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RUNNING HEAD: A Rhetorical Analysis of Gail Dines Growing Up in a Pornified Culture

A Rhetorical Analysis of Gail Dines Growing Up in a Pornified Culture

Andrews Segura Correa

University of Texas at El Paso


A Rhetorical Analysis of Gail Dines Growing Up in a Pornified Culture

In the TED Talk Growing Up in a Pornified Culture, Gail Dines effectively employs

pathos, ethos, and logos to promote Culture Reframed, her organization which is dedicated to

addressing what she believes to be a hypersexualized culture. She invokes an emotional response

with shock and humor and establishes a sense of authority by being presented as a Ph.D. and

scholar of Sociology and Womens Studies. She also follows a logical progression of statements

and media to sway the audience to believe that hyper-sexualization is an issue that must be

addressed. It is only after this that she presents Culture Reframed as a potential solution and

resource.

The most prominent rhetorical device throughout Dines talk is pathos, an appeal to

emotion. The talk incorporates both quotes and pictures to invoke a variety of responses. For

example, Dines at one point in the beginning of the talk provides a quote from Details Magazine

which reads There is an entire generation of young people who think sex ends with a money

shot to the face. After quoting the magazine, she pauses for dramatic effect. The overall mood is

ominous at that moment contrasting the more lighthearted temperament when she begins

describing and imitating the provocative model poses with a mocking charm. Two slides

incorporated in to the Dines accompanying slideshow seen in the video are particularly striking:

a photo from of a Caucasian woman posing in lingerie, and a slide which quotes the promotional

description of a pornographic film. The image of the woman posing in lingerie seen at 3:04 in the

Ted Talk recording is used by Dines to show the difference between how women are presented

in media when compared to men. The previous slide in the video shows a man fully clothed in a

business shirt while all other images of women from the various magazines shown in the

presentation depict women as partially clothed. Dines argues that the expression on the womans

face combined with her dress is an invitation for sex and the fact that many women are depicted
A Rhetorical Analysis of Gail Dines Growing Up in a Pornified Culture

as such in media is harmful to the perception of women. Additionally, in pornographic films,

women are depicted as sex objects almost exclusively with many degrading and oftentimes

violent acts are being done towards women. This is where the slide quoting the description of a

pornographic film is relevant. Pardon the expletives.

We at Pure Filth know exactly what you want. Chicks being ass-f**cked till their

sphincters are pink, puffy, and totally blown out. Adult diapers just might be in store for

these whores when their work is done.

The shock value of this statement is obvious and Dines knows this to be the case. She

successfully closes her talk with this being the final example of violence in pornography that she

presents. The general discomfort of the audience can be felt through the camera as Dines states

and I want to be clear, this is mainstream porn. This is what the twelve-year-old boy gets to

within fifteen seconds. Earlier in the talk she mentions that she is a mother of a twelve-year-old

boy, appealing to the parents in the audience. By bringing up the twelve-year-old boy, instead

of my twelve-year-old boy she removes herself from the subject, allowing the audience to see

the twelve-year-old boy as anonymous. It could be anybodys child including their own.

In addition to revealing that she is a mother, Dines mentions that she is a scholar of

Sociology and womens studies. This implies that she is particularly qualified to speak on this

topic. She repeatedly states throughout the talk that what she describes as the graphic and violent

strains of pornography available are relatively common and mainstream and any young child will

find it immediately when searching for porn with a search engine such as Google. By stating that

she is a mother, she is suggesting to the audience that her interest in pornography and its effects

are to figure out what is best for her child and other children like him. As a scholar, she

establishes that she is qualified to study and make authoritative statements on the potential
A Rhetorical Analysis of Gail Dines Growing Up in a Pornified Culture

societal implications of hyper-sexualization and pornography. Her very usage of words such as

hyper-sexualization and socialization provide the audience with the perception that she is

familiar and comfortable enough with such terms to use them properly.

The purpose of using pathos and ethos is to ultimately create a sense of logos. Dines

goal with the audience is to not only raise awareness of the issue of hyper-sexualization, but also

to get people to act. She references Gulliver Strategy which is essentially the idea that the

many can overcome the seemingly more powerful few. One individual alone may not change

much, but many people united against a cause can change their circumstances. The reaction of

the audience towards the various slides from pornographic films was that of shock. Dines takes

this reaction of shock and makes its unpleasantness vocal, grooming the audience to want the

displeasure to go away. She uses her authority as a mother and scholar to comfort the audience in

a sense. They are comforted by the fact that as a scholar and mother, Dines is capable and

competent enough to tell them what they should do. The question is what exactly should be done.

Dines answers this by presenting her organization Culture Reframed which she describes as an

organization that will establish programs, hire on experts, and take down [the] beast because

our children are worth more, our culture is worth more, our boys are worth more, and our girls

are worth more, concluding her argument.

Overall, Gail Dines usage of pathos, ethos, and logos is very effective, albeit with a

heavy dependence on pathos. Understanding that the topic at hand is both taboo and sensitive,

her approach is direct, mature, but bold and without censorship. This attitude in addition to her

established credibility, logical progression, and effective usage of media makes for an overall

persuasive and rhetorically brilliant presentation.


A Rhetorical Analysis of Gail Dines Growing Up in a Pornified Culture

References
Dines, G. (2015, April 28). Growing Up in a Pornified Culture. Navesink, New Jersey, United

States of America. Retrieved October 15, 2017, from

www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TpHNlmNsx8

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