Well, tonight my roommate
had the 'Jersey Shore' on simply as background noise. I usually don't mind the
show, and sometimes I can't help but laugh as some of the more ridiculous
things that happen. Tonight, I felt like I was in some kind of torture chamber.
I couldn’t stand to listen to them "Get crazy, get wild" for another
second. For some reason, I just didn’t want to ask my roommate to turn it off.
We usually just rip on the things they do and it proves to be a pretty good
time.
I then found myself trying
to figure out how best to convince her to turn it off, without actually having
to be straightforward. At first, I thought I could just comment on how
detestable I found the young ladies and gentlemen; like my opinions on the
content of their characters would have the resounding effect to end the
offensive program. What was I thinking..? Then, I thought making snide comments
about other MTV shows would certainly get the job done. If there’s another
season of Teen Mom, we definitely shouldn’t support MTV? Am I right? …This also
proved to be ridiculous.
So finally, after two
episodes of the Shore, I finally asked “So, are you still watching this..?” The
answer of course was no, and I was left feeling foolish.
This then
led me to consider the dangers of overly rhetorical thought. Surely when
someone’s developing an argument of any substance (hopefully one that never
includes my friends at the Shore), the writer has to develop ways to convince
and sway his or her audience without losing them in stylized arguments and
persuasive tactics. Certainly any piece of persuasive writing or conversation
will require some tactics. A writer would have to draw on an individual’s
beliefs or emotions, essentially ethos, pathos, and logos, to convince him or
her. But how much rhetoric is too much? What are the limits to persuasive
speech, and when does a writer lose his audience entirely? I think it would be incredibly interesting to
dissect failed arguments and persuasive speeches, and truly see what doesn’t
work. We all have read and can understand good persuasive methods, but perhaps
we could learn from outstanding failure as well.
I have to
admit, my persuasive tactics tonight were weak. Bordering on plain stupid. If
anything, tonight I learned the benefits of bluntness. Luckily, the ‘Jersey
Shore’ will rarely be a show anyone needs talked out of watching. Rhetoric and
persuasion can be saved for something a little less… mind numbing…
If there is one thing in this world that I cannot stand, it's bad reality TV. For the life of me, I can't see the appeal of most shows on MTV, especially Jersey Shore. I cringe every time I see it, and yet I sometimes have a difficult time conveying to others how much I detest those shows and the reasons why I feel that way about them. Oftentimes I awkwardly dance around the topic for fear of seeming like I'm criticizing people who do like it. I've experienced a few situations similar to what you did that night, and better and more specific rhetoric could have definitely helped me then.
ReplyDeleteWhile I do find the "Jersey Shore" to be entertaining, I completely understand where you're coming from. I think we've all been in a situation where we use rhetorical techniques to try to make our opinion obvious to someone in an effort to refrain from offending or being too upfront towards that person. In those situations, being blunt is usually the better strategy. You also brought up an interesting point regarding using the right amount of rhetoric when making a point or argument. I think that it's important to keep that in mind not only when you're in situations like the one you were in with your roommate, but also in any form of an argument whether it be an essay or a speech. I'll try to keep that in mind for the future.
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