Intended Audience of the Photograph

The audience targeted by this photograph consists of both the government and American citizens.  The main purpose of the protest is to get the government to withdraw from the Vietnam War. By photographing people protesting the war, the photographer is sending a message to government officials that they do not have support from the people.  They wanted the government to end both the draft and the war entirely.  The photograph also targets individual people by showing them an alternative to war.  The sign “Make Love Not War” embodies a hippie mentality, but reaches out to others as well.  It intends to get more American citizens to protest the war.  This Anti-War mentality was not solely held by hippies.  The hippies were a main contributor to the movement, but more support from the American people was necessary.  The photographer does a good job portraying the urgency and desperation within the photograph to the audience.  More Anti-War support was needed to make a change.  Eventually the draft was ended and soldiers began returning from Vietnam. 

Visual Elements for photo

The people in this picture are in plain, solid colored clothing. Since there are no crazy prints or patterns, the audience doesn't get distracted. This is a good thing because the people are protesting and striving for a common goal and that is where all the attention needs to be focused on. The picture being black and white is also an important aspect; the people and background are darker colors, so there is noticeable contrast against the white posters. This contrast draws attention to the posters, which gets the protesters message across to the viewer. The only poster that is completely visible and not cut off is the one that says "Make Love Not War." The photographer made a good choice for capturing that poster because it spreads hippie ideology, as well as protest the Vietnam War. That poster is also the only one that is held high up into the air, indicating that the protester is eager to spread his message. Another important part of the picture is the man burning his draft card. He is in the very front and his face is clear and visible. Along with the poster, he also draws attention. He rebelliously holds up the burning draft card, displaying it for the world to see because he is proud of his own actions.

John Lennon's Audience

With Imagine, John Lennon was targeting an audience of not only hippies who shared his ideals, but also millions of Beatles fans who were ready to listen to what he had to say. During this time period, many people's ideals were changing and people began to rebel and have social movements. Lennon knew that he could use his fanbase as a way to communicate his message to a lot of people at once. People who were ready to listen to him heard the song for the first time and were deeply moved by his message.

Unique Style of "Imagine"

During the Hippie movement in the 1960's, a new era of music emerged that focused more on the message of the music instead of just the entertainment element. Many musicians shared this view but they all delivered their messages with different styles and genres including: heavy metal, rock, hip hop, and punk. John Lennon was known for his unique rock style, similar to The Beatles when they were together. The song "Imagine" in particular was supposed to be a simple and stripped down melody so that the main focus was on the message. His message was simply world peace and living life in the moment. Using words like "imagine" and "peace" give the song a hopeful and optimistic mood. He writes the song towards individual people urging them to imagine the world that he himself has pictured. It makes the song very personal which contributes to it's timeless message of peace on Earth.

Pathos Demonstrated in the Photograph

Pathos is used to persuade the audience by appealing to their emotions.  In the photograph on the right, pathos is expressed in the facial expressions of the individuals and the word choice on the signs.  The expressions on the men show that they are suffering greatly from the draft and are already exhausted by the war.  Not only is this meant to appeal to government officials, but it is also meant to persuade other Americans to reach out and protest the war.  It shows the exhaustion and damage that can be done by participating in another war.  Another appeal to the audience presented in this photograph is the word choice on the sign in the background.  “Make Love Not War” is written on the sign held by one of the men.  Using the term “love” demonstrates the power that love can have on a country.  The audience is drawn in by the notion that love can be the solution to war.  The hippies were advocating for peace and the photographer made use of pathos to express that ideal. 

 

Pathos of "Imagine"

The main mood of the song "Imagine" by John Lennon is peaceful and tranquil. The song evokes these emotions through it's diction, music and imagery. First, Lennon begins each of the three verses with the word "imagine" which makes the audience picture what he has to say about his vision of the world. Having the audience imagine instead of "assume" or "picture", is what gives the song more of a positive mood and outlook. The music of the song is very simple starting off with only piano and eventually adding drums and strings. The simplicity and its slow melody are what give the song a relaxing and peaceful emotion that appeals to the audience. Lennon ends each verse with a simple image that he hopes can happen in the future. These three images are, "Living for today", "Living life in peace", and "Sharing all the world". He wants the audience to imagine these things and share his view on World Peace instead of all the violence and war that had consumed the world. They are the main ideas of the song and they also support the views and beliefs of the Hippies in the 1960's.

