Politics and the English Language

After reading Em's blog I kind of borrowed her idea about checking out the politician's websites for political sources. I was having the hardest time trying to decide exactly what a "political source" would be defined as. I really enjoyed Orwell's argument because it provided me with a new perspective on the English language. I like the way he suggest that we simplify the way we write in order to eliminate the poof and and a little spice. Creating images and sensory without repeating what others say in common metaphors and sayings. Anway, this is my attempt at applying Orwell'ssix rules/suggestions for better writing.

Reform Contracting
Create Transparency for Military Contractors: Barack Obama and Joe Biden will require the Pentagon and State Department to develop a strategy for determining when contracting makes sense, rather than continually handing off governmental jobs to well-connected companies. An Obama-Biden administration will create the transparency and accountability needed for good governance. Finally, it will establish the legal status of contractor personnel, making possible prosecution of any abuses committed by private military contractors.
Restore Honesty, Openness, and Commonsense to Contracting and Procurement: An Obama-Biden administration will realize savings by reducing the corruption and cost overruns that have become all too routine in defense contracting. This includes launching a program of acquisition reform and management, which would end the common practice of no-bid contracting.Obama and Biden will end the abuse of supplemental budgets by creating a system of oversight for war funds as stringent as in the regular budget. Obama and Biden will restore the government's ability to manage contracts by rebuilding our contract officer corps. They will order the Justice Department to prioritize prosecutions that will punish and deter fraud, waste and abuse.

1. For this first rule I may be stretching to find something but I picked out a few phrases that I find might be appropriate for this category. handing off government jobs/ launching a program
2. The words "acquisition, transparency, accountability" are the longest of all the words in this statement and may be appropriate in this situation. So this does not necessarily apply.
3. "the abuse of" may be a little exaggeratory (is that word?) and could simplify the statement if removed.
4. "that have become" is a passive sentence which could be rewritten to say the same thing
5. I have nothing. sorry.
6. I personally didn't find anything too barbarous in this statement but that could be the result of my lack of opinion on the matter.

This statement wasn't too bad in regards to Orwell's standards. I'm sure that politicians do break the rules often and I will definately look out for them. In the mean time i'm going to reevaluate the methods that I use when writing my own compositions. Maybe there are a few things I could learn so that I don't leave Orwell followers in shock of my poor writing skills.

Dane Cook...You love him or you hate him but i don't wanna hear it

So I decided to watch a little Dane Cook because he has a very unique method of comedy. It's become a signature debate on most college campuses and I find him pretty classic, but that's just my opinion. Anyway, I enjoyed my experience doing this comedy assignment.

See, the way I look at it, Dane Cook highlights normal things we do in life and delivers it with his own twisted charisma and style. Like they say, timing is everything and he knows how to tell a good joke. His material stands out because of his personality. I think if I attempted to repeat a Dane Cook joke it wouldn't be quite as funny and thats just because I couldn't do his method of performing any kind of justice. The way Dane Cook takes real life and re-tells it to the audience from his perspective is my favorite aspect of this verbal art. I love his dirty mouth, his humble approach, and the energy he gives in every performance. He's different and I think that is where the controversy comes from and I really like that about him.

It's kind of silly but I can remember the first times I saw his performances. It's really special when a comedian can make you laugh so hard you remember exactly where you were when you first saw that episode. How does that happen? Why is it so funny? Well, I think that some part of us can relate and in that expectation of the situation the perfect delivery of the punch line will make or break the joke. The play on words, the inflection of the voice, and the visual images painted throughout the performance make the whole experience very enjoyable. And honestly, everybody loves a good time. Especially when it involves making fun at yourself ( and we all need to be able to laugh at ourselves). So check out Dane Cook. Good stuff.

My Favorite Joke: For Mature Audiences Only
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOwFlE29eXQ

Jakobsen-

1. Referential Function: orientation toward the context, the leading task of numerous messages
2. Emotive function: interjections of emotion that reflect impression of speaker's emotional state
3. Conative function: vocative or imperative addressing of receiver)
4. Phatic function: checking channel working
5. Metalingual function: the code that one speaks with so that others may understand context
6. Poetic function: "deepens the the fundamental dichotomy of signs and objects"

Hymes- Speech Event Factors

1. Sender
2. Receiver
3. Message form
4. Channel
5. Code
6. Topic
7. Setting

So I definately understand how to apply the speech event factors to a speech event but applying the functions is a little bit trickier. A speech event that I can use as an example is a Notre Dame Pep Rally. The Sender or Addresser is either a coach, player, or special guest (maybe even a leprechaun). The Receiver or Addressee is the audience and/or team. The Message form can be noted as a public broadcast, the Channel is verbal,and the Code is American english. The Topic could be inspirational speaking done in a traditional setting. The Setting itself is an athletic arena.

I think the functions would all apply to the more specific details of the speech event. Referential could be about the energy of the speaker to the audience, Emotive can discuss emotions elicited during the speech act, Phatic could be a reference to audience/speaker interaction, and the Poetic function can refer to the deeper understanding of what the speaker is talking about and the audience is experiencing through that speech act.

Anyways, i'm sure we'll dissect this further tomorrow. I'm excited to get through the dense material!!!

Speech Acts and the World We Live In

Speech acts are tricky. The first two articles have quirky yet sophisticated methods of explaining what illocutionary acts and performance utternaces are relative to our daily communication. What is a speech act? Good question. I took it as being a combination of words that have meaning and "power" beyond just the words themselves. The words, depending on the speaker and the audience, can command, create, acknowledge, and/or do things that matter in our lives. The performance utterance article spoke of the words "i do" and the value it has in ceremonially making marriages complete. We have an amazing method of putting power behind words, statements, and phrases despite the fact that there is no immediate form of punishment or authority there to enforce it. We may see the reprocutions later, but in that moment the words are sufficient enough to influence our actions and behaviors. The tricky part is how we place that power and the boat christening example revealed to us that actions and words only mean so much. Until you decide who has the power to make these words into "actions", then can they have their true value in our culture.

Through out the world there are thousands of languages spoken. These various countries and cultures rely on their language to performe rituals, ceremonies, and other religious acts. These are mere words put in various orders, possibly even sung or performed, but they mean so much more. This idea of a speech act is seen world-wide. The things we do with words are as important as the things we do in life. They work hand in hand, and we give power to these words. We give holiness and life to these words and in return we feel hope, love, and contentment. How fascinating.