Jamie Kessler College Writing Gonso 1/29/14 Jennifer Lawrence: Outside the World of Film A huge sense of curiosity

and intrigue came over me as I scrolled over the article titled, The Hunger Games' Jennifer Lawrence Covers the September Issue. I searched the Vogue website under the fashion tab scrolling over various articles about new models for Vogue and the biggest fashion trends of the year. When I saw Jennifers Lawrences name in the title of an article, I immediately wanted to know her affiliation with Vogue. Many know Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss from The Hunger Games, but there is much more to Jennifer Lawrence than just a sassy fighter Figure 1: Jennifer Lawrence. Photo Titled Vogue. in a recent blockbuster hit. In the article, Jonathan Van Meter, a

contributing editor at Vogue, interviews Lawrence. He covers Hollywood, society and politics. Van Meter also writes for Time Magazine and has been part of the New Yorker since 2004 (Jonathan par. 1). Vogue is an American fashion and lifestyle magazine that has been published for over 100 years. Vogues mission statement includes the phrase,

Vogue places fashion in the context of culture and the world we live in how we dress, live and socialize; what we eat, listen to and watch; who leads and inspires us (Vogue). Vogues average monthly online audience is about 1.8 million. What a coop for Van Meter to be given the assignment to interview the most exciting movie star to come along in years. Lawrence also appears on the cover of the issue. Prior to this interview, Lawrence was recently awarded best performance by an actress in a leading role at the Academy Awards in 2013 for her role in Silver Linings Playbook and best performance by an actress in a motion picture-comedy or musical at the Golden Globes in 2013. In addition, Lawrences upcoming movie Catching Fire, the sequel to The Hunger Games, was scheduled to be released two months after the article was published. To completely understand the rhetorical situation I had to first understand the call to write, what the author is answering with his writing. Van Meter opens the article by talking about how Lawrence is a major star in Hollywood right now. He states, Whether lighting up an indie or fronting a blockbuster franchise, Jennifer Lawrence is the most electric talent to hit Hollywood in a generation (Van Meter par. 1). Jennifer is still so young, only 23 years old. Although she has already won an Oscar, she still has many years of successful movie making ahead of her, but right now there is a need to let the audience know Jennifers personality behind the cameras. The article also describes Jennifer as Americas favorite heroine (Van Meter par. 1). The call to write, the urgency, is the fact that Lawrence is a major star in Hollywood right now and a majority of people admire her talent. The call to write is directly related to the exigence, the purpose, of the interview with Lawrence and the subsequent publication of this article.

Jennifer is a relatable actress and down to earth; many people admire her for her talent, so why not brag about her as the author does? For the interview, Van Meter meets Lawrence in a casual caf of her choice. At the time, Jennifer was evolving into a major star in Hollywood and the writer of the article, Van Meter, wanted his audience to get to know Jennifer aside from the fame and fortune. The interviewer continues the article, after talking about her being a heroine in Hollywood, by talking about the restaurant she chose to meet. The restaurant had great food and great service, but it was also known for being a fun place. Van Meter realizes that the restaurant is similar to Lawrence and her work: Execute everything perfectly, but dont take it all so seriouslyan apt description of Lawrence herself (Van Meter par. 2). When Lawrence first meets Van Meter for the interview, she notices his broken foot. Van Meter tells Lawrence he broke his foot after a few drinks and a night out of dancing. Lawrence fix[ed] her blue-gray eyes on me with a face that is adorably sympathetic, sure, but is also contorted from trying to hold back a laugh (Van Meter par. 5). This immediate interaction between Van Meter and Lawrence sets a picture of Lawrences personality aside from her fame and fortune. In the article, Van Meter wants his audience to get to know Lawrences caring personality behind the cameras. The article lets the audience know that Lawrence, in all her success, will always stay true to who she is as a person. She will not change for anyone and she will always say what is on her mind, usually in a humorous way. Her personality comes through during the interview with her comical and truthful responses to the interviewers questions.

Van Meter does not use slang or stereotypes in the article but does compare Lawrence to the other Hollywood people with the first name Jennifer. Van Meter writes, Jennifer Lawrenceunlike, say, Jennifer Aniston or Jennifer Lopez or Jennifer Garnernever looks the same. In other words, Lawrence dresses and changes her hairstyle all the time. In addition, she does not have the stereotypical Hollywood look very skinny and full of botox. The writer did not need to use slang or stereotypes because he gives the audience a true representation of Lawrence along with the idea that she is her own person. The article is not very long, but the content of the article has a lot of meaning aside from the minimal amount of words. The audience can relate to the article by the way Van Meter constructs the essay and the genre he chooses. The author stays true to what Lawrence says and how she acts, portraying a true picture of her overall personality. Van Meter casually highlights Lawrences comical remarks. He highlights the odd things that Lawrence likes: food, TV shows and stuff she is afraid of. Van Meter writes verbatim Lawrences monologue about sponges that she performed during their lunch. In the article, Van Meter writes the questions he asked Lawrence and then puts Lawrences responses in parentheses to make the answers stand out. When reading the article, the readers eyes are immediately drawn to the words that are highlighted or underlined. It makes the article have a more casual feel and makes the article an easier read. The idea of an interview and the subsequent publication of an article was also a choice that the writer had to make. An interview is a set of questions given to the interviewee that is then crafted into a body of text. An interview is usually fairly short and does not give the interviewer much time to get to know the person aside from the

already-made questions that are asked. The questions are fairly broad, such as what is Lawrences favorite TV show and what foods she does not like, but Van Meter took the idea of an interview much farther. He analyzes what Lawrence is wearing as she enters the caf and he analyzes the way she acts, her poise and maturity for someone her age. The way Van Meter structured the essay by having short, casual, clearly understandable paragraphs with a lot of detail helped the interviewer solidify the overriding point to his audience in the article that Lawrence is a kind-hearted person with a wonderful and humorous personality.

