Carried Away

For my song I chose Passion Pit's "Carried Away" and to compare it to, I chose the Tropicana Farmstand commercial which uses the song as well.  They are two completely different moods and tones and do not have vary many similarities.  The original music video portrays a dysfunctional relationship between a man and a woman and their ups and downs.  The Tropicana commercial shows a happy store clerk setting out the juice and his face is just lit up and excited the whole time.  Each video focuses on a completely different tone and each video does a good job in making the song fit that tone.  The song in itself is about a man that is constantly apologizing for the wrong that he has done and his excuse is that his heart is guarded and that he convinces himself that he doesn't need the relationship just a friend.   There are very few happy moments within the original music video, whereas the whole commercial displays the song in a happy and bright light.  The store clerk is constantly overjoyed and playful.  The song was originally meant as a up and down piece, but the commercial places it in a continuous up.

From Flappers to Rappers

"The Great Gatsby" chose the music that they did for the movie because it not only reflects what the 20's were like, but it also has ties to today's world.  The music is current and fresh but the instruments and beats behind the lyrics has a 1920's feel to it.  Take for example the song "Crazy In Love".  This was originally performed by Beyoncé a few years ago, making it a current song, but by adding in the instruments popular to that time period, it creates a 1920's atmosphere.  By using such current music, the movie engages its viewers because they can relate to the songs, but by putting a 1920's spin on them it still maintains the era.  I believe that the music was a successful rhetorical device because it helps to relate the two time periods.  Gatsby's time was filled with extravagant parties, excessive drinking, and lavish living.  Times today, although further advanced, are not too different.  The music helps to create the mood of the movie with every song.  For example, when "A Little Party Never Killed Nobody" starts to play, the mood instantly rises not only for the listener but also in the movie scene.  The party booms with joy and excitement and the song becomes faster and louder reflecting the extravagance of the party.

Process and Product

The way we wrote this Unit 1 paper was different then I have ever done before, but I found it much more helpful than any way I have ever done before.  I found that by breaking my ad into pieces and then analyzing those pieces I was able to write much more than I would be able to by analyzing it as a whole.  Also, if I got stuck on a paragraph, I could just move ahead and start writing on another idea.  I did no have to worry about building on each idea and staying stuck until i came up with something to write about.  Writing out of order also helped me to organize my thoughts more clearly rather than skipping around and not having the paper flow.  I also found that by drafting multiple copies of my paper I was able to include a lot more of my ideas.