The New York Times definitely has a way with words. I feel that the newspaper in general uses words that catch attention of other viewers, which makes them want to read more. Kind of self explanatory, right? In addition, I found that sometimes titles and subtitles are overly dramatic; of course for a specific reason. But who’s to say that they have gone too far? Who’s to say that enough is enough?
I read an article that caught my attention and thought that the title itself was more dramatic than the actual story. This story was found in the New York Times (Erlanger, 2011) on Page A5. I felt that this article was dramatic because of the sarcastic title which is “Sarkozy Says He 'Underestimated' Crisis in Ex-Colony, Tunisia.” Because of the emphasis on the word ‘underestimated’, I instantly believed that this was sarcasm. The article ended up summarizing the statement of President Nicholas Sarkozy said on Monday which was the government ‘underestimated’ the Tunisians protestor’sanger to overthrow the government, according to New York Times.
Of course I am aware that that was the idea from the beginning, but after reading the first two paragraphs I noticed that this was not a story that I would normally be interested in reading in the first place. After getting two paragraphs into the story, I recognized that the story had already drawn me into it and decided that I might as well read the whole story.
I felt that because language is beginning to be socially constructed in so many ways, that it’s beginning to be viewed in the public eye, which I feel is a problem. When people began to talk sarcastically, they can safely say what is on their mind in a very harsh way, and mean it but not mean it at the same time. I am well aware that it is a free country and that there is such a thing as freedom of speech. However, it’s all fair until someone’s feelings get hurt.
Erlanger, S. (2011, January 25). Sarkozy Says He 'Underestimated' Crisis in Ex-Colony, Tunisia. New York Times . New York City, New York, United States of America: Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr.
I completely agree with these ideas of sarcastic and over-dramatic headings in the newspaper. In any type of marketing, we see fancy words and pretty colors to get pulled in. I believe- with these sarcastic and dramatic headlines- its a vicious cycle. The newspapers create headlines, we read based on headlines, the newspaper creates what the audience is gravitating towards. These sarcastic and dramatic words are what we're craving for, and Adriana is a example of this. I know I fall victim to choice words used by authors and editors in book titles also. There have been plenty of times where I've chosen a book based on its title and been completely fooled into trying to read its dry, uninviting, unappealing text.
ReplyDeleteThe Oxford English Dictionary defines "sarcasm" as "a sharp, bitter, or cutting expression or remark; a bitter jibe or taunt." If The New York Times is expressing sarcasm in their headline through the use of the word "underestimated," who are they taunting? Is there another, more plausible explanation for their use of the word?
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