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Saed Shaka

Dania Adra

English 203

26^th September, 2015

“Brand Malala” Response

In Carol Grayson’s blog post we learn that Malala’s journey to the top of mainstream media is almost scripted and that she has, “become a very marketable western commodity.” (Grayson 593) which feeds into the emotional perspective of the blog.

From an emotional perspective, Grayson seems to approach Malala’s standpoint from a feministic point of view, although she doesn’t directly refer to herself as one. The tone in her post and the comments she makes, for example, “(it is also changing the lives of others too).” (Grayson 593) indicate that she does indeed support Malala and her message but she is slightly critical of the massive media coverage Malala is getting whilst there are many cases of young girls who have been through the same turmoil yet have gotten little to no attention which supports Jonathan Rao’s comment where he states that he was:

“Worried that she was probably a pawn in a bigger game and was being unduly influenced by the people around her.” (Grayson 595)

            From a rhetorical perspective, Grayson delivered her information in a way that is meant to propose a statement rather than presenting it in an informative way to inform people of what is happening, her blog post almost seems like an anti-advertisement. She does this by including her views in the blog post for example, “(and it shames me to say this being British)”. (Grayson 593)

From a social perspective, Grayson addresses ongoing world issues of woman rights and of terrorism and how they are linked in this specific example and why it annoys Grayson that only this issue is receiving media coverage whilst there are many similar cases, she proves this point when she states, “Why not fly out every child harmed by US drones to the west for the most up to date medical care, there are plenty for well-wishers to assist.” (Grayson 593) Here the writer’s sarcastic tone is evident and that is a technique she is using to reach out to us as readers to make us aware of the social issue at hand.

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            From a logical perspective Grayson used examples of things that have influenced the outcome of people such as Malala, for example the US led war on terror (Grayson 593) and her justification for this is that people like Malala are usually considered “Collateral damage” (Grayson 594). Grayson is also trying to make her audience think logically by through her tone and her persuasive and argumentative choice of diction.

            Last of all, the ethical perspective is shown in the blog post by the way the text is presented; it would seem to viewers that it is a cry for justice for the oppressed women of the world and specifically the east. Grayson uses real life examples such as the Gordon Brown incident where he refused to address the problem of the widows whom have lost their husbands due to unlawful acts by the state. (Grayson 594) to raise awareness for the oppressed.

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Works Cited

Grayson, Carol Anne.  “”Brand Malala”: Western Exploitation of a Schoolgirl”.  Shifting narratives.  Zane S. Sinno, Lina Bioghlu-Karkanawi, Dorota Fleszar, Najla Jarkas, Emma Moughabghab, Jennifer M. Nish, Rima Rantisi, and Abir Ward.  Mazraa, Beirut:  Center for educational consultation and Research, Educart,  2015.  Print.