Using Language to Persuade

1. Using Language to Persuade Analysis of Language Practice SAC Opinion Piece by Bernard Toutounji

2. How to approach language analysis • Don’t adopt the ‘shopping list’ or ‘search and destroy’ approach to language analysis. • Upon initial reading, you should gain an overall impression of how the text and visuals work to persuade and position readers. • Pay attention to the publication, form and background context. These factors often shape the content and effect of the piece. • Immediately after this first reading, identify the writer’s contention and overall style. • Consider the writer’s persona and where this ‘voice’ is most apparent in the text. • Consider the target audience for this piece (does this change within the piece) and how they might respond to different arguments and use of language. • What tone is employed and how does this shift throughout the piece? • How is the piece constructed, how are arguments developed, how does the piece open and close? • How do visuals work in conjunction with the written text? • When you then start to annotate, don’t merely label the persuasive technique, you could also note the possible effect or how that persuasive strategy links with another strategy elsewhere in the text.

3. Personal response After reading this text • I think that…. • I feel that… • I might consider changing…

4. Personal response After reading this text • Parents might think that…. • Parents might feel that… • Parents might consider changing…

5. Personal response • The most memorable point (argument or example) is…. • Explain why

6. Background informationIn the Yr12 English exam, you will be provided with a small box containing this information The following opinion piece appeared in the comment section of ‘The Age’. It was written by Bernard Toutounji, who is a freelance speaker and journalist and a member of the Australasian Catholic Press Association. Toutounji lectures in theology at university level and has co-authored a book titled ‘Family and Human Life’.

7. Contention The writer contends that…. ….the proliferation of smartphone photography is limiting the potential of life through a focus on a single instant instead of enabling memories of multi-dimensional experiences. ….our obsession with capturing images can make us lose perspective on the beauty of a life lived in the present moment.

8. Writer’s persona and background • The fact that he has co-authored a book on ‘Family and Human Life’ suggests Toutounji has a sophisticated and strong perspective on this problem. • He presents himself as a reasonable person by acknowledging the prevalence and positive effects of smartphone technology.

9. Style and Tone-make sure you understand the difference between style and tone • Adopting a conversational style and preachy tone similar to a sermon, he reminds readers of how best to live their lives. • He tackles this issue using a rather philosophical approach. • He employs a direct style and motivational tone. • As a lecturer in theology, Toutounji reproves readers in a similar way to his classes, employing an urgent and moralizing, yet hopeful tone. • There is a noticeable tonal shift from sensible and reasonable to impassioned. • Toutounji moves from acceptance and appreciation of the benefits of smartphone cameras to a more serious, critical tone.

10. Audience • Toutounji expects his target audience to be tech-savvy, with sentimental connections with family life. • Published in both print and online publications of The Age, Toutounji ’s arguments canvass a wide readership, as the examples provided relate to both a local (Melbourne) and global (Rome) context.

11. Persuasive Techniques-this is just a brief list of some of the persuasive devices employed in this piece • Statistics • Personal pronoun “I” • Inclusive, collective pronoun “we” • Modal verbs “must” • Alliteration • Anaphora • Anecdotes • Repetition of central messages • Figurative language • Cultural references (brand names) • Appeals to: responsibility, guilt, progress, need for human connections

12. Intended effect/impact on readers • He implores readers to reflect on the effects of capturing their life instead of living it and to reconsider their obsessive use of smartphone cameras . • He highlights the problems associated with living a life ‘on screen’ and capturing moments instead of living them. • The writer seeks to raise awareness of the negative consequences of this digital way of seeing. • The writer urges readers to aspire to something more than “a life tied down to eight megapixels for all eternity”.