Figure 2: Jennifer Lawrence. Photo Titled Playing Around. The audience is vested in the article because the audience is the one judging and analyzing how it feels about the content and about Lawrences personality. For this text, the audience is anyone who is interested in an up-and- coming, amazing young star and anyone who has seen Lawrences recently released movies. The audience is comprised of fans of Lawrences movies including people who know her from her various roles in

movies. Specifically, the article is directed toward women: young teenagers, adults, and elderly women who are the main readers of Vogue magazine. The Vogue audience is women from varying backgrounds and socioeconomic status. Audience, the call to write, and exigence are just some factors that effect the overall rhetorical situation. Logos, pathos, and ethos are also mechanical devices in the text that allow the writer to relate to the audience, the people reading the text. The writer mainly uses logos in this article. Logos is defined as the clarity and logic in a text, including the effectiveness of the supporting evidence. Lawrence is versatile in her different roles but outside of the camera she never changes who she is. Each paragraph logically supports the authors idea that Lawrence, a well-known actress in Hollywood right now, will never sway from her beliefs and true character. As mentioned earlier, the writer highlights the humorous quotes that Lawrence mentioned during the interview, the odd things that Lawrence likes, and Lawrences monologue. Van Meter writes about the logical aspects of Jennifers personality and character without changing her words or how she acts. Van Meter does not need to use pathos, an emotional response, because he wants the reader to appreciate Lawrence for her humorous and loving personality. Van Meter definitely accomplishes his goal in trying to show the audience Jennifers kind-hearted and humorous personality. He never describes her roles in the movies she has recently played in, but instead talks about what T.V. show she likes watching during her free time and what foods she does not like. In the opening of the article the writer mentions Lawrence as, Americas favorite heroine (Van Meter par. 1). He wants the audience to have that idea in its mind before continuing on with the article because it immediately sheds a positive light on Lawrence. In addition, the

writers style of writing stays informal throughout so more people can understand and relate to Lawrence. In addition to the article, there are six photos attached to the top of the article, two of which are included in my essay. There is a need to know why the photos are part of the article instead of just having the text stand alone. The photos add a visual element to the text. The photos I believe have a positive correlation to the text in the way that it proves the same point the article is making, the fact that Lawrence stays true to her personality, a sweet, kind-hearted, mature actress in Hollywood. The photos are very high-end fashion. Lawrence is a beautiful girl and although she is wearing elegant clothing that she might not wear normally, she has her hair done, and make-up on her face, there is still pure beauty that shines from the photos, the light of Lawrences personality. The images have differing titles including Rare Bloom, The Natural, Basic Instinct, The Road Ahead, Playing Around, and Vogue. The visual element gives the article more depth because it shows Lawrence in the woods, or surrounded by dogs, or sitting in the middle of a bundle of flowers. All of the photos are very natural, pure, and innocent depictions of everyday life events. The article mentions a restaurant Lawrence went to and why, the specific show Lawrence enjoys watching, and the foods she does not like. The author wanted to capture Lawrence in her natural state, not as the actress from Silver Linings Playbook or The Hunger Games. Overall, I believe the author made the right decision in choosing to have the photos attached with the article because they add a true visual element to Lawrences character. In the article, Van Meter captures Lawrences personality beautifully. Even though Lawrence is a major face in Hollywood right now and she knows that millions of

people will be reading what she says, she stays true to who she is. In addition, Vogues mission statement directly correlates to the idea of why Vogue chose Lawrence for the interview and the cover of the September issue. Vogue believes Lawrence is someone we watch in the context of culture and someone who leads and inspires us in the world we live in (Vogue). After reading the article, The Hunger Games' Jennifer Lawrence Covers the September Issue, I as part of the audience definitely have a better understanding of Lawrences personality, who she is, and what she represents in the world of fame and fortune. ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

Works Cited ! Jonathan Van Meter. Byliner. Byliner Inc. Web. 14 January 2014. <https://www.byliner.com/jonathan-van-meter>. Testino, Mario. The Hunger Games Jennifer Lawrence covers the September Issue. Vogue 12 August 2013: page 1. Medium. ! Van Meter, Jonathan. The Hunger Games Jennifer Lawrence covers the September Issue. Vogue 14 January 2014. Print. Vogue Cond Nast. Cond Nast 2014. Web. 26 January 2014. <https://www.condenast.com/brands/vogue>. ! ! Article: http://www.vogue.com/magazine/article/star-quality-jennifer-lawrence-hungergames/# !