The idea of rhetorical analysis entails the skill of persuading audiences to comprehend a topic that is covered through a specific medium. The text I'll be analyzing in this review is a piece from The Christian Monitor from 2011 with the title "Little girls or little women? The beauty of Disney. It only addresses the issue of girls growing up in a sexualized atmosphere from a young age. The article examines how the media, including the internet, television, and media, play a major role in encouraging girls to become sexually concerned with their body image. It is worth noting that the commentary is specific to the targeted group because it is appropriate for those who are interested in child development. Thus, before moving on to the analysis, I would like to describe that the society targeted by the object are the stakeholders involved at any level of a child’s development, thus including the government, teachers, and parents. The author focuses on convincing the reader that the Disney Princess Effect has resulted in an environment that is sexually sensitive to women with the use of the appeal to emotion, character and reason being critical as an approach by the author to make the argument appear relevant.
The author of the article, Stephanie Hanes, uses ethos to establish creditably with the targeted audience as a way of persuading the audience to take the argument seriously. Firstly, the medium uses the statement “Taking back childhood,” which instantly makes the commercial more trustworthy as it creates the impression that the author was once a child and understands the problem from that viewpoint. It is also illustrated that many parents are already experiencing challenges with their children and the author is does sailing in the same boat as that of the many people who find the subject critical. She states that “It was this big force entering our lives so early, with such strength. It concerned me for what was down the road” (Hanes). It emphasized the legitimacy and trustworthiness of the source of information increase for the readers because the author appears to be genuine in her writing (University Writing Center 3). They may now fully consider the fact that children across many families are affected by the issue being resented on media influence on their sexual image. Although credibility is just one of the many factors in persuading the audience effectively.
In order to inform the audience further about the problem of the media sexualizing children, the author uses pathos to persuade the audience (University Writing Center 3). The author ensures there is an element of suffering that is apparent in the writing of the article to engage the reader emotionally. The first thing that one thinks of it is that is the media role worth it? Also, it makes one to question even more as the statement is coming from a person who is an expert in the field. It makes the targeted audience skeptical about the media role on children. Some may also feel fear as she speaks about the negative effective being overshadowed by the positive effects and fear may be one of the strongest emotions which influences one’s decision-making which can be very effective in persuading the audience. The message ends by “Children often come across Internet pornography unintentionally: University of New Hampshire researchers found in 2005 that one-third of Internet users ages 10 to 17 were exposed to unwanted sexual material, and a London School of Economics study in 2004 found that 60 percent of children who use the Internet regularly come into contact with pornography” (Hanes). By saying this, she is trying to motivate the audience that the problem is grave and that statistics are indicating so. The concept of pornography will most likely ignite emotional responses from the readers and thus serve the role that the author wanted.
The appeal to reason referred to as logos, is also a key element that the author uses to promote awareness of the challenge of the internet and the whole environment on a girl’s development. The use of a respected authority in creating awareness ensures that the article backs itself up as having been approved to have adverse effects (University Writing Center 2). It is quoted that “A University of Central Florida poll found that” meaning that the organization warrants that it has been proven by to have adverse effects. It also creates the impression that the media object has further been approved by relevant bodies that have provided statistics of the adverse effects that could result from the use of the enhancers. Furthermore, the author uses an established authority that is Peggy Orenstein, so that there is further trust. Thus, it makes the audience believe the assertions because the statement is coming from Peggy Orenstein herself being a media personality. The advert is thus effective in using the appeal to reason in convincing the community intended to read it to be wary of the negative impact of the internet exposure to a girl’s perception about their sexuality. on the human subject.
In conclusion, it is worth noting that the author is successful in ensuring that the article makes sense to the reader because not only is it efficacious in using reason and emotion but it also makes use of character as a strategy to capture the attention of the reader. It thus means that whoever reads the content will become discouraged by the media today because they will have become manipulated to think that an established journalist and organization have both confirmed that girls all over the nation and the globe are affected.
Works Cited
Hanes, Stephanie. “Little Girls or Little Women? The Disney Princess Effect.” The Christian Science Monitor (2011): n. pag. Web.
University Writing Center. “What Are Logos, Ethos, Pathos, and Kairos?” A Rhetoric with Readings (2010): n. pag. Web.