13. How (use of visual) • Statistics are used to complement the visual and legitimise his concerns as they alert readers to the overwhelming extent of the problem. • The combination of headline, visual and statistics serves to draw attention to the phenomenon of digital photography. • By relating the potentially shocking statistics to the everyday subject matter of these millions of photographs, he predisposes readers to question the necessity of recording all of these moments; he contrasts sheer numbers of photos taken with memories enjoyed. • The visual focuses on an individual connected with their iPad among a ‘sea’ of similarly disconnected devotees of the Pope, all of whom are “not living the moment”. • The photograph could hold many connotations- the crowd worshipping phones more than God; the blurred background implies a sense of distortion or inability to see beyond the screen.

14. How (he presents himself) • He presents himself as a member of contemporary society, (an iPhone user himself) rather than a conservative critic of technological progress. • His acknowledgement of engaging in the practice himself suggests that he is not immune from this behaviour, thereby softening his critique as he appears to empathise with those who are obsessively “snapping away”. • His religious reference serves to align his beliefs with those readers who might also be spiritually connected with some faith. This also allows him to occupy the moral high-ground, so that his perspective warrants respect from all readers.

15. How (Beyoncé reference) • Incorporating an anecdote and direct quotation from a social icon/contemporary diva such as Beyoncé, the writer appears more relatable to a younger audience. • Readers may be convinced of some validity in his argument because such a successful figure as Beyoncé supports his contention.

16. Linking the cultural references • Through the inclusion of two specific events (in the Beyoncé concert and the Papal election), the writer targets two potentially disparate and substantial demographics, attempting to establish rapport with younger readers and those with religious sensibilities. • Beyoncé’s reprimand indicates her indignation at her fans’ preoccupation with filming and the incident conveys a sense of the practice being insulting to her status. • Similarly, the inclusion of a large and colourful photograph of the crowd at something as significant, rare and sacred as the Papal election suggests that this practice is an affront to a holy man who should be respected. • In both instances, he draws on the influential status of these figures to impress upon readers the seriousness of the concerns raised throughout the article.

17. Linking similar arguments or tone There is a sense that he is mocking the modern obsession with capturing every aspect of life, from ‘our latest meal’ to assembling ‘Ikea furniture’. This is expounded towards the end of the article when he confronts readers with a hypothetical question about taking pictures of the dead and uploading to Flickr.

18. Linking similar arguments or tone • Cultural allusion to Beethoven’s fifth symphony (metaphor of life as an ‘ultimate symphony’; juxtaposes technological creation with divine creation ‘life is the ultimate symphony’) • Contrast between phrases ‘eight megapixels’ and ‘smell, heard, tasted, touched’ reminds readers of the pleasure of using all the other senses • He further extends this metaphor, suggesting that we ‘flat-pack this movement’ for subsequent ‘two-dimensional’ enjoyment. Returning to his initial concert anecdote, he emphatically illustrates how the fan’s memory of his interaction with Beyoncé would have been limited to one image if the diva had not told him to ‘snap out of it’. Readers are prompted to wonder if they might also be missing out on such rich and memorable experiences by ‘pegging our images to the earth in one massive digital album’. This is reinforced through another metaphor depicting digital photography as a ‘chain that ties us to the moment’.

19. Connecting persuasive strategies • Emphasis on family values (provides a poignant hypothetical example of a baby disconnected from parents-only sees lens, not eyes). • Rhetorical questions target parents’ capacity to bond with their children, while inviting them to reconsider their urge to ‘preserve’ every ‘smile, wink and laugh’. • Shifting to a more sombre tone, he invites readers to consider whether they would readily turn the lens on the human experience of loss and suffering. • Another metaphor is employed as he argues that the experiences captured are unlikely to represent the full ‘tapestry of life’.

20. Conclusion • Through his concluding plea and vivid metaphor describing accessible digital photography as a “chain that ties us to the moment”, readers are encouraged to feel that greater freedom can be obtained if “we truly seize the moment”. • Toutounji concludes with a contrasting and inviting suggestion of how to attain an idyllic life (“full and rewarding”), something he asserts cannot be achieved through the ‘screen of a Samsung Galaxy’. Discerning readers might be somewhat curious about the writer’s inclusion of two competing brands within this piece. It could be interpreted that he is condemning a widespread practice whilst promoting products.