RCL Blog

Civic Artifact Outline

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Civic Artifact: Apple

 

Introduction:

When I say that my civic artifact is Apple, I am not talking about a banana or orange; I am referring to a company that has played a big part in the world of technology today. Look around you, I am pretty sure you can find a product that Apple has produced or even played a part in. Even though their empire began with the Apple One back in 1976, they have come a long way to assert their technological dominance in this day and age.

 

Thesis:

Apple has revolutionized the way that we function today. From listening to music, to reading and even learning; Apple’s presence in the technological world is highly profound.
Pathos: Apple has many events such as WWDC (a developer’s conference) and several keynote events prior to the release of a new product. Usually at these events, Apple gives their customers what they want to see and hear; new innovation, new features and solutions to the flaws already present in the previous models. To an extent, Apple presents their products with a prestige; making a new release purchase the golden ticket of the city.

Ethos: Apple records the amount of products that activate their iOS operating system.

Logos: As of March 2015, Apple has sold about 700million iPhones around the globe. When a new product is on the launch, it is to no surprise that the item will sell out in a matter of seconds. People have pure dedication towards this company, by camping out the day of a new product release which can lead to blocks being filled up with several tents. In a nutshell, Apple makes the desire to acquire their products insatiable. Leading customers to purchase the latest model even when the older version is not far away.

For the kairos aspect, discuss the many products that Apple has released beginning from the Apple One and do not forget to mention the Ipod (classic).

-Question audience how many have or own an Apple product

-Discuss why Apple is so prevalent and why they are the brand of preference for so many

 

Conclusion:

Apple has an effective strategy using rhetoric and other ways to make the demand for their products so high. Because of this, it can be argued that they have a monopoly on the technological market.

Passion Blog

Tribulations Breakdown – Passion Blog #1

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For my first passion post, I will talk about some of the prevailing thoughts, ideas and themes that I express in my music. If you do not know, I express myself through rap and I go by the stage name Young Vic.

The song that I will talk about is called “Tribulations” where myself and other colleagues talk about our personal tribulations and the tribulations of the world. Here is a verse from the song where I will break it down explicitly for everyone to understand.

A

[Lemme start, Lemme go..
Bout to kill this beat and flow..
Looking back to just where I am
No Aloe Balcc but I am the man]

B
[I’m seeing trials no court in session,
People hustling due to recession,
Life changes need some adaptations..
And people dying due to pigmentation..]

C
[There’s a saying, ignorance is bliss
Can’t say racism don’t exist..
RIP Freddie Gray.. I hope and pray his soul will stay]

D
[It’s a shame that death makes us see
Image in perspective of the country
I’m talking about this cause noone will
and I try to keep it real, not worried about a deal..]

E
[Its a crisis in the middle East
Beheading hostages we seem weak..
And we facing tribulations everyday..
It all gets better is what they say..]

F
[Cause I don’t know you, or your story
Take your trials turn them to glory..
Shiny days after the dark and stormy..
We will win, I see Victory!”]

Lyric Breakdown

A – I open the verse anxious as I am ready to deliver my message to my listeners. As I look back through everything I have been through and the way I have matured with my raps, I feel like the man (direct reference to the Aloe Blacc song, “The Man”).

B- When someone is in court for a crime they committed, they are on trial. I use wordplay to define trials as a struggle or a hardship that many people are going through, not to be confused with being in court.

The economy is on the rise again, but it has not fully recovered since it crashed. Because of the recession, I am making a point that people are “hustling” as in doing anything in their power to provide for themselves and their families. Ex: Working extra shifts, picking up another job or selling drugs.

People dying to pigmentation can also be referred to many events, especially the shooting in South Carolina that happened very recently. This was a hate crime where supremacy placed a part in killing so many innocent people.

C- Ignorance is bliss refers to if you do not know anything about something, you will not worry about it. I counter this by saying that you cannot say you are ignorant about racism in this day in age because I believe that it is so profound to the non-innocent minds. I then reference Freddie Gray as a source of kaios that reminds many Americans what race is in this day in age.

D- A lot of people never know what they have until it is gone or when a situation has escalated to a new level. In this case, death has allowed Americans to stand up and counter race and police brutality.

I then go on to say, I will always keep it real no matter what. Many artists prefer not to talk about controversial subjects to maintain their reputation or to avoid slander. I am not looking for a record deal or to make a surplus of music from this, therefore I will not be intimidated in the messages that I convey.

E- This a reference to ISIS, the wars and the violence that is going on in the Middle East. I then go on to say “beheading hostages, we seem weak” as in ISIS has the Western world on their knees. They are organized and have produced a general atmosphere of fear to prevent any resistance.

Even though we face tribulations, I tell my listeners that it all gets better no matter what. Just know you have it better than someone else in the world.

F- Every person has their own story, their own problems and their own tribulations that they are going through. I use imagery to help illustrate to my readers that shiny days are still to come even thought you may be walking in a storm at the moment.  In the end, we will prevail through all of our problems. Before I come to a close, I tell my listeners that victory is definitely ours.

You can watch/listen to the live performance of “Tribulations”

RCL Blog

RCL Post #1

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A civic event in which kairos was a significant element had to be the Freddie Gray incident that happened in Baltimore, Maryland. Because of the Gray’s fatal death, tension was elevated in the public eye due to the previous killings of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown. As police brutality has become a controversial issue in this day and age, these killings brought in a new perspective of race being a part of the shootings. To give readers an understanding about each situation, I will give a brief synopsis of each situation.

Trayvon Martin (Sanford, Florida) – Trayvon was on his way home from a convenience store when George Zimmerman called the police to report a suspicious character.  He claimed that prior to the event, there were a series of break ins throughout Sanford which  increased his alertness.  When Zimmerman called the dispatcher, they asked, “Are you following him?” Zimmerman responded that he was and they specifically told him not to follow him thereafter. Soon after, Zimmerman hung up and had a violent encounter that resulted with the death of Trayvon.

Michael Brown (Ferguson, Missouri) – Police were dispatched due to Brown stealing a box of Swisher cigars. He was identified by officer Wilson who ordered Brown and his friend to move into the street. He pulled up to the two males and a violent encounter embarked resulting to Brown getting shot in the hand. Brown attempted to flee while Wilson shot him around six times, killing him instantaneously.

Freddie Gray (Baltimore, Maryland) – Gray was originally arrested for having a switchblade in possession . While he was transported, he fell into a coma and was immediately taken to a trauma center. What happened between the arrest and the ride to the trauma center is not certain, but when the situation was investigated, spinal cord injuries were  profound which was a factor that caused the State Attorney to declare Gray’s death a homicide. Soon after, six officers were charged with charges ranging from manslaughter and illegal arrest.

Kairos was significant due to the nature of just one event reminding the public of three things; police brutality, racism and discrimination. It was also remarkable because it caused the public to release all of the tension that was building up from inside due to the  previous two events.

 

Passion Blog

Passion Blog Post #1

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While I already came up with the idea that I wanted to use  to center my blog around, I can at least say what I was considering. Before I came to a decision, I wanted to make sure that my topic was both interesting to me and that it was unique. This made me bring up  sports and music immediately. While many people do sports, I know that I want to go in-depth with music-all types of it (such as Rap, Hip Hop, R&B, Pop, EDM, Country and all sorts of music). Expect to hear my taste in music and what it means to me.