Rhetorical Criticism – English 301

For this analysis, I will be taking a look at one of Fall Out Boy’s older songs – I’m Like a Lawyer with the Way I’m Always Trying to Get You Off. This is one of their earlier songs in which the song title didn’t necessarily have to have any connections with lyrics, but this time, I feel that there is a correlation since the song is essentially about a relationship doomed from the beginning but hey, ‘let’s go for it anyway’.

[Verse 1]
Last year’s wishes are this year’s apologies
Every last time I come home
I take my last chance to burn a bridge or two
I only keep myself this sick in the head
‘Cause I know how the words get you (off)

[Pre-Chorus]
We’re the new face of failure
Prettier and younger but not any better off
Bulletproof loneliness at best, at best

[Chorus]
Me and you, setting in a honeymoon
If I woke up next to you, if I woke up next to you
Me and you, setting in a honeymoon
If I woke up next to you, if I woke up next to you

[Verse 2]
Collect the bad habits that you couldn’t bear to keep
Out of the woods but I love
The tree I used to lay beneath, kissed teeth stained red
From a sour bottle baby girl with eyes the size of baby worlds

[Pre-Chorus]
We’re the new face of failure
Prettier and younger but not any better off
Bulletproof loneliness at best, at best

[Chorus]
Me and you, setting in a honeymoon
If I woke up next to you, if I woke up next to you
Me and you, setting in a honeymoon
If I woke up next to you, if I woke up next to you
Me and you, setting in a honeymoon
If I woke up next to you, if I woke up next to you
Me and you, setting in a honeymoon
If I woke up next to you, if I woke up next to you

[Bridge]
The best way to make it through
With hearts and wrists intact
Is to realize two out of three ain’t bad, ain’t bad

[Chorus]
Me and you, setting in a honeymoon
If I woke up next to you, if I woke up next to you
Me and you (honeymoon)
Setting in a honeymoon
Me and you, setting in a honeymoon
If I woke up next to you, if I woke up next to you
Me and you, setting in a honeymoon
If I woke up next to you
Honeymoon

Since Fall Out Boy songs are practically metaphors in musical form anyways, this song is riddled with them:

Last year’s wishes are this year’s apologies / every last time I come home

No matter what [he] desires, it always turns into regrets and not a day that goes by in which there isn’t one

I take my last chance to burn a bridge or two

any time he has an opportunity to repair a relationship, he destroys all connections so he doesn’t have to deal with it

We’re the new face of failure / Prettier and younger but not any better off

although we’re younger and attractive, the odds are still stack against us and failure just wears a better face

Bulletproof the loneliness at best, at best

having loneliness that’s impenetrable and nothing can faze it – not even a bullet

Collect the bad habits that you couldn’t bear to keep / out of the woods but I love

when someone hates something about themselves but you adore it

Kissed teeth stained red

red stain of lipstick on the teeth..from kissing

The best way to make it through / With hearts and wrists intact / Is to realize two out of three ain’t bad, ain’t bad

in order to triumph in through love/life is that leaving the situation with at least 2 out of the 3 – two wrists and 1 heart – is not a bad compromise/bargain.

Since this is a somewhat bleak song to being with, a lot the metaphors mentioned above are all tenors concerning love, sacrifice, and despair; the voice of the song loves this girl, and knows that there’s going to be some sacrifice along the way in order for their love to come true, but as he contemplates life with and without her, there’s more than likely going to be more regrets and lonely times ahead of him. The ‘bridge’ he has to burn, the ‘bulletproof’ version of loneliness, and the ‘face’ of failure are the vehicles that represent the degree of which he stands (metaphorically).

All in all, this song illustrates how ‘predestined’ people are set up to fail and despite having a prettier or nicer presentation, the future does not care. Also being a parallel account, to love someone is almost destined to fail since a broken heart (or a failed relationship) is inevitable – regardless of how beautiful it may look – so cut your losses and take it home. Everything is rigged against favorable odds.

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For my artifact, I decided to use the album cover for Bruno Mars’ latest album 24K Magic, but more specifically for one of his hit songs ‘That’s What I Like’.

The album is simple enough without anything to flashy besides the ladies man himself – sporting clothes circa 80’s-90’s, an open-sitting position, a small but inviting smile, and some rather showy but tasteful gold jewelry.
The album text itself has a faint highlight band, indicating that the text color should be gold as well, and all of the colors in general are neutral but stately colors of black, white, and gold (there’s actually no other color besides those)!

