Catching the Devil
Daniel Morcombe’s
Cold Blooded Killer: His Criminal Past
By Rose Tommo
Kate Kyriacou, David Murray, Renee Viellaris and Peter Hall wrote a 16-page feature article in The Courier Mail about Daniel Morcombe’s disappearance and Brett Cowan’s past. This commentary is focusing on Brett Cowan’s past and how he might have been ‘Born Evil’.
The article creates representations of issues, people and places, particularly the issue of child abuse both sexual, physical and mental, and that past history should be taken into consideration when in court, during the trials or hearings.
The readers are positioned to believe that Brett Cowan shouldn’t have been allowed to walk free, after sexually assaulting young boys and nearly killing another. The central idea is to show the readers how evil Brett Cowan’s past was so that they wouldn’t have any sympathy for him and to influence the reader against him, to show how the justice system had failed to give him a more severe punishment.
People’s beliefs and values are shaped by their background and upbringing. This affects their view of the world. This is known as a cultural code. In the article there are several examples of cultural representations. Culturally we assume that people who come from a “Good family”, “good home” and “good school” will turn out to be a good person.
Another cultural assumption is people with disorders. Culturally we view them as being bad or having a problem because they have a disorder. Therefore inferring that Cowan is evil by relating him to ADHD. People with ADHD have a bad reputation in society. They are hard to control; they can’t sit still and find it hard to concentrate.
The people who are quoted in the article are people who he has hurt. For example Tracey, his ex-girlfriend, or people he has met under negative circumstances, for example, the detectives. The people who are not quoted are people who might say positive things about Cowan, for example his other family members,
Cold Blooded Killer: His Criminal Past
By Rose Tommo
Kate Kyriacou, David Murray, Renee Viellaris and Peter Hall wrote a 16-page feature article in The Courier Mail about Daniel Morcombe’s disappearance and Brett Cowan’s past. This commentary is focusing on Brett Cowan’s past and how he might have been ‘Born Evil’.
The article creates representations of issues, people and places, particularly the issue of child abuse both sexual, physical and mental, and that past history should be taken into consideration when in court, during the trials or hearings.
The readers are positioned to believe that Brett Cowan shouldn’t have been allowed to walk free, after sexually assaulting young boys and nearly killing another. The central idea is to show the readers how evil Brett Cowan’s past was so that they wouldn’t have any sympathy for him and to influence the reader against him, to show how the justice system had failed to give him a more severe punishment.
People’s beliefs and values are shaped by their background and upbringing. This affects their view of the world. This is known as a cultural code. In the article there are several examples of cultural representations. Culturally we assume that people who come from a “Good family”, “good home” and “good school” will turn out to be a good person.
Another cultural assumption is people with disorders. Culturally we view them as being bad or having a problem because they have a disorder. Therefore inferring that Cowan is evil by relating him to ADHD. People with ADHD have a bad reputation in society. They are hard to control; they can’t sit still and find it hard to concentrate.
The people who are quoted in the article are people who he has hurt. For example Tracey, his ex-girlfriend, or people he has met under negative circumstances, for example, the detectives. The people who are not quoted are people who might say positive things about Cowan, for example his other family members,