Blog Post #24 - Analyzing Message in Horse Racing: How Much Whipping Is Too Much?

For Blog Post #24 I will be providing answers to the questions of Message and Purpose.

Jordanhill School D&T Dept. "The Design Process * Analysis". 11/8/2009. via Flickr.
Attribution 2.0 Generic

• Out of all the bullet points on page 182, which seem most relevant to your text's message and purpose? Why?
• I think the closest bullets point to my chosen text are advocate for change, inform the reader about a topic that is often misunderstood, explore a topic and express an idea or opinion. I chose advocate for change not because the text is calling for it, but it highlights an issue that many know needs modification. The topic is often misunderstood in that the casual viewer may not understand exactly what is happening or what is needed for safety. Expressing an idea or opinion once again is not direct. The cultural view of animal cruelty is touched is brought forward, maybe as a desire by the author to get more people into making the issue more of a focal point. Explore a topic is definitely directly related as the text reviews the historical use, current issues around and worldly view of the use of a crop in horse racing.
• Which bullet points do not seem relevant to your text's message and purpose? Why?
• Analyze, synthesize, or interpret seems to be the furthest removed though there is some analysis and interpretation in exploring a topic. There is no A leads to B leads to C analysis and no synthesizing of several points into one. Respond to a particular occasion or text is also not as relevant as the others, though the author does refer to current events in the text.
• Are there nuances and layers to the message the author/speaker is trying to get across? If so, what are they? If not, why not?
• There are a couple of messages I believe the author is trying to convey. One is that the majority of the industry agrees there is an issue but doesn't have a silver bullet to fix the issue. The second message is that there reform in the works. The text refers to a couple of new methods that are being tested and laws that going into affect that will bring a welcomed change.