Responses 2B
Band of Gold - The Early 60s: Smoking & Racism - Don’s Character
❧ Analyze the rhetoric in the opening bar scene of Mad Men S1 E1. This 2.5 minute bar scene coincides with a song. The scene starts right after the opening credits and ends with Don’s knock on a door, which occurs at the end of the song. Remember that your response is a maximum of 100 words and therefore can’t cover in detail all the uses of rhetoric in the scene. You’ll need to focus on one or two aspects of the scene. You could, for instance, analyze the music and lyrics, or the physical setting, or the dialogue between Don and the staff. Or, you might try to answer one of the following questions, using whatever rhetorical categories help you get at this: How is the director setting the mood? How does the director suggest issues relevant to the early 1960s? How does the director suggest the type of person Don is? Remember to pay attention to detail and to back up your points with references to specific aspects of the scene.
*** = my comments, after the student’s response
I will focus mostly on content here. For more thorough comments on grammar and format, see the previous responses. I also break the responses into categories.
I try to put some variety into the sequences, so please don’t read anything into the order in which they’re presented. I mention this because in the previous term I tended to put the better ones last.
Band of Gold
The song by Mel Carter “band of gold” plays in the background of the first scene. The lyrics describe the band that goes on a ring finger, the kind of “marriage” that people had with the band of “gold” on the butt end of their cigarettes. The waiter explains why he wouldn't switch brands or quit, stating that he “loves smoking”. Customers in the bar all owned by what they carry between their fingers, can't switch them, won't leave them. Married to their own brand of cigarette, despite the possibility of their marriage hurting them.
*** This response is good, especially the way the student ties the gold band on a cigarette to a marriage ring. Try to edit more carefully (“Band of Gold”; are all owned?) and explore ideas in a more rigorous way. The student only observes that the song is playing in the background, yet could have used an adjective to say what the sound of the song evokes. Even better, the song’s effect could be articulated in an argument or insightful take on the entire scene. Think of the opening sentence as a mini-argument, as a topic sentence. Finally, the link between smoking and marriage is very intriguing, yet it could be spelled out more clearly: Why is marriage hurting them? Is this a lead-in to Don’s marriage and to his constant infidelity — a theme suggested in the opening credits and returned to in the following scene with Midge? How does all this tie back to Don, to the episode, or to the show in general?
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In this scene, the background music holds significance to some relevant themes of the show as well as a sense of foreshadowing. The song’s lyrics talk about a man wanting a gold band to prove someone is his. The wanting of wealth and a gold band represents a primary theme in the show, money. The symbolism of marriage represents another important theme in the show, Women. This song holds a sense of foreshadowing. Not just in the following scene, where Don proposes marriage to a woman but also throughout the show as Don struggles through multiple relationships and marriages.
*** This response is excellent, since it is grammatically correct, has a clear line of argument, and gives examples to back up the argument.
The Early 60s: Smoking & Racism
The opening scene transports the viewer to the social inequalities impacting the early 1960’s. Don is well-dressed, sitting with prominence while waited on. Surrounding Don are privileged white men in suits socializing, while the only people of colour are wait-staff. A black waiter initially appears hesitant to speak when Don initiates conversation, suggesting rules of segregation. During conversation, the waiter comments how women love their magazines, to which Don agrees and laughs, implying a time that women are not taken seriously. The very few women that are there are surrounded by men, symbolizing the time being a “man’s world” era.
*** This is a good response, yet it could bring in Don’s positive interaction with the waiter and his subtle yet stern rebuke of the head waiter. Also, in making a topic sentence, try to be more specific: in this case, include class, gender, and race. This is easy to do: The opening scene transports the viewer to the 1960s, with its social inequalities of class, gender, and race.
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The bar ambient and conversation between Don Draper and the waiter harmonize to validate the fact that the 60’s were peak times for human dependability to tobacco. During their conversation, the waiter revealed emotional attachment (obtained from starting habit during war) to a brand of cigarettes (Old Gold); saying he ‘loves to smoke’. The waiter finalizes the conversation by joking about a heard rumour from his wife that cigarettes are a health risk. As he leaves the table, the camera focuses on Don’s worrisome expression, product of analyzing the scientific find and taking in the bar ambient (large groups, all with a cigarette in hand).
