https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y Rhetorical Analysis Project en-us 2021-12-01 15:36:16 UTC 2024-10-01 09:03:53 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet.net/icons/png/1f505.png 3304711 https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927587802 The speaker for this song is Ruel. He has said in an interview that one day he was simply reminiscing on lost friendships over the years that he thought would last forever. https://www.teenvogue.com/story/ruel-younger-teenage-breakup

His audience is the friend who has fallen victim to bad influences, shown in both the lyrics and the video. His purpose for creating the song is to let the lost friend know that Ruel has tried to reach out, but now it's out of his hands. Ruel has tried to support and help his friend, but after no reciprocation, he's done trying. The tone of the song starts light and carefree, but grows more tense and dark as the two grow up and drift apart. ]]> 2021-12-03 15:30:55 UTC https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927587802 3304711 https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927614838 Ruel uses ethos, logos, and pathos in the lyrics and primarily ethos and pathos in the video of "Younger" to tell his childhood best friend that he has and will always be there for him, and he wants him to leave his bad influences behind. However, he acknowledges that after so much wasted effort, it may be time to put their relationship to an end. Ruel uses symbolism, imagery, and logic to make his message effective in both the lyrics and the video.]]> 2021-12-03 15:41:20 UTC https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927614838 3304711 https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927624657 2021-12-03 15:44:47 UTC https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927624657 3304711 https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927656389 ETHOS - Ruel uses ethos multiple times throughout the song to portray his previously close relationship with his lost friend. In his lines "You and I/ Used to walk the streets at night" and "Our parents didn't know/ Kept the tv going/ Left on all the bedroom lights", we can see familiar aspects of a rebellious, childhood friendship, and it shows Ruel's credibility to be describing his relationship with his friend. These lines help to prove that the boys had a close bond and wanted to spend all of their time together, as children often do. Later in the lines, "Call you my brother/ The way that we used to/ When we were younger" he shows that all the time they spent together gave them a bond more easily described as brothers rather than friends. After hearing about how close they were as children, it makes it more heartbreaking to hear "I saw you just the other night/ I didn't even recognize you" because it displays to the listener that the lost friend has become someone vastly different than the person Ruel knew as children.

]]> 2021-12-03 15:58:49 UTC https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927656389 3304711 https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927667622 Ruel's use of emotions through the lyrics portrays the longing and conflicted tone he carries throughout the song. He also tells the story in chronological order through his lyric placement, making lines much more effective in context. One of the first examples is "Our parents didn't know/ Kept the TV going/ Left on all the bedroom lights." The line "Our parents didn't know" evokes a nostalgic feeling that reminds the listeners of their younger days when they had to nervously ask for permission to spend time with their friends. Then he transitions to when they grow apart with "You left me in the dark/ While you drink in the park/ Never be the same again." These lines show his resolve for the fact that their friendship has undertaken a drastic change, and there is no going back now. The next example is "You and me were so, so  close/ Maybe that's what hurts the most." The feeling of losing your best friend is immensely painful, especially when you dedicated so much time to each other in the past, only to later go your separate ways.

Near the end of the song, he says "Have a conversation/ But you'll never let me in." The hopelessness is clear in this statement because he is trying his very best to reach out and support his friend, but any conversation they have feels like talking to a brick wall. Finally, he says "Maybe I don't have to play the bad guy in the end/ Cause I've been trying harder now to be a better friend." He describes himself as a "bad guy", showing that for the longest time, he felt like he was the one who was causing the relationship to fall apart, but now he has finally let go of that guilt.]]> 2021-12-03 16:04:11 UTC https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927667622 3304711 https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927672589 2021-12-03 16:06:31 UTC https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1927672589 3304711 https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1929684565 Ruel prevalently makes use of logos to plainly state how their close relationship morphed into one akin to two strangers. The first example is in the lines "You left me in the dark/ While you drink in the park" where he uses imagery to help the listener understand that the lost friend dropped communications with Ruel once he started drinking alcohol with his new group of friends in the park. In addition, he says "I didn't even recognize you/ Find it kind of strange/ I guess that people change/ But I didn't expect you to." These lines display the realization Ruel had that his friend is no longer someone that he knows well, even though he expected to be familiar with him for a long time. The use of "I guess" shows how unsure and taken aback Ruel was by the fact that he no longer could recognize his old friend. Near the end of the song, he says "Tryna get in touch with you/ I don't know where you've been." These lines display the distance that has grown between the two and shows that Ruel is still trying to keep the relationship strong in spite of that. He says "I tried with you a thousand times" which clearly shows how dedicated Ruel is to the relationship, and to his friend. ]]> 2021-12-05 16:10:51 UTC https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1929684565 3304711 https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1929726484 Kaplan, Ilana. “Ruel Puts a Twist on the Teenage Breakup with ‘Younger.’” Teen Vogue, Teen Vogue, 3 Aug. 2018, https://www.teenvogue.com/story/ruel-younger-teenage-breakup.

Genius. (n.d.). Ruel – younger. Genius. Retrieved December 6, 2021, from https://genius.com/Ruel-younger-lyrics.

Ruel - Younger (official video) - youtube. Youtube. (2018, August 2). Retrieved December 6, 2021, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r90FuOuqE60. 


]]> 2021-12-05 17:03:12 UTC https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1929726484 3304711 https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1931395043 Ethos appeals are shown in the video by establishing the credibility Ruel has because of the close bond he had with his friend when they were growing up. You can see the tone change right away once his friend starts drifting apart from Ruel and becoming less present in their relationship, shown by the cloud of smoke covering him when spending time with Ruel. Then we can see the fight between the boys at the party where it shows the two meeting each other again face to face. Ruel plays both characters to show that although they come from similar backgrounds and have similar personality traits, the friend on the left has become more rugged-looking and less composed, while Ruel is put together.]]> 2021-12-06 15:26:35 UTC https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1931395043 3304711 https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1931397696 Pathos in the video is shown especially well by the parallels shown in the beginning and the end of the video that creates a bittersweet feeling of nostalgia for the audience. Pathos is also shown using imagery, such as the sign in the gas station or the lost friend returning to Ruel for a sense of safety and familiarity. The audience feels the hope for resolution and reconciliation at the end of the video when Ruel comforts his friend, only to be met with the same hopelessness and dejectedness that Ruel feels when he's left all alone on a bench in the middle of the night.]]> 2021-12-06 15:27:30 UTC https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1931397696 3304711 https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1933842523 The lyrics and video use many different appeals throughout the whole duration of the song to make Ruel's message to his friend clear. Although he still loves and wants the best for him, he is done trying so hard to save him from what he has become. Overall, Ruel effectively makes use of the lyrics and video to convince the audience that saving his relationship with his old friend is a lost cause, and even the closest friends can simply grow apart over time.]]> 2021-12-07 15:33:46 UTC https://padlet.com/3304711/3w3wqolf92mrnb8y/wish/1933842523