The Pursuit Of Happyness Rhetorical Analysis
Project 1 – Rhetorical Analysis of a Movie Trailer: Prewriting Questions
Name: Neeyal Patel
Trailer: The Pursuit of Happyness
Part A. What do you regard as the most likely preferred interpretation/argument offered in the trailer (besides the very obvious promotional message: “come see this film”)? In other words, “why is the story being told and why should the film be seen” (Maier 162)?
In the trailer for The Pursuit of Happyness, the main character Will Smith is a father who is forced to live out on the streets, while taking care of a child all alone. He is faced with providing for his son in any means necessary causing him to join a competitive internship at a proven stock company. Will Smith is forced to change is future without forgetting …show more content…
Directions:
• For each rhetorical element (e.g., AUDIENCE) listed below, answer all of the questions.
• In addition, comment on how each element uses—or purposefully does NOT use—the four rhetorical appeals: LOGOS, PATHOS, ETHOS & KAIROS. (For example, in some genres, LOGOS is left out altogether to further a trailer’s argument; e.g. a comedy usually seeks to entertain the audience via humor, and logic/facts/statistics might detract from this purpose/argument.)
1. AUDIENCE: Who is the primary audience for the film the trailer is promoting? How do you know? (Be specific. Most films target a very specific demographic as their intended audience, although their actual audience may be quite broad.)
The intended audience in the trailer for The Pursuit of Happyness was targeted towards families with young children. The audience were drawn to the movie using pathos by seeing real world struggles of a father who would do anything to provide a good life for his child. Additionally, the movie was released in December 2006, a holiday time where families are together creating happy memories and see how much they have to be grateful for. The movie’s audience was affected by kairos due to the beginning of the recession crisis. Families began to see the economy slowing down and the economy entering turmoil; the parents saw the struggles that they could potentially be in the near
Name: Neeyal Patel
Trailer: The Pursuit of Happyness
Part A. What do you regard as the most likely preferred interpretation/argument offered in the trailer (besides the very obvious promotional message: “come see this film”)? In other words, “why is the story being told and why should the film be seen” (Maier 162)?
In the trailer for The Pursuit of Happyness, the main character Will Smith is a father who is forced to live out on the streets, while taking care of a child all alone. He is faced with providing for his son in any means necessary causing him to join a competitive internship at a proven stock company. Will Smith is forced to change is future without forgetting …show more content…
Directions:
• For each rhetorical element (e.g., AUDIENCE) listed below, answer all of the questions.
• In addition, comment on how each element uses—or purposefully does NOT use—the four rhetorical appeals: LOGOS, PATHOS, ETHOS & KAIROS. (For example, in some genres, LOGOS is left out altogether to further a trailer’s argument; e.g. a comedy usually seeks to entertain the audience via humor, and logic/facts/statistics might detract from this purpose/argument.)
1. AUDIENCE: Who is the primary audience for the film the trailer is promoting? How do you know? (Be specific. Most films target a very specific demographic as their intended audience, although their actual audience may be quite broad.)
The intended audience in the trailer for The Pursuit of Happyness was targeted towards families with young children. The audience were drawn to the movie using pathos by seeing real world struggles of a father who would do anything to provide a good life for his child. Additionally, the movie was released in December 2006, a holiday time where families are together creating happy memories and see how much they have to be grateful for. The movie’s audience was affected by kairos due to the beginning of the recession crisis. Families began to see the economy slowing down and the economy entering turmoil; the parents saw the struggles that they could potentially be in the near