Carlo Cedrix De Castro
Professor Jen Fleischer
English 1A
4 March 2014
What
Dat Mouf Do?
“I
don't want to rule or conquer anyone. I should like to help everyone- if
possible- Jew, Gentile- black man- white. We all want to help one another.
Human beings are like that. We want to live by each other's happiness- not by
each other's misery. We don't want to hate and despise one another. In this
world there is room for everyone. And the good earth is rich and can provide
for everyone. The way of life can be free and beautiful, but we have lost the
way. Greed has poisoned men's souls...”. This quote by Charlie Chaplin in “The
Great Dictator's speech” really speaks about a lot of things. In a way it can
reflect our society in regards to prostitution, which has been an ugly side.
Women are abducted and abused everyday by players in the prostitution game
known as pimps, and are forced into making money for them by engaging in sexual
activities with random strangers. To reflect on the subject, here are three
different sources: a song from the perspective of a prostitute by Kendrick
Lamar titled “Keisha's Song”, an entry from the Britannica Encyclopedia, and a
picture of what items a prostitute carries.
The
rap song Keisha’s Song by Kendrick Lamar tells the story of Keisha, a 17-year
old girl on Long Beach Blvd. who was pimped by her step-father and how she
deals with life every day. The tone on this song is logical and mysterious; it
really makes you think about the lyrics and the meaning behind the words. To
really put meaning behind the song, he uses references to other songs that have
conveyed similar ideas (i.e Tupac’s Brenda’s Got a Baby) , repetition to display emphasis on certain words like
“blow” , “lord” and “block away from “Lueders Park”. This creates visual
meaning to the reader, allowing them to connect to Keisha and what she’s going
through. The intended audience is the younger generation, anywhere from age
10-30 because Kendrick is talking about issues that are relevant to that
generation. People older or younger than that age group are not concerned with
how the girl feels being trapped in the younger generation. Kendrick comes from
Compton, CA, the area similar to where Keisha lives in the song. He grew up as
a straight A- Student in high school but was surrounded by a toxic area that he
would one day come back to try to change when he was successful in the future.
This makes him credible because he knows the tough experiences first hand. The
main argument is that you shouldn’t be ignorant to the fact that the world we
live in is a ugly place and that you need to keep that in mind in order to
protect yourself. This is shown by the last line in Keisha’s Song where he
tells us that he made her little sister listen to the song so that she knows
how it really is.
The
Britannica Encyclopedia entry for prostitution has a layout of a basic
encyclopedia entry: details about the word, how it was used back in time dated
a few centuries, and usage in cultures around the world. The tone is formal
because it’s an educational source and needs to give the vibe of a credible
source. The language is formal as well, but uses words that are easy to
understand as to not confuse the reader. If any complicated words are used,
however, they make sure to provide definitions on the spot. There are no
visuals for this entry, unless you consider ads for “Xfinity” and “AAA
Insurance” visuals, then yes, they do provide them. The intended reader can be
anyone who is interested in prostitutes, whether you are like me and need to
use it for a report, or need it to know whether the local girl in your town
likely has an STD. The author’s
credibility is respectable as author
In
this picture, the layout is just a display of what a local “working girl” was
carrying as she was arrested. The tone is dark and disturbing as it shows you
the truth of the girl; the shoes to attract, the money for her “daddy”, the
phone from her “daddy” for her “daddy”, and condoms for her “usuals”. The use
of visuals provides a meaningful message in this picture because they show how
she goes about her life while working. The intended viewer is anyone interested
in prostitution because it just shows the general idea of the standard items
these kinds of girls carry. The main message is just to inform the audience of
what these girls carry and to give an idea of what kind of lives these girls
live through.
The
three sources in a way are very similar. In all three, the tone is very serious
and it trying to deliver a message to you. The intended reader is for anyone
interested in prostitution for their personal reasons, whether it be
educational or recreational. All of the authors are from credible backgrounds,
and provide examples. The main message of all three sources is to show how
prostitution really is.
However,
like the ying-yang, every similarity comes a difference. The layout of the
three are all different; one being a song, another an encyclopedia entry and
the other being a picture. The language differs as well, with the song having
casual language as to appeal to the heart; the encyclopedia entry to appeal to
the brain, and the picture appealing to the eyes. Each appeals to a different
human sense and make the message they are trying to convey powerful in their
own way.
Personally,
I feel that a powerful message makes a particular “text” especially
effective/persuasive because meaning behind messages gets into the heads of
your audience and makes them want to reflect back on the message you were
trying to convey and having them decipher it. For example, in Kendrick’s
“Keisha’s Song”, he uses repetition and symbols to get his message across about
Keisha and how her prostitution has influenced her; in one verse of the song,
he says “And lord knows shes beautiful, lord knows the usuals that leaving her
body sore”. In this line, Kendrick says
how the lord knows that she’s a wonderful, beautiful girl and how the “usuals”
are hurting her through the prostitution game. Its also worth noting that the
word “usuals” is usually used to refer to patrons of businesses like
barbershops, restaurants, or bars, but in this verse, he uses the “usuals” to
describe men who are regulars of the working girls.
Of
the three documents, I feel that “Keisha’s Song” has the most effective message
because prostitution is becoming an issue for the younger generation and the
song is targeted towards that era. Also, the meaning behind his words and the
visuals he creates through emphasis, repetition and symbols makes this a song
that sticks to your mind and makes you think about the meaning behind the
words. On the other side of the argues though, I feel that the picture was the
weakest link in terms of giving the least effective message because all it was
was a picture of the items the girl was carrying. They say a picture gives 1000
words, but I feel that that picture needed more. I’m not saying it wasn’t
effective but in comparison to the encyclopedia entry and the song, it falls in
meaning.
This
assignment required us to get 3 texts from three different genres but texts
from the same genre are not always similar. I feel that it will be this case
because everyone has a different vision of a genre: not everyone is the same
and the same can be said for writing styles and use of the mind: not everyone
thinks and writes the same. Everyone takes a different approach and sees things
in different ways. A good example would be in songs: there are different music
categories but not every song sounds the same. The lyrics/message might be
similar, but how it sounds will be way different, unless it’s a mix tape which
will use the same beat, but still different message.
When
I first started this assignment, I had to analyze three different genres in
order to compare and contrast ways in which each text employs various writing
conventions. Overall, I feel that the relationship between the text, what it
says, and how it says it are connected based on the author’s commitment to the
topic. If the author/writer feels strongly about the subject, then he/she will
find the most effective way to get his/her message across to the audience they
want. For example, in the encyclopedia
entry, Jenkins was simply writing about it to inform, therefore his message was
effective. Same goes for Kendrick in that he wrote it to inform, as well as
entertain his audience, which resulted in another effective message, just in a
different fashion.
In
general, I feel that the types of texts we read do impact us as individuals and
society because we are based on social media. Everything we see and read
usually has to deal with the world and without reading; we would be ignorant to
the world and what society has to offer to us. In light of the issue of prostitution, I feel that it will always be around as long as there is a demand for it.
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