http://www.pbs.org/skinstories/culture/index.html

The artifact I found was titled “Skin Stories: Roles of Tattoo.” The website is an affiliate of the PBS corporation. I found the site when I googled tattoo history because I was very interested in how tattooing got started.

I think the article’s intended audience is the general public. The article is mostly explanatory in how tattooing came about. To narrow down the general public as an audience though, I might say that anyone specifically interested in tattooing is more the target audience because if they weren’t interested, they wouldn’t want to learn about it and looking into the article. The argument for the website, in my opinion, is that tattooing has considerable cultural significance on the islands from which it originated. Also, tattoo is considered mostly taboo in today’s modern culture and I think this site argues that tattoo artists and tattooed individuals were the most respected members of their community and so the website is making an argument that tattooing can elevate your social status in certain cultures.

A. Topic: Abortion being brought to public attention

Issue: Is it appropriate to publicize that you had an abortion to general society through wearing a t-shit that says “I had an abortion”

Author: Presumably, the person wearing the t-shirt got it from planned parent-hood after they had an abortion. This means they are a creditable source and author because they did in fact have an abortion.

Exigency: Pro-life versus pro-choice has been an ongoing debate for more than  few decades now. With so many religious, political and even personal beliefs attached to this subject, is is something very few take lightly.

Audience: the general public who see the shirt

Purpose: To inform the general public that you had an abortion and feel that you can state it to the public.

Message: “I had an abortion” and I want to tell you that I did.

Medium: text on a shirt

http://carlanayland.blogspot.com/

I think this blog, by Carla Nayland, helps support the argument that historical fiction is a source of historical knowledge. She goes in depth about how she researches the period of history for each book she writes, posts pictures of the places she has visited, more often than the not the setting for her stories and also talks about what it is like to write a historical fiction novel.

http://www.britannica.com/blogs/2007/08/horse-slaughter-in-america/

This blog from brittanica blog begins with an article by Gregory McNamee titled “Horse Slaughter in America”. The blog itself is under the blue britannica banner with a navigation bar under that. On the left side, links are listed to related sites and topics. On the right side is a list of blog categories. After links to official government sites and the ASPCA site, the article is then followed by a forum type set up where people have responded to the article with thoughts, documentation, figures, pictures and opinions of their own. Also on the page are multiple pictures of horses, horse slaughter facilities and slaughtered horses.

This is a blog from a newspaper. They asked two oposing analysts to come in a give backing for and against gun control to prompt the issue on their blog. I think it’s a good source because not only do they have well voiced opinions, they use several pointed and specific examples to back their claims.

-Kate Auchmoody

A. declamation:exercise in oratory or elocution, as in the recitation of a classic speech

B. spurious:not genuine, authentic, or true; not from the claimed, pretended, or proper source; counterfeit

C. propitious:presenting favorable conditions

D. salvo:A forceful verbal or written assault

1. Part of the rhetorical context model discussed in class is the issue. What is the issue Bitzer investigates in this article: what question is he asking?

Bitzer is asking “what is a rhetorical situation?”.

2. Another part of the rhetorical context model presented in class is purpose—what the writer hopes to achieve with the argument. What is Bitzer’s goal with this article (p. 3)?

Btizer writes that “this essay, therefore, should be understood as an attempt to revive the notion of rhetorical situation, to provide at least the outline of an adequate conception of it, and to establish it as a controlling and fundamental concem of rhetorical theory.” Bitzer basically wants to completely explain the rhetorical situation.

4. How does Bitzer define a “genuinely rhetorical audience” (p. 12)?

Bitzer defines a “genuinely rhetorical audience” as “one able to be mediator of change.”

5. Bitzer claims that “rhetorical situations come into existence, then either mature or decay or mature and persist—conceivably some persist indefinitely” (p. 12). What rhetorical situations continue unresolved today despite significant rhetorical discourse?

I think that the argument about whether God exists is a rhetorical situation that, despite hundreds and hundreds of years of “rhetorical discourse”, has “persisted indefinitely”.

http://claystorm.livejournal.com/tag/growth

This blogger, name unknown, is talking about the disadvantages of living in an unplanned community, specifically Albuquerque, NM. They talk about the poor public transit system, the traffic and the lack of organized zoning.

A. King was participating in what he calls “direct action” where people perform peaceful assemblies, sit-ins and boycotts. He was arrested specifically for his role in the Birmingham Campaign that he and the Alabama Christian Leadership Conference led in Birmingham against segregation and racism.

B. At the time, Birmingham was the most racial city in the country, with the most unsolved crimes against the black population and the most segregation city-wide. King felt that the injustices in Birmingham needed to be stopped immediately in order for racism to end and social reform to begin. After his arrest for the Birmingham campaign, 8 clergymen from Alabama sent King what was titled “A Call for Unity”, which questioned King’s methods of fighting racism on it’s home front- in day to day life. This prompted King to respond with his letter.

C. At the time, King had just gotten into performing direct action. He had preached equality for years but did not have the modern day prophet stigma that he has today. The Birmingham campaign was the second direct action campaign he undertook with the Alabama Christian Leadership Conference. He later went on to march on Washington DC and was called one of the “big six” of the civil rights movement.

D. King wanted to express his reasons, in an organized and professional manner, for his campaign on Birmingham. He didn’t feel other people who questioned him and the ACLC were qualified enough to be answered and he didn’t feel  that he would be taken seriously if he answered someone who lacked authority.

E.The claim is that the campaign against Birmingham was completely justified and performed in a timely and planned fashion.

F. The letter is aural, meant to be read to it’s audience. You can almost hear King’s voice as you read along.

G. The primary audience were the clergymen but after the letter was leaked, the press got a hold of it and published excerpts for the general population to read who were then the secondary audience.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any authors for the comments posted on this blog. On the other hand, though there were several postings that I felt were unrelated to eminent domain, most of the material was helpful, included quotes, and easily expressed the opinions behind the postings. Some of the postings were not specifically about Colorado eminent domain but they did help establish the general sentiment of eminent domain-bitterness. The people who are effected by this law are angry and upset. They are desperately trying to put an end to this law and this blog was a culmination of those feelings and opinions.