These are all decisions he made when he chose to have this image represent the single That’s What I Like.
Black and White are straightforward colors that are bold, and figuratively speaking, it is either one thing or the other; yes or no or this or that.
Gold is an eye-catching color, so more than likely, he has a distinct taste for the expensive/high-quality since he dons it all over. Plus, looking at the placement of the gold, it might be his intention for the audience’s direct attention to be attracted in the general location; it might be around his neck, but it also emphasizes his chest. He may be wearing gold rings, but his hands are placed around his inner thigh, drawing our focus to that region.
His posture is rather open and exudes confidence since he does not feel the need to close himself as if to protect himself.
His facial expression is also welcoming since a smile shows not only happiness but comfort and something that is pleasing.

Overall, the picture exudes the sense that Bruno Mars has his eye on on something that he likes, and even without the song name to title the picture, I think we can all figure it out.

But the song is a better way to confirm it and never gets old ;P

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Just last week, Dynasty Warriors 9 was released here in the west. This is a video game that is not-so-popular outside of Eastern world and only boasts of a small following over here in the west. The main objective is to fight through the major battles of Ancient China with the more prominent officers and warlords of the time. The Dynasty Warriors series is based loosely on the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, with some creative artistic license to represent the events and characters.

Essentially, the genre is hack-and-slash video games, and I have decided to criticize Dynasty Warriors 9 through generic participation – which determines whether or not it fits into this genre based on other artifacts that belong to this genre.

Similar to its predecessors, this 9th installment of the hack-and-slash game still hosts the typical characters and the 5 forces of Wu, Shu, Wei, Jin, and Others.

But, unlike the others that came before it, this is primarily where any of the similarities stop.

This installment of Dynasty Warriors has the game set in an ‘open world’, whereas previous games had a fixed map with mountains, rivers, gorges, and/or castles restricting access to certain areas.
Also, DW9 has only one map which shows all of China, rather than having a new map for each stage/battle the player progressed to.

There are actually no more individual battles; the player goes around the map and fight when they want instead of HAVING to engage in battle like prior games.

Also, in previous games, most of the characters had their own personal weapons without any other character sharing it, along with distinct personalities and a change of outfits without bribe to pay for them. As of right now, a good handful of characters have cloned weapons in DW9 and not many outfits come free – you will have to pay for the DLCs.

This game is drastically different from its predecessors – even taking into account the changes the series has made throughout time in each installment. The changes made detracts so far from the other games that it no longer truly fit into the typical Musou hack-and-slash genre.

Here are some of the organizing principles for this analysis:

1. Gameplay
2. Mapping (Open world vs Linear)
3. Characterization

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(source: http://www.americanrhetoric.com/MovieSpeeches/moviespeechtokillamockingbird.html )

This snippet is from To Kill a Mockingbird, where Atticus Finch is giving his closing statement to the court. As he defends Tom Robinson, he shames the court in a tactful way about their ignorance and bigotry and that Tom is a victim.

Atticus is the rhetor as he takes center stage for his closing comment and addresses the court with his statements. The topic, or the case at hand, is whether or not Tom Robinson is guilty of rape. It is particularly messy since the plaintiff is a white woman, and during this time period (1962), black people were automatically in the wrong and liars. The jury, judge, and the accusers are his captive audience since they are listening to what he has to say, and deliberating for themselves how to process it.

The whole purpose of this scene was to highlight the ignorance and deep-seated bigotry that people held in their hearts which prevented from making the right choice – however obvious it was. Atticus explains how people will turn a blind-eye to justice simply because it is convenient for them – knowing that injustice will keep them safe. In this context, white people could get away with anything – especially if they are in the wrong – if a black person is involved since the blame/fault would automatically shift to them.

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Hey hey, my name is Abby and this is my blog dedicated to Rhetorical Criticism. I am a senior majoring in English with a minor in Rhetorical & Professional Writing.

In this bit of space, I hope to express my thoughts in a way that can be understandable, and hone my skills when it comes to rhetorical thinking. Though this is initially for class, there’s so much that goes beyond it in which i find these skills to be important.

During this day and time, we’re surrounded by so many new symbols and media so it’s fully worth it to be vigilant and attentive to rhetoric. I strive to do my best to stay on top of all of this and be able see through the subtleties of everyday communication. Those who are on the same wavelength as I am when it comes to learning will find that this blog may help analyze and process some thoughts.

Totally not important, but I love dogs and all of my future dogs will look like this cutie!

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Welcome to Longwood Blogs. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

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