Audience construction is definitely an important part of this letter because the main audience, in reality, is not necessarily only Jonathan, but a number of other readers. In directing this article towards his son, the author brings in a kind of intimate, secretive feeling that maybe the reader is eavesdropping on a private conversation. This idea captivates the mind more easily than a simple article on how to live. The author writes in reference to his son because it draws on the pathos of the article and brings our emotions in as a factor that his father would want to try to further his son's life experiences and keep hi, from missing out on knowing himself. The author writes, "For me, there are several things I believe, deeply, for they evolved slowly out of my experience without my being aware of it." The author does not want his son to miss out on some of the things that he feels he himself couldn't fully grasp at a young age. He is trying to let his son in on the secret ahead of him and this draws on the readers' emotions almost causing the reader to wish that their own parent had been so thoughtful as to write a similar letter filled with the insight of life.
Although it feels that this piece is intended solely for Jonathan. it could be reconstructed to be a generic dear children as if the speaker is sort of an omniscient character and wants to share these secrets with anyone who will wisely choose to take the time to listen. Audience construction can be done in one way by using familiarized and not complex words in so that it feels like a personal conversation and not a formal letter. In this letter the author writes, "This won't mean much to you for a long time." If he were aiming this to a general audience of perhaps young people who are seeking this wisdom, then this quote would be irrelevant. So the letter would have to be tweaked a bit in order to appeal to a different set of individuals. However, I think that the way in which this article is written is the most effective form of audience construction and I would not change it.
Overall, this article claims,"the discovery of a philosophy to live by is a healing thing. It brings its discoverer about as close to achieving happiness as it is possible to get." I feel that the author really uses this sentence in a way in which to say, I've found the fountain of youth or I've found the pathway to near happiness and I'm going to share it with you so listen carefully. That he wants to show this to his son and the reader is able to get in on the confidential action makes it feel like there is a bit of danger and excitement attached. This immensely helps the letter and gives it that bit of desirability it needs to have a well-rounded actual audience.
3 comments:
I don't think I would agree that this letter is solely intended for Jonathon or a completely generic audience. The way I perceived it was as a speech on a public radio broadcast. I agree that he was using Jonathon as a way to reach his audience, but that was his intention.
I thought your comment about the letter being geared toward a greater audience than Jonathon interesting. I didn't think of it that way, but if that actually was the initial intention, the comment about giving readers the ability to eavesdrop on a secret conversation would be very true. I saw it in the fact that the letter was intended solely for Jonathon, but happen to get leaked out to the public.
Ok, I'm actually REALLY lost on this blog site...I can't seem to post on the W350 blog, just the L371??? I guess I'll just post it here and hope for the best:
Some Advice, Son.
John Cromwell has two audiences in a ‘Philosophy to Live by is a Healing Thing’. The essay references a preliminary audience, his fourteen year old son, and then expands the audience to include the patron of NPR. Cromwell is simply taking what he considered to be a sound letter of advice for one specific person and offers it up to the public, and audience in need to advice on Life. By including the “Dear Jonathan” salutation, he is establishing an ethos with the larger, secondary audience. He is to them what he is to Jonathan, a father figure. He draws on his age and experience to give credence to his professed wisdom. The audience can trust Cromwell because he first admits that it required an enormous span of time to come to the realization that one must establish a familiarity and friendship with oneself in order to be able to think about oneself honestly. Cromwell states, “And then, he seemed to know more about me than I did about him, and that struck me as a disadvantage to me. So I decided to become better acquainted with this other fellow. And so, I began to know more about myself”. He draws on the human beings competitive instinct in a very mild way. You must compete with your inner self through rigorous self reflection in order to conquer it, in a way- to fully understand it. I think this suggests that the secondary audience might slightly competitive, striving to get ahead in the world, and not realizing that their greatest competition lies within themselves. He is acting as a sort of therapist for the secondary audience, but does as a familiar (hopefully familiar) figure, that of the father. He ends the essay/ letter with, “This won’t mean much to you for a long time. That it someday may is the fervent hope of your affectionate father “. His ethos is that of a concerned parent, but not an overbearing one- he articulates the importance of discovering the method of being honest with yourself overtime. I think this is something that would effectively speak to the advice seeking audience.
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