Freakonomics

Freakonomics, the non-fiction novel by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner, dissects everyday life in order to find the reason behind the decisions that people make.  Prevalent throughout the book is the theory that the authors have about incentives and how they are the driving force behind the reason that people do certain things.  This book is written argumentatively and many experts have refuted its premise that economics is the study of incentives, along with the purpose of the novel, which is to draw connections between the everyday practices of life to economics.  Many people believe that the book is based in sociology or criminology.  However, the book is widely accepted to be successful in showing the association between incentives and daily activity.

Freakonomics chooses to portray its theory of incentives through very creative and unusual situations. This not only keeps the reader entertained, but it additionally allows readers to see bizarre connections that they would have otherwise missed.  For example, in sumo wrestling, a sport that is an honor to participate in Japan, is analyzed and, through the use of statistics, a strong case is made to show how the wrestlers cheat.  The book shows that in elimination bouts, the wrestler in danger beats the odds to win with a statistically significant amount.  When the two wrestlers meet again, the wrestler who was supposed to win the first time but did not, wins an overwhelmingly high number of times.  This shows the likelihood of there being corruption in sumo wrestling.  When wrestlers are facing elimination, they may bribe the other wrestler to let them win this time in exchange for a sure victory in the next meeting.  Also, the book explores in the fourth chapter the effect that legalized abortion has on crime rates.  The book argues that because the babies that are more likely to be neglected in the first place never existed, crime rates plummeted.  The connections that the book draws are clear and well-supported, which makes the authors credible to the reader.  This credibility then allows the authors to be effective in achieving their purpose because readers are willing to buy into their theory of incentives and economics in everyday life.

TOW Rewrite - Gas Prices Political Cartoon

            The rising price of gas and the nuclear development program of Iran are two of the hottest and most controversial current political issues. This political cartoon discusses these two heated topics and shows how they are problematic.  This cartoon is drawn for U.S. News by an author in San Diego.  This means that there is American bias in the cartoon and that it is from an American perspective, which would obviously be against Iran.  Currently, Iran is developing nuclear energy that is very controversial because many nations and leaders believe that their intention is to develop nuclear weapons.  These would most likely be used against Israel, which is why the Israelis are very concerned. However, Americans are interested in the situation not only because of Israel, but also because this controversy drives the gas prices up around the world. The majority of oil is exported out of the Middle East, and when there are problems in that geographic area, there gas prices become high.  The top portion of the political cartoon depicts and Israeli fighter jet that is assumed to be heading towards Iran to attack them, while on the bottom there is a regular citizen complaining about how the gas prices are rising due to tension in the Middle East.   

            The author likely drew this cartoon because they wanted to further explain, with an American point of view, the conflict with Iran and the effects it would have on Americans and on the world.  He created it for Americans and with an American eye because he didn’t focus on the potential consequences for Israel but rather shows the effect on gas prices and how Americans will struggle to keep up.  Also, it is important to note that Irani effects are not mentioned in this cartoon, showing that the cartoon is trying to portray Iran negatively.  In order to achieve his purpose, the author based his cartoon in a cause and effect format, showing how the war would hurt Americans’ wallets through the price of oil.  Also, the word choice in the Israeli speech bubble includes the phrase “pay a steep price,” which is easily converted in to a monetary context.  This clever choice of words allows for humor in the cartoon when the person in the car responds with "so am I."  The author did a good job portraying his purpose because the reader was able to take away the implications of the tension in Iran and the reader understands how America would be hit.  Also, because the author uses humor to communicate his message, it makes it easier for Americans to understand and take away from.

Christian Mingle Ad

This advertisement is marketing ChristianMingle.com, a dating website specifically targeted to single Christians.  The company plays off of religion and destiny in order to persuade potential customers to join.  This particular ad is encouraging viewers to join the website in order to "find God's match for them."  The advertisement was found on the home page of philly.com, the website corresponding to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

This advertisement makes its target audience very clear.  The words "Single and Christian?" are printed in all caps and are centered on the ad.  These are also the largest words on the advertisement, drawing the readers' attention to them.  If the reader meets these criteria, they are more likely to examine the rest of the ad.  This is very effective because in the range of the advertisement, many people are both single and Christian, making this ad appealing to many people.  In order to achieve its purpose of getting people to join the site, the advertisement employs multiple marketing techniques.  First, it computer generates a woman, designed to look as appealing to single Christians as possible, in order to draw people into the advertisement.  This further narrows the audience of the advertisement, making it more appealing to men.  Then, the ad uses both ethos and pathos in the statement "Find God's Match for You."  This demonstrates ethos because it claims to be able to use the power of God in order to find the person destined to be your soulmate.  This intrigues many people.  This establishes pathos because it makes people feel excited and curious about who God would find for them.  Then, in order to seal the deal, the advertisement puts an orange block in the bottom right hand corner with the words "Browse for Free." This shows the viewer that there is no price to just exploring, greatly increasing the chance of gaining customers from that ad.  The colors are very bright and clean, what one would expect when trying to search for love.  Because of the ingenious use of many of these marketing and rhetorical techniques, this advertisement is very effective.