Riddle: On the Validity of Sources
Where I first saw this image: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cornwall-56286719
Is the source credible?
Is the BBC website a credible source of news? Is it credible enough that you will accept this photograph has not been altered after it was taken? The optical phenomenon is described in ways that sound SORT OF credible, but if the BBC had published it on April 01, maybe we wouldn’t be so likely to accept its veracity. Read the article. Decide for yourself. Leave observations below.
Do I trust the image?
As part of your Agenda notes for today, evaluate how you feel about the credibility of the photograph and the reported explanations for it.
Fact-checking
- https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/06/world/europe/flying-ship-cornwall.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirage
- https://www.eoas.ubc.ca/courses/atsc113/sailing/met_concepts/10-met-local-conditions/10f-optical-phenomena/
The Rhetorical Value of Visuals
If you’re having a hard time understanding what I mean by analyzing the Rhetoric of your 30-second spot, this example of the meaning of the Thai Life Insurance ad might help.
Not Because
My Chemical Romance “I Don’t Love You”
Robust Subjects and Verbs
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Counterintuitive Spring 2024 
The boat photo is real, marriages are quite strange in essence and camera’s can distort things as well. Try to make sentences easier to follow and understand. It’s good to be direct with your message and to not mice words. Visual rhetoric can be very powerful due to subliminal messaging that can be disguised by a pleasant concept on paper.
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-Riddle: The source for the photo is somewhat credible. It is a big news source where lots of people go for their news. If the source seems somewhat credible and it isn’t posted on April Fools day it might seem more real. The explanations for it make it slightly harder to believe. The source says it is common to see however in the UK where this photo is taken, it is extremely rare for it to happen. That starts to make it harder to believe because it already rarely shows up. Somehow in the rare occurrence it did show up someone was ready to take a picture. That is what makes the credibility a little weird and not seem as true.
-Thai life insurance ad: We conspire to be persuaded. We always want a reward in anything in life. Whether that is watching a video and hoping for something good to happen or other things. Specific ads are chosen in hopes in reaches the target audience. The target for the life insurance ad is young men with children. It is shown to encourage other young men with children to get started on life insurance so that in case of a emergency, the mother and child will be protected.
-Not because: Sometimes when writing papers or essays, writers can make mistakes and word sentences in the wrong way. The writer knows what they mean when writing it but the reader may interpret that in the wrong way. It is always good to be clear and write things in the best possible way for the reader to understand what is trying to be said.
-Robust subjects and verbs: Common phrases can kill good prose. Good revision will eliminate or get rid of toxic elements in a piece of writing. The best thing a writer can do with openings like there is, there are, and it is, is to tell the readers something exists. When writing smaller papers like 1,000 words, every sentence matters and a writer should not want to waste a single one if they can. If a sentence is useless, the writer has not written the paper in a good way and clearly did not revise well.
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-The riddle of the floating boat above the ocean is teaching us about the validity of sources. It is making us think about whether we think that this photo is credible based on the source and researching it. Fact check can help with determining what is real and what is not, and it is useful to combat fake news.
-Undermining the sense of what you read can be dangerous, but if there is a lot of malevolence with the stuff we are showing, it’s normal to want to judge the veracity of what we see. I think that the floating boat is photoshop because I cannot get myself to think that the boat is actually floating.
-The ad promoting life insurance shows this guy who feeds a dog, puts a plant under a mass amount of water, and more, showing he is a caring guy. With doing all of these good things, he is not maybe getting anything, maybe physical in return, but the happiness he gets from it and the emotions running through him is what makes it worth it. The point of this ad was to believe in good, and to get life insurance. This can be a good example of a visual rhetoric because we are seeing a video clip with no words, and are analyzing it trying to make sense of the point of the video.
-Starting with a “not” and “because” in writing is not necessarily the right thing to do. There needs to be a different way of writing to eliminate using those words at first. There can be other descriptive words to not make it so negative, and put a positive word instead of a negative (not is negative). Avoiding confusion is key for your readers, and by doing this it can help the reader understand the point of the sentence.
-Breaking rules for how to keep your readers engaged in writing is that we need to avoid using “is” to begin the sentence with. The word “is” is the weakest of the verbs. Sentence by sentence revisions can be a good tool in order to make your sentences stronger and more robust. There is a paragraph that we have to edit and publish into robust verbs and your username.
-The Rebuttal Argument is not a way to honor the likelihood that the opponent is right. Our unpopular opinions can be confusing to the reader, so we have to persuade the reader on what we believe in. For this argument, we have to acknowledge that there are other contradictory opinions. Common knowledge is almost always wrong, however we need to understand that there are other people who do not get our argument. “I understand why you think that, and here is why you are wrong” is the goal of this argument.
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Ship hovering Illusion: Given that the BBC is a very credible source I was immediately drawn to believe that the image is real. After some fact checking I found that some simple light refraction has caused this presumed phenomenon.
Thai Life Insurance – Each frame communicates something without the full context. For this ad it seems like a public service announcement, but actually promotes making small payments over time to ensure future benefit of those around you.
I don’t love you because – You cannot start with negation in this scenario, for instance “I love you not just for your beauty”, or even better, “I love you for your beauty and your generous heart.”
Rebuttal Argument – You have to figure out what the reader is thinking in the back of their mind, and prove them wrong.
