indeed will lead the future of this nation. 

I highly recommend watching this video because it applies to all ages and promotes an equality for both the young and old alike. That's all for tonight, this is Leonard Yalong, signing off!

Digital Advancement: Helpful or Hindrance?

Have you ever heard the phrase; "Back in my day, we didn't have this kind of technology but we had (enter memories from childhood)"? I've always found it fascinating how far we've developed as a society in terms of technology.  The "phrase" used by most adults, elderly, and teenagers shows how times have changed. No longer will kids be seen walking around will Walkmans or DynaTAC cell phones but rather the newest in technology, such as the popular I phones and Samsung Galaxy. The capabilities of this new technology are endless, but is there a hidden cost to this luxury?

To some people, the thought of having the whole internet in the palm of their hand is mind blowing. People have marveled at the endless array of information posted on websites, blogs, and social media. According to an online article by William McCoy, a publisher for smallbusiness.chron.com, the technology of today affects societies in a positive way. Students are able to use their laptop or computer to research any information for school anywhere, and at any given time. Students are able to access social media and communicate with fellow students in attempts to answer questions. Technology allows us to be all connected in some way shape or form. No longer are people "in the dark" of what happens around the state, country and entire world.

With all those positive effects technology has on society, many people are ecstatic, what could possibly go wrong? Some people believe that the repetitive use of this technology has resulted in society becoming dependent of it. There is an addiction that people can't seem to shake off, these addictions come in the forms of entertainment and social media. Society has become too concerned whether their photo has the most likes or their tweets have the most retweets. Students have been greatly affected by this new found accessory. Students no longer go to libraries to attain information, but rather risk credibility of their information by visiting sites and copying information. Students have begun taking advantage of technology in order to be done as quickly as possible. 

Personally, I believe that people do abuse the use of technology in attempts to waste time or provide shortcuts. Although technology provides a vast amount of information, how much is actually creditable? Nowadays people will believe anything and as long as they cite the information, the information they use has validity. This is not the case and people need to understand that sometimes, technology can't be used for everything. Technology is also used as a media for entertainment. Students become distracted by social media, Youtube, and other websites, forgetting the task assigned before them. I can remember in high school, procrastinating on projects and focusing on what people posted on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. Technology has constantly advanced but at what cost? Leave your comments below on your thoughts about technology. That's all for tonight, this is Leonard Yalong, signing off!

Best Animated Movie of 2014

Hey everyone! Today I just wanna share to you what I believed to be one of the best animated movies of 2014. If you haven't seen the movie, be forewarned. there are spoilers ahead. So go check out the movie and return back for discussions! 

                                           

Disney's movie Big Hero 6 is inspired by Marvel comic books and entails the story of a young boy named Hiro Hamada and a robot Baymax who protect the city of San Fransokyo against a masked villain. For me, Disney makes some of the most memorable movies that create our childhood. This movie in particular has to take the cake as it has characters you can't help but develop bonds with. This movie also has a serious plot to it although it is dampened by the child humor from some of the characters. In most Disney films, deaths are uncommon, however we are introduced to an individual who embodies the optimistic, caring, and responsible person we someday hope to meet in real life. This character is Tadashi Hamada, the older brother who looks after Hiro Hamada along with his Aunt Cass. What made this movie unique to me was the concept of letting go and not letting emotions cloud your judgement. The actions of Professor Callaghan were not justifiable, and it was through his clouded judgement and revenge that caused others like Hiro to suffer. The moving scene that got to me the most was when Baymax displayed videos of Tadashi as he worked on him, in attempts to comfort Hiro. Overall, this was an enjoyable movie and I would recommend it to people of all ages. That's all for tonight. This is Leonard Yalong, signing off!

Disagree Big Hero 6 was the Best Animated Movie of 2014? Leave comments below on what you believed the Best Animated Movie of 2014 was!

Writing Process

Everyone has their own way of writing and there are many controversial ways to begin the writing process. Throughout my years of elementary to high school, I have always been the type to cut corners. Many students can relate to the dreaded problem of having to strive for a high word count set by teachers. For me, the solution to the problem was simple, rewrite the information you researched in different ways, and be as descriptive as possible. This may sound funny to some people but that's how I approached most essays.

My process would begin with researching a topic I knew I would have interest in, so the task wouldn't be as agonizing as it seemed. After selecting a topic, the next step is to target the intended audience and write according to the intended purpose of your essay. Targeting your audience would determine your effectiveness and how formal you were with your essay. The next step was to research your topic and gather information for main points or arguments and supporting details. I made sure to cite my sources in order to avoid plagiarism. After collecting facts, arguments, and ideas, the first draft went underway. First drafts are never perfect when you write them and you're bound to have many flaws, which is why you have someone revise your essay. When I receive my essay, I look at the revisions and make corrections for the second draft. It is at this stage in the essay process that I would look hard over my essay. I would have a teacher or adult revise my second draft before finalizing the essay to the requirements of the teacher. The final draft would would usually be typed in MLA formatting with a works cited page to refer to my sources.

As college students, we are expected to write a lot of  essays, lab reports, critical analysis, and narratives. Writing essays allows students to organize their ideas, target audiences effectively, and convey thoughts, facts or opinions to a wide variety of people. I hope to take from this blog a broader viewpoint on different perspectives and use it as a new way to express creative ideas. That's all for tonight. This is Leonard Yalong, signing off!