English, the international key to success and fame

Linguistic Imperialism, a phrase used when a language spoken by a majority is forced upon a minority due to the current demands of today's generation. There are many examples of this but the strongest example of this would be English.

English has been termed as the language of business and people are required to speak this in the world of politics, international business, and of course pop culture. Successful celebrities are known worldwide in English and non-English speaking countries. Taylor Swift is one of the best known singers and has been internationally ranked as Number 2 on world stage.

English like any language is widely spoken in a few countries (ex: USA, UK, etc,) but if one wants to be deemed in an international celebrity they must speak, and perform in English (regardless of their nationality or first language). Often times celebrities are required to broaden their spectrum in order to achieve stardom. An example of this; Shakira. Shakira originally started her career with purely Spanish music. She did attract a crowd but it was very small compared to other singers. She realized that if she wanted to be successful she would have to broaden her music spectrum, when is when she started incorporating English into her songs. Initially it was a few phrases but after she realized the attention she attracted she made music her foundation and a couple Spanish phrases to add a "color" to set her apart. Today she even has songs that are just English. She is deemed as a worldwide performer since she has performed in major events such as FIFA world cup and in many different countries.

Another example I found was Priyanka Chopra.  She is a major A-list celebrity in India but she wanted to have a larger audience. She already had her Indian fans and focused on attracting the attention of Indian one, which is why she started her entire singing career speaking English in the United States.

Even though English has been deemed the key to success there have been instances that a celebrity has been able to break through. Psy was number one of the billboards for his songs "Gangnam Style" for weeks because consumers found a certain exotic appeal to his music. Although he was popular for a while, it was short lived because his songs contained two words of English.

The point that is trying to be made is that language is the key to success and fame. Without it one cannot reach a wider audience, therefore cannot become successful in this world.Yes there are many talented people in the world but without the power of speaking English they will not get very far.

Paper 1 Text 2 Analysis

The following is an analysis of a Paper 1 Text:

This text is clearly multi-vocal as it can be expressed and interpreted into having many different meanings.  Its features strongly suggest that it is an informative article with the hidden agenda therefore I personally believe that it is an advertisement. The text begins with the "number crunch", leading the reader to believe that it is a factual and informative article. This company also uses marketing strategies to show that it is an elitist community which aims to help poorer regions. This adver-informatory article is sectioned into three areas in which it slowly explains every tier of service only to close with a positive note on what they strive to accomplish.

 “Oxfam” convinces its readers of its genuine message. The purpose of this article is generally clear; to persuade and encourage people to help and contribute to this cause. is article is posted on the company’s webpage therefore it aims to target people who are interested in the topic, understand the problem, and are finding a way to contribute towards the solution. This is known because the article refers to how one can help shedding a positive tone on the situation.  Again referring back to the use of the “number crunch” it is clear that this article aims to inform people hence the use of excessive facts and figures. This “number crunch” technique is often used in order to convince the masses by using factual knowledge which an educated audience are more inclined to believe than opinion. 

As stated before I saw this article as an advertisement as well. The article uses personal pronouns in a way to get the reader involved. This way it becomes the reader's mission to do complete this task. This all comes from the advertisement so in a sense they are fueling the "spirit" and motivation.Therefore using certain phrases as “we” and “together” really is an interactive experience and in a sense says: "you can help us ( and yourself) by donating".

The article continues to address the impending hunger epidemic conundrum in the African regions and states that the problem is due to poor farming and water supply conditions. Again numbers are used again as Oxfam states they are sending aid to families in those regions. This is where the tone and mood can be deciphered. 

This article is written in a sad light highlighting the problems of poverty that are in Africa. Using deep meanings and messages the article is set in a dark and sad mood and tone. The informatory section is very intense clearly highlighting all the problems that are being faced. Although as the article transitions to its convincing section it slowly transitions to hopeful and light saying this problem can be fixed. This common strategy of laying dark imagery to later help sell a product is used in a hidden way throughout this entire article. The use of “crisis” in the beginning and “fixing” in the end presents the problem solution appeal which tends to be most effective when there is an emotional connection with the problem.

In conclusion this article clearly depends on the emotional sides of humans to pull people in (ethos). Ethos not only helps draw people in but also disguise the nature of the article. By stating that they are a purely humanitarian cause they attempt to show their selflessness in order to receive a profit. 

Native Advertisements

At our new day and age advertisements have become a part of our culture. Whether we like it or dislike it advertisements have been integrated into everything we do, even when we do not notice it. Native advertisements are adverts that are so cleverly disguised in an article that it has become the norm. The image below is an example of a native advertisement.