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we might be inclined to not believe the image of the floating boat, but it came from the bbc which is a credible source, but like its still obviously not floating.
the ad seems like a psa to be kind but its just an ad for life insurance. the man giving the child money is analogous to insurance or something.
you wouldn’t say “I don’t love you because you’re beautiful” because its misleading, you would say something like “I love not because you’re beautiful, but for something else.” Your sentence structure should be such that its meaning is unambiguous.
if you only have 1000 words every sentence has to count. dont start sentences with things like “there are” or “there is” that imply something exists.
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The ‘optical illusion’ of the boat picture may very well be a valid photo. The phenomenon of a superior mirage seems to be a documented one according to the linked sources. Thus, I cannot dispute the picture because a) I wasn’t there when the photo was captured b) there seems to be science behind this phenomenon.
The ultimate goal of a persuasive writer is to guide readers to conclusions they don’t know how they came to.
The life insurance ad plays on the notion of persuasiveness by tagging the readers with emotions by displaying the ultimate selfless gentlemen who does enough significant acts in donations to a poor child that sends her to school.
A convoluted sentence is a sentence that follows a negative verb with the word ‘because.’
There’s nothing more frustrating than using a rhetorical question before getting to your point.
Just say what you have to say. A hesitant writer makes a hesitant reader (in terms of the conclusions they draw about your argument).
Get to the point in your first sentence.
Don’t hint at the problem, rather attack it.
Draw a starking conclusion as cleanly as you can.
The point of the rebuttal argument is not to honor the likelihood of your critic being right. Don’t cater to your opposition.
The point of the rebuttal argument is to persuade the readers who are on the margin.
The rebuttal argument acknowledges there are other contradictory opinions. For example, “I understand why you think that, but here’s why you are wrong.”
Common knowledge is almost always wrong.
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-Riddle: Do I think the photo is credible? I think the ship floating somewhat is not real but it could also be an optical illusion or seeing it at a certain angle. I think the BBC is a credible source though because they have been reliable for years so it could make the picture real.
-Find the argument in the video, not just the message of the video. Find the target audience of the video. Then find what type of argument the video is.
-Try not to undermine yourself. Sentences that follow a negative verb with because creates confusion for the reader. Eliminate the “not because” just say why you do or do not like them.
-Common phrases can kill good prose. “Is” is the weakest verb and what we want is “this demonstrates that” or “this happens” etc.
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The image of the boat that is shown was taken and shown on BBC News and the boat looks like it’s floating over the horizon but its just an optical illusion, a perfect angle taken by the camera. In hindsight the boat is not floating it’s just very far away looking like it’s floating.
I love you topic. It talks about how when writing people tend to not really express the sentences the right way make it sound not efficient enough so this was a great explanation of that.
You should refrain from using “is” because it’s very overused and it’s a weak verb. It’s important to revise your sentences so that they are able to sound stronger based on your subject that you have chosen.
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These sub-points further elaborate on the main ideas, providing a detailed breakdown of each aspect for clearer understanding and application.
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– We must be careful when judging the veracity of what we see. When we look for sources for our arguments, we must analyze both the content and the author or the format in which the information is presented.
– Argument by analogy: involves comparing two things that are similar in certain ways and then suggesting that they are probably similar in other ways as well. Paying for life insurance every month is like making small contributions every day.
– Start with a positive claim instead of a negative one. Positive affirmations are clearer and easier to understand than negative ones. They provide a simple exposition of what is being stated, making it easier for the reader to understand the main point.
– Avoid “is” and all the variations of the word “to be” as often as you can because it is by far the weakest word possible. It means something exists but it does not provide us with any context.
– Rebuttal argument – is our opportunity to know other contradictory opinions. It’s to tell our readers that we understand why they think that but explain why they are wrong. You have to figure out what the reader is thinking in the back of their mind to be able to prove to them that what they are thinking or assuming is wrong.
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Is source credible— I believe that BBC is credible, I’ve read stuff on there that seems legit and displays real information
Trusting image- I’m not sure I believe it, something seems off
Negative verbs—- you wouldnt say “ I dont love you because… thats misleading, instead say “I love you not only for your beauty”
Make sure to complete in class exercise
Robust subjects and verbs- stop starting sentences with It’s/they’re/there’s, it’s a weak opener.
Find the most robust verb you can
Robust exercise is due
Rebuttal argument- 4/8
It will identity the argument you feel is the strongest rebuttal to your own thesis, its an opportunity to acknowledge that there are other opinions
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Riddle: On the Validity of sources
The Rhetorical value of visuals
Not because
Robust Subjects and Verbs
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What sources do credible sources use? Indeed.
5/3
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I was absent:
Riddle: I don’t feel that the picture is credible. With any background on the photo I would believe that it was photoshopped due to that fact that it seems impossible for it to be real.
Life insurance ad: I feel that most ads are meant to hit some kid of emotion in order for you to engage in the ad. This in turn would make you act on the ad such as buying life insurance for your child as a young dad.
Robust Subjects: Having a strong opening is extremely important, it was draws your readers in. Having strong to the point wording can also help catch your readers attention. Choosing an interesting topic can make or break your argument. If you have a stronger argument then you will be able to back up your thesis more.
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