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| NY Daily News |
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Analyzing the Rhetoric of "a Football Team with a Good University"
As I strolled downtown Wednesday afternoon, I noticed a rather "prideful" Joe Paterno shirt in a storefront window. This particular shirt I showed a picture of Beaver Stadium. Underneath the stadium read the phrase "Beaver Stadium- the House that JoePa built." In light of the chaos regarding the Sandusky scandal in the past few months, it is a blessing to see such pride and unity radiating throughout the student body; however, I'm afraid some things are being taken too far. It is clear that our University wants to move forward from this disaster, but the rhetoric used when describing the new era of Penn State Football in particular sends off a surprisingly negative vibe. Producing products such as the shirt I glanced over downtown discourage the public from accepting change. In such an attempt to remain positive about Bill O’Brien’s new reign, I feel as though our University is almost in a “cult-like” obsession with Joe Paterno’s previous years. The rhetoric used in the post-Paterno products suggests an unwelcoming feeling toward the upcoming Bill O’Brien years.
In the midst of the outrage over the scandal, t-shirts emerged which promoted Joe Paterno as a god-like figure. I understand the need for pride at such a dark hour, but the rhetoric of these shirts made moving forward almost impossible because our student body was fixated on saving Joe. The amount of pathos exuded from these products inhibits the logos of the people. The rhetoric of the post-Paterno products is sending the wrong message. Instead of obnoxiously worshipping Paterno, we should acknowledge his accomplishments and give O’Brien a warm welcome. WE ARE…supposed to be moving forward, not stuck in the past.
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Its nice to hear an opinion like this. I'm in the same boat: JoePa is a great man and his contribution should never be forgetten, but at the same time we need to acknowledge that things are gonna change. As a devout Patriots fan I know the work of Coach O'Brien and I'm very happy with this new change. I hope others share my opinion, and if not that will come to in time.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I disagree slighlty with you, I definitely find your post interesting. Personally, I have spent my entire life coming to Penn State football games (I've easily been to over seventy)so, in part, I am one of those people who views Paterno as the "god-like figure" that you mention. On the other hand, I have followed O'Brien with great detail ever since the story has surfaced and I support him fully. Yes, the change is certainly shocking and disheartening to many, but I don't think that everyone is as anti-O'Brien as this post may suggest. I believed in Joe Paterno, but I Billieve in Bill O'Brien.
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