Rhetorical Analysis
Rhetorical Analysis of “The Mainstreaming of Political Memes Online.”
Summary
In the article titled “The Mainstreaming of Political Memes Online,” author Nellie Bowles discusses how memes have been gaining recognition in politics. Bowles begins by explaining the definition of a meme and its growing significance in online media. She then goes on to discuss the way many politicians and officials are investing in this form of communication by funding meme efforts online. She also argues that the #MeToo movement, which began as a way for women to speak out against abuse has become a precedent for future movements due to its “precise and populist nature.” Lastly, Bowles discusses the way that Trump has used memes to engage with his followers in the past and that memes could possible replace heavy political debate online.
Rhetorical Appeals
In this article, author Nellie Bowles successfully uses rhetorical appeals such as logos and pathos in order to persuade the reader about the significance of political memes. She uses these appeals to discuss that the use of memes, that were once “guttural, simple message couched in humor” have become a new means of political communication and debate. For example. Bowles writes that “political memes have gone mainstream as the distance between the White House and subcultures like 4Chan has closed.” To achieve this, Bowles uses the appeal to logos by stating facts throughout the article. She then uses the appeal to pathos to tap into the emotions of the reader by discussing various meme campaigns that have had large impacts online. The appeal to ethos was not detected in this article due to the fact that the author does not attempt to comment on her own credibility and authority.
Appeal to Logos
Logos make an argument using facts and reason. Bowles effectively utilizes logos in this article. To achieve this, the author writes “Trump has been crucial in the spreading of political memes, often through retweets of his fans. For his supporters, a retweet shows he’s listening — and that they need to keep meme-ing.” In this sentence, Bowles appeals to logos by describing an instance that actually occurred and can be backed up with evidence. In this case, it was when Trump retweeted a political meme to reach his audience on twitter. Another way that Bowles uses logos successfully in this article is by mentioning how “Sean Eldridge, husband of the Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes, is working on creating shareable content with Stand Up America, a progressive nonprofit that opposes President Trump. And the activist John Sellers’s The Other 98% has received funding from Open Society Foundations, a group backed by Mr. Soros.” By doing this, the author has appealed to higher authority and has shown that she has done her due diligence and research on the issue.
Appeal to Pathos
Pathos is when an author attempts to make an argument using an emotional appeal. In this article, Bowles discusses the #MeToo movement that picked up momentum on social media over the past few months. To appeal to pathos, she includes conversation she had with Andrew Boyd, a social change campaign designer. Boyd says ““It has a crystal quality to it, a simplicity, and elegance, something that feels right and organized.” This descriptive language is a great example of pathos because it aims to create a specific feeling around the issue.
Overall Effect:
Overall, in this article the author has used the appeal to Logos the most effectively. She includes numerous quotes and examples to back up her claims. I do believe that she could have increased her use of pathos and included ethos in order to strengthen her credibility.
Works Cited:
Bowles, Nellie. “The Mainstreaming of Political Memes Online.” The New York Times, www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/02/09/technology/political-memes-go-mainstream.html.