With a presidential election coming upon us in the next year, we have seen the campaigns of many candidates take shape. Candidates have been traveling across the country to reach out to the voters. There have been debates and town halls to firmly get an understanding of who we want to be the leader of our country. Perhaps many have narrowed it down to a couple choices, while others may need to take all the time up to election day to decide. What about you? Are you ready to vote?

Let’s take a step back and think about this. Recently, we have been stressed more and more about the power to vote, and we revolve our vote around one main campaign, the Presidential campaign. Ironically, however, we are told that our representatives have the greatest power to hear us. It is with our representatives that our concerns can be addressed most effectively. So why do we put such a great stress on the presidency? It wasn’t always like this.

In the late 1700s and early 1800s, the dominant culture was to place more emphasis on congressional campaigns. More attention would be payed to the legislators that would be representing your district. Most citizens would know their representatives, and more support (financial or voter) would be directed to them as well. We used to have much more emphasis on those that would write and vote on our bills that directly affected us. Now, we see an emergence of higher focus being placed on the president. We focus most of our time and energy on the presidential campaigns, and we will find the most entertaining ways to understand who we want as our president. Most people will know the name of the president, but they most likely wouldn’t know their representative.

What led to this shift was the increase in understanding the powers held by the president. The Founding Fathers did not want to have strong powers established in one singular person, so they drafted the Constitution that ensured that the legislative would be strongest in its powers. As the years went by since the birth of the nation, president administrations would slowly expand on the powers the president would practice. Some presidents such as Presidents Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, and Franklin D. Roosevelt are known better for establishing the increase in what the president can do. The biggest pivot could be argued to be when President FDR was in office as he was seen as being the most hands on and aggressive in getting tasks done. As he put forward more and more legislation ideas, projects, and reforms, he changed the scope in which the president was involved in the lives of American citizens.

With this increase, many conservatives viewed as intrusion. Resistance occurred strongly from conservative groups as they believed in smaller governments and decreased connections between the people and government. Nonetheless, many of the policies push forward passed and were implemented. This proved successful expansion of presidential powers and it led to a rise in importance towards the president. Today, we see can see the direct impact as we revolve our elections around the President of the United States.

Sharing:

With increasing use of technology in the modern world, we share more and more about our lives everyday. The sense of sharing has become increasingly popular, and we find ourselves in a society where we must share the daily happenings of our lives. We also find ourselves in situations in which companies are able to take this information and analyze it for an optimal virtual experience. We have seen a shift in this idea of what and when it is acceptable to share in society. While there were no easy access, social media platforms in earlier years to share information, it was as not as popular to find “everyday folk” sharing their feelings in life or their accomplishments. As the entertainment industry began to grow with incorporation of up-to-date technology, we began to see a shift in what and how we share. It is a basic understanding, now, that we will see people sharing their life story very easily to the rest of the world. Yet, compared to earlier years this was not as popular to occur.

 

Presidential Importance:

Sitting in my American Politics class, my professor highlighted something very interesting. He mentioned that when the United States was taking its first steps as a country, it was not popular to run for president. In fact, nobody really wanted to be president in the late 1700s. It was deemed more popular and acceptable to run for legislative seats because it was the belief that they would hold the greatest prominence in society. If we compare these ideologies to today, we find a stark shift. Nowadays, It is usually hard to discuss politics or government in the United States without some mention of the president. We have accepted that there has been a shift in whom we believe to hold greater power. The intentions of the Founding Fathers was to see the legislative body as yielding greater power, but this belief has shifted to one where we believe the president to be the strongest face of the American body. It seems to have become easier find the power in one person rather than a whole body.

My second civic artifact is the recent speech given by Greta Thunberg on the issues of climate change and the lack of action seen from political professionals. Overall, we can see a connection to my first artifact, the PSA, because they both discuss the issue of climate change. They both touch upon the effects experienced through climate change, but they also vary due to the exact message they portray.

Conservation International is attempting to inform the audience of the true dynamic held between mother nature and human civilization. This was then further used, along with rhetorical devices, to motivate the audience. Greta Thunberg, on the other hand, offers a more condemnatory speech that can be seen as simply informing the audience of the lack of action anyone seems to be performing. The appeals between the two are very similar, but their specific application and how it’s used is different.

Both artifacts heavily employ the appeal to pathos and speaker tone, so they are more effective in delivering the message I discussed above. The methods of the two are different. The PSA draws upon the audience’s emotion via fear. They draw on the fear to help the audience refresh and understand, by bringing to light the true effects that are occurring around us as a result of climate change. This fear can furthermore be seen as a motivator for the audience to act against the disastrous effects that have the potential to bring mass extinction. Contrarily, Greta used an appeal to the audience’s emotions whilst focusing on her personal expression and hoping for the audience to reflect her feelings as well. We are able to see and understand her passion, and this can be reflected onto us as our passion because we care for the environment as well. However, it is not as effective. Secondly, they share similarity in the tones the speaker attempts to embody. In the PSA, the speaker is paralleling to two tones. One is a tone of seriousness and solemnity to highlight the graveness of the issue and to make the audience realize the severity to which they should pay attention. There also is the tone of condemnation. This is used to appeal to a sense of guilt in the audience, and make them realize the true relationships and effects of our actions. Similarly, this tone of condemnation can be seen in usage by Greta Thunberg as well. However, using this tone seems to place her primary concern towards only the political professionals whom are not acting. It can be generalized to the general audience, but it is not as effective because there is no clear commonplace or shared enterprise established to connect the people.