Ethos in photo

The subjects in the photo are a good representation of the type of people who protested the Vietnam War. The two men in the front are young so they were eligible to get drafted. They have personal credibility and a reason to protest because they are personally experiencing the draft (both are holding draft cards). The men are also dressed plainly, nothing extravagant, so they live in a non-materialistic manner that the hippies aimed for. The women in the background also display personal credibility because it can be assumed that they have a loved one who is affected by the war. Their spouse, family member or friend could have been drafted and then served in Vietnam only to be killed in combat. All the visible faces in the picture are younger people, so it is likely that they are hippies because it was a youth movement and they are all against the violent war. The "Make Love Not War" poster is advocating peace, which the hippies valued greatly.

Use of Ethos in Imagine

John Lennon gained credibility as a part of the Beatles in the 1960s. Because of this, Lennon's fans were going to listen to any music he put out whether it was good or not. His loyal following learned to trust him and his messages through his time with the Beatles. When he left the band in the late 60s, he began to make music with messages that he personally believed more than the music he had made with the Beatles and capitalized off of his loyal following. When he released Imagine, people around the world took in his message because he was somebody they already looked up to.

Kairos and Rhetorical Situation

The hippie subculture emerged in the 1960s and embraced peace and artistic expression.  Protest against the Vietnam War was increasing drastically with the growing hippie population. The majority of the hippie subculture consisted of young individuals and many older Americans did not take their views seriously.  In this picture, the photographer captures the expressions of individuals who attended one of the many Anti-War protests during the 1960s.  The photograph features both men and women advocating for peace with the use of protest signs and by burning draft cards.  You can tell by their expressions in the photograph that these individuals believed in something more and that war was not the answer.  Not only does the photograph send an unsatisfactory message to the government about war, but it projects the message to other American men that the draft is an unfair process.  The burning of the draft cards were a significant aspect of the photograph.  This photograph was most likely printed in newspapers, making the draft burning a public violation of the law and an outcry for change to the United States government.  The photographer demonstrated major aspects of the hippie movement and their importance in this single photograph. 

Rhetorical Situation of "Imagine"

The Hippie Movement is known mainly for radical groups and musical figures throughout the 1960's that had the goal peace, harmony, and artistic experimentation. John Lennon was one of the most well known figures/musicians of the movement for his views of a peaceful, utopian world that he hoped our World could eventually be. The album "Imagine" was written by John Lennon in 1971 and was part of his second solo album after separating from The Beatles. The song the album named after, Imagine, is the most iconic of Lennon's songs because of its timeless significance in all different types of social movements. The song was written and composed along with Yoko Ono, John's wife, and Phil Spector, a well known producer. Lennon was known to be against the war in Vietnam so when the song was released it was immediately seen as Anti-war propaganda. Lennon purposefully added in certain elements into the song like using strings to create a sense of beauty and simplicity. The song was written while John was living in England and finished in New York. A month after its release it reached number three on Billboard's Top 100, which reflects the popularity of the song among the growing counterculture during that time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVg2EJvvlF8

Major Rhetorical Argument

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVg2EJvvlF8

This song, released in 1971 by John Lennon, is one of the many anti-war songs that was released during this time period. The lyrics, which send messages of peace and love, inspire the listener to imagine a world where these messages are a reality. The hippie movement, which went by these messages, was created as a result of the american war in Vietnam, which many deemed unnecessary. Lennon's lyrics, backed by very simple music, create the image of a simple world where everything is peaceful. Many hippies believes this world to be very possible if people stopped fighting over petty things such as money, land, or religion. The first lyrics of the song, "Imagine there's no heaven, its easy if you try, no hell below us, above us only sky", simplify the concept of religion to a point where people have nothing to argue about. Lennon's use of the word "imagine" sends the message that, whether the things were fighting over are important or not, everyone should imagine that they're not and move forward in a world of peace. Of course, Lennon believes that they are not important, but his point is that people should focus on loving each other instead of fighting of things that they don't have an answer to.

Major Rhetorical Argument (photo)

The photo on the right sidebar depicts one of the many Anti-Vietnam War protests that took place throughout the 1960's. While there were a plethora of reasons why the war was deemed unnecessary and unlawful, people were especially upset over the draft. The majority of the young men conscripted were high school drop-outs or African Americans.

Many saw this as discriminatory since the rich often found a way to avoid draft, either by staying in university for as long as possible or joining the National Guard.








In the photo, the man on the left is burning his draft card and displaying it for everyone to see. This is an act of defiance since it was illegal to knowingly destroy a draft card. The man risked arrest and punishment by acting on his right to free speech and expressing his opposition to the draft and war. While some men who burned their draft cards did face repercussions, the majority did not. This method of protest was effective because after Nixon took office, he ended the draft in 1973. In addition to the burning draft card, the poster in the back, "Make Love Not War," embodies the Hippie Movement. Hippies favored "peace, love, and personal liberties," so the Vietnam War was against everything they believed in. The war caused great disdain towards the U.S. government and soldiers returning from Vietnam.