Write a career reflection report. In this case you detail how at least 2 main concepts of rhetoric would be useful in your career path. For this project you need to locate a profession(Psychology, Behavioral Therapy), offer some minor context on the profe

Rhetoric and Artist Appreciation

How can rhetoric change the way that we appreciate artists?

Part 1: Production of Art as a whole

When examining a piece of art, it is important to think about each and every component that took part in its creation. How and why something was created is arguably the most essential aspect to consider when questioning the purpose and intention of an artistic expression. These two things combined, composition and intention, are the defining characteristics of an art form. Take Rihanna’s new album, ANTI, for instance. According to Zach Frydenlund’s article titled “A Look At Who’s Who on Rihanna’s ANTI Album”, it took a team of about thirty members to complete and perfect the production of this incredible new album. This article credited each member of the team for the specific job that they performed. And so various producers, composers and lyricists were used throughout the album, giving it a very unique and fresh style, different from anything Rihanna has performed before, hence the album title “ANTI”. This collaboration was composed beautifully and proved to be extremely successful in fulfilling the intention of the artist, to create something completely different.

Part 2: Criticizing the Artist

In a contrary perspective, artists often receive bold, public judgements for not being “original” or unique in their expression of art. Many are scrutinized for depending on the creativity and collaboration of a team to produce a product. Critic of Music is a website that claims to find the “latest happenings in music”. Shortly after Rihanna’s new album was released in January 2016, Rachel Platten reviewed the album in a rather negative way. The overall rating was a 6.6/10. Platten wrote that the first half of the album seemed to be rushed in its creation, while “the latter half seems to fall into a mix of styles unidentifiable to Rihanna”. This reviewer was not analyzing the intention of the album and therefore failed to appreciate the amazing composition that it is. Platten claims that the album “shines when it’s the least ‘anti’ anything” and continues to compare Rihanna’s older songs and style with her new one. Only a few weeks after its release and Platten already claimed that Rihanna’s album “falls flat in its most desperate attempts to gain new fans.” In addition to this negative review of the album, this blogger boldly criticizes Rihanna herself, claiming that she has exposed her weakness and insecurities, and emphasized her “thirst for sexual release”. Unfortunately, Rachel Platten was unable to appreciate the art created by Rihanna and her team. We must redefine what it means to appreciate an art form in the world we live in today.

Part 3: Jean Baudrillard

Jean Baudrillard’s perspective on originality can completely change the way we appreciate the world around us, including and especially pertaining to the creation of so-called “original” artistic expressions. Baudrillard’s theory of simulacra and simulation explains that nothing is original, but rather an imitation or duplicate of something that has already existed. Baudrillard believed that our society has become so saturated with these simulacra, or unoriginal copies, and our lives so “saturated with the constructs of society” that all meaning has become meaningless because of its “infinite mutability”. In other words, because things are constantly changing but we remain consumed in our societal constructs therefore things become meaningless. Taking this theory into consideration, Rihanna’s new album, is unoriginal by nature and should thereby not be scrutinized for its nature, but praised for its composition and intention.

Part 4: The Rhetorical Approach

We must create a new perspective in which to appreciate art and the artist. Rather than through a critical lens, we must learn to view art as expression attached to meaning and purpose. We should be able to simply close our eyes, listen to an album, and appreciate it for how it makes us feel. Comparing old and new is futile when ultimately, art is how we experience something in that moment. When analyzing the creation of this expression, the artists’ intention (ethos), feelings (pathos), and the form in which it was composed (logos) are the purest elements of the art itself. Anything aside from that takes away from the full appreciation of the expression. I believe that understanding rhetoric can positively change the way that we as a society, express ourselves and appreciate other peoples’ expressions. In the words of Anna Deavere Smith, “We spend so much time bantering about the words when the real open conversations might very well be our actions. I worry about our rhetoric.” Let us enjoy moments and appreciate what appears to be our reality rather than creating a negative one for ourselves and those around us.

Annotated Bibliography:

Platten, Rachel. "Album Review: Rihanna - ANTI." Critic of Music. Rainbow Links, Jan. 2016. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.

This website is a blog-like review of Rihanna’s album, ANTI. The author of the article is mostly negative in reviewing the style, effort, and Rihanna’s attempt to create something new and different. Patten claims that the first half of the album seems rushed, “while the latter half seems to fall into a mix of styles unidentifiable to Rihanna”. Patten states that ANTI sounds like an attempt “to recreate sounds” from a 2015’s most popular list.

Simulacra and Simulation. Perf. Voice Over. Creative Commons, 2014. Youtube. Web. 10 Dec. 2016. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hl9zO0cS-NU>.

This video explains Jean Baudrillard’s theory of Simulacra and Simulation. It defines both terms, describes the four stages of the theory, and further describes the process in which originality vanishes into simulacrum. It exemplifies the theory through societal practices such as language, culture, power, money, science and more. Using exact quotes from Baudrillard’s theory made this video insightful and useful.

Smith, Anna Deavere. Letters to a Young Artist. New York: Anchor, 2006. Print.

This a book written by Anna Deavere Smith intended to inspire young artist around the world. It contains “Straight-up Advice on Making a Life in the Arts-For Actors, Performers, Writers, and Artists of Every Kind”. It is filled with positive quotes and shares interesting opinions on rhetoric and the importance of words in our society.

Zach FrydenlundFollow Zach on Twitter for Jokes and Hot Takes Here. . "A Look at Who's Who on Rihanna's 'ANTI' Album." Complex. N.p., 28 Jan. 2016. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.

This website provides a neutral to positive perspective on the collaboration that brought Rihanna’s new album, ANTI, to success. As stated, over 30 artists collaborated with one another to bring about this masterpiece. This article gives specific credit to each individual, on which song and in which way they contributed to the making of this 2016 album. Similar to most artists in the music industry, Rihanna has a team of creative specialists that made the production of her album a reality and a great success. Described by the author of the article, these collaborators all received due credit and many even gained exposure for themselves by collaborating on this popular album. According to this article, “collaborations.. always give her (Rihanna’s) albums an added level of excitement based on a wide range of artists she worked with.”