In general, we can see overarching similarities between the two artifacts. Nonetheless, there are differences between the two as well. They share the common theme of climate change, and they both employ the two devices mentioned above. Yet, there is difference in the manner in which they use the devices and the effectiveness of the devices. It can be argued that the PSA is more effective in their applications of the appeal than the speech given by Greta Thunberg.

Introduction:

The introduction needs to start off on a strong note in order to set the premise of what you will say and garner the attention of the audience for the entire length of the speech. Specifically, for my speech, I will open with a strong connection to the people and relate it back to the artifact. This connection to the audience will be through the idea of being global citizens:

• We all inhabit the same place. I don’t mean the dorms of Penn State. I don’t mean the houses and apartments across the United States. I am discussing the land of the world, and how our inhabitation is spread throughout all areas of the world. Not only are we simply living here, but we employ the multitude of resources that surround us into our daily practices. It has become a norm to expect these resources, but did you ever take a second to think of what would happen if we weren’t surrounded by everything; if it were all taken away by one force, Mother Nature.

From this, I aim to bring it back to my artifact and address how it has made mention of this power Mother Nature holds over the human civilization. This is a recurring theme throughout the PSA, and due to its prominence in the video, it holds great significance in addressing the video. This is only one element the creators use to portray the message. At this point I will be able to build to a thesis: Conservation International successfully employs rhetorical elements of pathos, imagery, tones of solemnity, and many more to emphasize the issue of climate change at hand in hopes of increasing the understanding the audience holds on this topic.

Analysis:

Moving into my analysis, I will aim to address the general background information of the issue of climate change and transition to how this video aims to inform the audience of the topic and what it calls upon them to do. This will allow me to address who the speaker is, who the audience is, and how they will see the message.

• Speaker: Literally, an organization, Conservation International, has created the video with the recruitment of Julia Roberts as narrator. However, in order to serve as a more effective delivery, Julia Roberts portrays the role of Mother Nature in addressing the audience.
• The audience can be broadly be applied to all citizens of the world, but it can be narrowed to those with particular beliefs on the issue. At first, it could illustrate (through the rhetorical devices) how the issue will soon overcome us to those in disbelief on climate change. It could also motivate those who hold a belief in the issue, but have not been advocators for it.
• This is a video that is available to anyone with online access. Upon seeing it, they will be met with beautiful imagery of the Earth while also being met with a solemn tone.

To build my argument more, I will address the civics of the PSA. This proves to be civic because of how it has

• Call to Attention: The PSA calls upon the audience to consider the true dynamics of nature and humans. It calls upon reflection of self and society.
• Shared Enterprise: There is also an emphasis on how we are all connected to this issue because we all inhabit the Earth. It is clear that when “[Mother Nature] thrives, you thrive.” This connection to all of us a civilization is the shared enterprise.

These, particularly the last one, leads to addressing the commonplaces. I have touched upon this before. I will aim to talk about how we want to provide a place of comfort and security to our future generations. We also share the Earth in common as we are all global citizens.

From here, I will discuss the specific elements that are used in the video to portray the civic duty mentioned above and the message as a whole. Most heavily prevalent in the video are:

• Pathos: There is an appeal to fear in the way the tone of the voice is. It is very demanding and impactful which many may consider to invoke high alert and sense of fear.
• Tone: The voice of the video employs a solemn, serious tone which contributes to the overall tone of the video in that climate change is a serious, truly occurring issue.
• Imagery: The video is able to incorporate clips of serene environments and end with the global picture of the Earth. This works along with other elements in that it makes the audience feels a connection to this Earth.

The Kairos of this ad is clearly able to understood as this is a relevant topic that is being discussed by several sources daily. Furthermore, the timing and relevancy of this ad will continue for a long period of time in the future as well. Countries are currently suffering from the consequences of climate change, and countries are not acting to combat these consequences either. As a result of these two actions, the kairos will present itself as important to the message of the video.

Conclusion:

I will conclude by summarizing each of my main points. This will be:

• Message, elements, and how the elements worked to portray the message.

Furthermore, it will be the best opportunity to leave the audience with an impactful, lasting effect. To do so, it is best to relate the elements and message back upon the audience. Stay tuned.

In a fast paced world, there are a lot of moving elements, and maintaining relevancy in modern society can be difficult to achieve. Nonetheless, our environment holds a long-lasting presence that stretches to eras before humans. There are rapid changes in our environment that are being highlighted everyday, thus showing the strength the message holds now and possibly in the future.

