Reading Response #5

My essay argued that juvenile curfews should no longer exist. The main points that were used to argue this were that curfew is unconstitutional, inconsistent and even ineffective. I also argued that curfew is a familial issue that does not belong in the hands of city authorities.
When I thought about how I would argue my point in a new rhetoric I had two very distinct ideas. Primarily I pictured a pro-adolescent freedom advertisement and then later recognized that an advertisement against the injustice of curfew might also be effective. If I were to choose the first option then my audience would be adolescents who are currently the victims of juvenile curfew. My advertisement would seek to motivate them to gain the right to stay out late without being hassled by cops. For some reason Taco Bell’s “fourth meal” advertisements stuck out in my mind and I am still trying to think of a way to possibly mimic the late night appeal they suggest. I think that the colors involved in my own ad would be mostly bright and energetic. This approach seems a little dangerous however. If I did not create the advertisement correctly then it could possibly look like it would encourage wild behavior and unhealthy habits such as late night eating and a lack of sleep. I would try to advertise how staying out late could be a way for kids to feel more free without having to make bad decisions. It would rely somewhat on the argument that bowling might be fun, but glow bowling at two in the morning is so much more exciting. The benefits of this idea are that is seems very mainstream to me and that is why it was my initial gut to follow this sort of path. I would also be tempted to somehow utilize music and possibly the Bruce Springsteen song “Because the Night” in this mode. Maybe I would make it a PowerPoint and have that song playing in the background. The lyrics are powerful and they somewhat correspond to the idea of regaining an obstructed freedom. The chorus says “they can’t hurt you now; no they can’t hurt us now; because the night belongs to us.” “Here’s To the Night” by Eve 6 could be another possibly impactful audio for this PowerPoint. The chorus of which says, “Here’s to the nights we felt alive; here’s to the tears you knew you’d cry; here’s to goodbye, tomorrow’s gonna come too soon; all my time is froze in motion; can't I stay an hour or two or more; don't let me let you go.” Although the boys in our class would probably hate it, I would even consider including the song “This Is Your Night” by Amber simply because it is so upbeat.
On the other hand, I had an idea for a more serious advertisement that utilizes the appeal of ethos to point out the unjust flaws of juvenile curfew. I think that the colors would be mostly black and white or somewhat dull. I imagine there would be jail bars somewhere in the image and perhaps a kid wearing an orange jumpsuit turning in his keys and some object representing his freedom to the jail officer before entering his house.
Later, I thought about a specific advertisement idea that I thought would be most effective in a different format. I pictured a billboard done in colors and graphics that looked like they were from the 50’s. There would be a boy sitting at a dining room table giving a thumbs-up in the foreground. His family would be seated at the table with him but he would remain the focus of the graphic while they were partially just background. There would be text next to the boy that read, “I’m so glad I don’t have to rush out on dinner with my family to meet up with my friends! Now that there’s no curfew to cut my night short, I can spend time with my family when it is convenient for them and still have time for a game of monopoly with my friends.” I am not sure that this nearly sarcastic advertisement strategy will be effective, however I thought I should jot it down anyway. What I like about this idea is that it has a clear purpose of gratifying the benefits of demolishing adolescent curfews. The reason I think that this idea would be best represented as a billboard is that the audience is not clear cut. A billboard is visible to many people including police officers, city mayors, parents and children. I thought this ad idea was most appropriate for a varied audience.
From trying to think of ways to convey my argument in varied rhetoric forms, I have learned that everything about an advertisements layout is crucial to its effect. There is far too much to consider to successfully do so by simply thinking about an idea. I think that it is nearly impossible to make all the necessary format decisions without drawing out a few sketches. It seems that the layout of the advertisement might be just as important as the argument behind the image.