This article is actually an advertisement by Ben and Jerry's, placed strategically in a buzz feed article. Ben and Jerry choose to place their advertisement in this article because Buzz feed is a "pop culture information" source which has been known to attract younger crowds. Also Ben and Jerry's has many shop locations in NYC and choose Buzz feed (a company based in New York) to display their article. Specifically in this article Ben and Jerry's is targeting the younger NYC citizens as well as the tourists: "Whether your here for years or the weekend".  This line shows that they are focused on integrating their product into your lifestyle regardless of how long your in the city.

The mood is very happy, hopeful, and carefree where the tone is slightly more persistent: "18 foods everyone must try before leaving NYC". It comes of as friendly as the article as the author tries to talk to the reader in a "friend to friend' manner, thus making the reader relate it to the product. This advertisement is also very user friendly because they have buttons on the bottom which you can click to easily share their page(creating a larger audience through the different social networking streams).

Its advertisements like these that are so cleverly placed that it becomes unclear in our mind the nature of an article. It subconsciously builds a bridge between the level of interest in the article and the product itself.

Generation like, Do I like or dislike

Generation like? A generation where our societal image is based on the amount of likes we receive and give. Advertisers have learnt how to use our media addictions against us by using us to help them to do our jobs. "Generation like" stressed how our social image encompasses all its entails such as sponsorship. The minute we reach 1 millions we become the new toy every company wants to sponsor. The used Hunger games as a reference and there as a certain line which I picked up from it: "To survive you have to get people to like you so you get sponsors". This got me thinking that isn't this what our lives have become, we all hide behind screens hoping to achieve those likes by doing something as pointless as changing a profile photo on Facebook. It is also startling to think that this has become the norm in our generation. This documentary was really eye opening and the whole idea of likes determining our identities is unfortunately the new "cool"

I-g-g-why?

What can I say? I must be a sucker of Azalea if I am writing about her again. Lets just say its easy to see her transparency and depth of her emotion and even clothing in the first 10 seconds of her videos. "Work", oh yet another "empowering" song, the old if I can do it why can't you?  Well, looking at the layers its clear on what the video projects and coming from the music industry it automatically becomes overrated main-stream media or does it?

When analyzing the lyrics it seems genuine enough. The line "no money no family 16 in the middle of Miami" reoccurs multiple times as do the words "I've been working". The song intends to show the struggles Azalea has faced with a touch of emotional connect so that her audience can say,"if she made it why can't I"? Azalea uses her innocence to sell the story so one would think the video would reach that expectation and add a whole new level of empathetic struggles, well it doesn't.

Its actually quite funny, its like swallowing a little irony down the wrong way. The video opens with Azalea walking on an empty desolate road. This could potentially have some metaphorical significance like "my life looked empty" but it easy to completely forget the scene because of the clothing that Azalea is wearing. Outfit: Shoes Christian Louboutin approx 6,000 USD Skirt and Top Combo Givenchy approx 1,500,000 USD and lets see makeup and other garments: 8,000 USD all totaling at a good I cost more than a child's education which is really ironic considering at times she didn't have the money for education.  Also the clothing is almost no clothing since 75% of her skin is showing.

The video continues as the scene shifts as Azalea's clothing, figure, and physic are compared with "ordinary everyday humans" as they turn and look at her. Yet again pulling from the lyrical message of "I did struggle, I did have the bare minimum". Another element which highlights the video in another sense are the constant appearance of burning articles. Azalea begins dancing in front of them with half-naked backup dancers doing the much dreaded mainstream media "twerk". It seems that the entire idea of empowerment has really gone to the dumps as she constantly sexualizes herself and her surroundings in a way saying this is the way to success.

This true success through sexualization finally is revealed when Azalea is faced with a man who is highlighted as her only way out (due to his car). She seduces him and successfully steals his keys saying again to her audience that the key to my success was through robbery and seduction. Here in a way it tells women the task can't be done without a man and illegal acts are required for success. 

"I'm not hating I'm just telling you" Azalea's music maybe genuine but her videos stray far from the message. The comparison to the ordinary civilians, the expensive clothing, and the self-sexualization is literally the complete opposite of Azalea's song about working, scrubbing floors, and sacrifices. Well being a fan I can't completely blame Iggy, but then again the music industry attempts to popularize certain notions through its celebrities and then they label it as as "artistic view. Personally I think that is exactly how trends are made, they are forced down our throats through things we actually enjoy. Even though this video aimed to be empowering it sends a completely different message.