Published in 2014, I believe the relevancy of this video will remain for a long period. The power of the message is currently at its strongest in our modern lives, now. The world is enduring changes in multiple elements, but Mother Nature’s strength is not dwindling; our strength is. With continual, devastating effects in the environmental world upon which we have no action, this psa will have always have a perfect opportunity to portray its message in warning and alerting people of what’s to come. This idea that the video will hold a presence for a long time demonstrates the effectiveness it has. There is already a strong following to the video and its message now, and since the topic of climate change will foreseeably be relevant in the future, the video can increase its following as time builds.

Within the video, there are multiple elements that allow for an effective delivery of the message. The video places great emphasis on its message through devices such as imagery and tone which in total leads to an appeal to fear by the creator. Through the clips of Earth’s wonders and natural habitats, the creator evokes a sense of serenity and calm. This is not necessarily the mood established through the tone of the video. There is a contradiction in the two elements, which draws the viewer to truly contemplate the meaning of the video. Listening to Julia Roberts speak as Mother Nature, you may feel a sense of aggression directed towards the viewer. This aggression is most prevalent when Mother Nature makes connections to her success and our success. She mentions “when I thrive, you thrive. When I falter, you falter, or worse” to establish the relationship we hold with Mother Nature. This reaches out to our commonplace that we wish to succeed. Drawing upon that commonplace, we as a society can begin to understand the true driver of the relationship. Furthermore, there is aggression in the periods when Mother Nature refers to her natural elements of oceans, streams, and more. The emphasis on “my” and the repetition shows again who holds the power in the relationship. Lastly in the video, there is the call to attention by phrasing a question to the audience, “Are you (ready to evolve)?’

All of these components work together and are able to draw an appeal to fear. There is a sense of fear established about what the true relationship is between us. Mother Nature is reliant upon us, and will not fix herself to better us. There is fear directed towards the audience in that this has happened before with other species, and Mother Nature will still live on, yet we may not. There is fear, not to make us scared, but to make us understand the extremes we are facing with climate change now. It is testing our knowledge and calling to us on how we are prepared for the future.

 

Perhaps the biggest change occurring in our world revolves around the climate. The true change in our weather patterns and systems we observe over many years. Conservation International is just one of many organizations that has attempted to draw attention to this issue and raise awareness on climate change. One of their methods is through this video in which they emphasize our whole planet and the importance it serves towards us.

Literally speaking, the video is created by the group Conservation International with Julia Roberts as the narrator. However, figuratively, Julia Roberts portrays the role of Mother Nature in attempt by the creator to exhibit a serious tone. With this tone, Mother Nature is addressing every citizen of the Earth in hopes of increasing the spread of her message. More specifically, the message attempts to better resonate with those who hold a disbelief in climate change. People can encounter this ad on the organization’s website and youtube, and many more videos by the same organization will also appear at these sites. This allows for more engagement with the audience who is then able to develop a clearer understanding and interpretation of the issues occupying our world at the moment. The audience may interpret this video in many manners, but the overall idea should be interpreted similarly. With the imagery and tone incorporated in the video, we are able to interpret that it is not nature that controls our future; but instead, it is us that holds this power. We can interpret that nature holds the resources for a healthy relationship with humans, and it is up to us to do what we may with it.

With these messages, the video proves to be civic. It calls our attention to the changes occurring in our climate with the imagery, and it calls our attention to the grave danger that may be ahead of us with its tone and imagery. It is able to present a shared enterprise as we, a global society, want to see future generations to continue living on this planet. The main ideology shared with many people in the world is the existence of climate change and the potential dangers of such change. Establishing this ideology, allows for people who share the belief to come forward on similar ground, and it allows for an increase in the awareness and spread of the message. It is also able to establish a commonplace of being a global citizen and that we are all human. While many will identify their citizenship to their country, they are still inhabitants of the same planet. Reaching out to this broader group allows for a high chance that someone will be able to read between the lines of the video. All of these elements of tone, imagery, and many other appeals, will strike an audience to showcase their civic duty. This accomplishes the goal of Conservation International.

Idea 1: “We Are The World”

An iconic song from the 80s sparked the world into activism. Millions and millions of people heard this song, and all of this created a wide awareness of what people could be doing to help the . There are elements in this song that is able to effectively capture an audience, and those elements are what I plan on analyzing to showcase how it is a call to be civic. While it is a lengthy song, I believe that there are strong lyrics in certain sections that showcase the strength of the message as whole. Not only the lyrics, but the delivery through music is another important element to analyze.

 

Idea 2: Conservation International

Conservation International is an organization that aims to create a more educated and sustainable community. There are a variety of changes occurring to our environment, and this organization aims to relate it back to humanity and what we can do. One powerful method of doing so was through the recruitment of celebrities and strong rhetoric to make the people aware and step into action. This video, along with others from the organization, demonstrates those strategies. This can be analyzed for its rhetoric in the language, tone, and delivery.

 

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