FOA Reflection

My FOA presentation was given today and personally I see it as an opportunity for betterment.  The chosen topic for my presentation was to analyze Tide commercial’s views of women overtime while mainly looking at their use of gender stereotypes. Tide being a detergent company has existed since the late 1900’s so there is a range of advertisements which focus on women. My aim was to illustrate that this set of advertisements reveal that the image of women has in fact evolved, but the central themes have not (women are homemakers, wives, etc.).

The presentation was marked based on four criteria; Knowledge and Understanding of the text’s conceptual ideas and understanding how it’s used it both its pictorial and literary format. Personally I think the advertisements which were chosen were completely relevant to the presentation because they clearly outlined the topic. They were not very difficult to find but during the research phase I decided I would need to find ones that were direct and in the case of the video not long.

The information and analysis I provided was good but personally I think that I was not able to pick up on all the language relation as I could have. I choose to focus on pictorial elements and ideas based around the stereotype instead of using language as a main guide.  In the future to fix this I need to focus on the presentation’s main purposes to reach the goal. Another problem I saw was that I had not used the Pathos Logos and Ethos elements in my presentation even though they were clearly used in the advertisement. I feel I did not touch on this as much because it was not as relevant to my topic as other techniques but I should have still touched on them. On a positive note I feel I did well recognizing the different elements throughout the entire advertisement which lead to the answering of the unit question. My presentation was also very thorough and detailed hence timed at 9mins 30 seconds.

During the actual presentation I feel I did not do as well as I could have. Public speaking has been somewhat of a strong suit which is why it startled me when I found myself constantly looking down at my paper. I had understood all my main ideas and really did not need the paper there but then out of nervousness I looked down at the paper rather than keeping eye contact with the classroom. In the future to completely avoid this I can prepare myself better and highlight only main points on my page and keep eye contact when speaking. This will help me majorly.  I also felt there were certain situations where I was talking to fast. This again was due to nervousness and I think this will automatically fix the next time presentations come around.

Overall I think my performance and presentation had the right information and thoroughly answered the unit question directly through the use of the advertisements.. In the future I will have to fix my presentation skills but I fell most of things will be fixed automatically when the second presentation comes. 

Written Task 2 Starter Multi-Vocality

Texts in general normally have a singular meaning and purpose. The term keep it “short and sweet” was derived from the directness of advertisements, but there are situations where a certain advertisement can have more than one message and can be interpreted differently based on an individual. The advertisement linked below is of a respected detergent company Tide. This company has existed since the late 1900’s therefore it is easy to find a range of advertisements which can now at this time and age be analyzed and shown to have to meanings. Multi-vocality refers to the different meanings a text can have.

This advertisement was played during the 2014 Superbowl.  “Dad Mom” was a major campaign in which Tide used different pictorial and literary elements to sell the product as a lifestyle rather than a materialistic object.  The message which “sticks” to the audience after watching is that fathers can in fact do laundry and that there is nothing wrong with it.

As stated before this text is multivocal so it can be seen as both an offensive and positive promotion of a product.

 In this clip one can see that the video zooms in on the father but also the fact that he is doing laundry.  The father is introduced folding laundry saying “while my wife works, I’m at home folding laundry”. This first comment is not considered stereotypical but empowering therefore Tide uses it effectively to mask the hidden message. The father also addresses his name saying that he is masculine but still has the soft side of women.  

The ad uses the girls dress (frilly) to further enforce the stereotype by saying “I can fold even the frilliest girl dress like a man but with the most precision”.  Role reversal is not as apparent but again the stereotypical role of women is to keep the house clean therefore using this keyword precision directly refers to women.

The main message that this advert is projecting to the audience is that in order to complete house-held duties you need to have feminine qualities. Stereotypes are regularly seen as offensive therefore this advert can be seen as a negative.

Another meaning which can be inferred based on the direct message is the idea of empowerment. As the social infrastructure changed, women had become a major part of a family’s economic income. This ad uses that logical thinking to target the majority of the working population into communicating that this product is perfect that lifestyle therefore projecting the product in a positive manner. Woman will see this ad as a way to promote or even encourage their husbands into buying this product. Also the product also promotes and accentuates the positive aspects of doing laundry and in a sense helping out at home through the use of this product.  The text title “Dad mom” on its own intends to promote and help fathers understand that it is an achievable goal to be a man masculine enough even to do the laundry.

In conclusion texts can generally be seen as more than one thing and these views often branch out into a positive or negative impact.