*** This is very good. It uses the type of explicit topic sentence I suggested for the response above. However, the student could spell out Don’s worry more explicitly.
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Season 1 director Alan Taylor made early 1960s social issues known through the conversation between Don and staff members at the bar. Sam, a black senior veteran chooses not to engage in conversation after servicing a patron in fear of being reprimanded. Bringing in a taller white authority figure into the screen and questioning the interactions only cements the issue that the African people were deemed inferior at the time. Further conversation we hear the habit of smoking is being questioned in magazines enjoyed by women. The legitimacy of the studies invalid due to the large female demographic.
*** This starts off as a good response, yet the last two sentences are vague, they don’t delve deeper into the main argument, and both sentences are grammatically incorrect (the first is a mixed construction and the second should read study is). Also, what of Don’s reaction to the head waiter, and what of Don’s conversation with the African-American waiter? The final sentence seems out of place, since the scene isn’t a demographic study.
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In the opening scene of Mad Men’s first episode, the director uses the setting of a bustling, smoke-filled bar with Don Cherry’s “Band of Gold” to lure the audience into the 1960’s and its relevant social issues. Immediately when conversing with Sam the busboy, the barman quickly walks up to the pair and asks if Sam is bothering him. The hasty reaction by the barman exhibits the prejudice assumption that Sam was harassing Don, to which was a false premise. The undermining approach of the barman displays the conflict that people of colour faced, and still face to this day.
*** Use proper title format.
*** This is good, yet it could include Don’s interaction, since the scene is about the times as it relates to the story of Don. Also, proofread more carefully.
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A topic that is heavily discussed and explored throughout the clip are people's reasons for smoking. One reason that is highlighted is habit. When asked how he would fare without Old Gold cigarettes, the busboy directly states that he would find some other way to keep smoking. He even goes as far as to say that he loves it. This could be interpreted as a commentary on society being heavily resistant to change, even if it is beneficial to the populace. Despite the growing health concerns many people can be seen smoking in the bar.
*** I would proofread more carefully (shift in singular to plural) and turn the topic sentence from an observation into an argument. The second half of the response gets away from observation and moves into an insightful line of argument.
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The title “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” suggests a cloud of complacency surrounding many people of the 60s. Many people set in their ways, either developed from growing up where things such as racism and chain-smoking was seen as normal, or learned later on in life. For example, the waiter who only smokes “Big Golds” because he would get them for free during his service, won’t smoke anything else, claiming “they’re a habit”. A darker example would be his boss who made racist remarks towards the waiter, likely because he grew up in a household that normalized racism.
*** This response has potential, and makes witty use of smoke and cloud. However, it needs proofreading (parts in bold) and it could push some concepts further: for instance, the waiter’s military service is a very strong positive, pathos-evoking element in the US. The response also asserts that the remarks of the boss are racist. His remarks suggest racism, but they aren’t by themselves racist. Saying that someone might be bothering customers because he’s too chatty could be about personality, not race, although clearly there is a larger racial context as well. Finally this response asserts that the head waiter likely grew up in a certain type of household, which we can’t be sure about.
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The opening scene gives us a glimpse of a simple yet glamorous life. The middle-class man drinking away a hard day of work with a strong and musty old fashion cocktail, indulging in a cigarette that ironically "will kill you". The setting of the bar shines a light on the ambiguous and promiscuous way of life in the 1950's: the era of alcohol, smoking, sex, money, and advertisement. This image portrayed before us is a sheer illusion of the successful society that lives dangerously and on edge drowning one's sorrows in a bottle of Jack that leads to alcoholism and divorce.
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Before introducing the plot of Mad Men (S1 E1), the director defined the neologistic term, “Mad Men” to the audience using specific details in time. The director exclusively referred “Mad Men” as “a term coined in the late 1950’s,” which helps the director in acknowledging his audience that the plot would be related to issues within the relevant time frame of late 1950’s and early 1960s. When Don engages in a conversation with a black staff – Sam, a white staff intervenes the conversation and asks if Don is bothered by Sam. The contrast between the white staff’s racial discrimination and Don’s uncommon reaction reinforced the time frame 1960s, suggesting linkage to the Civil Rights Movement in 1963.
*** To improve paragraph unity, bring the point about race into the topic sentence.
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At a bar, the viewer witnesses an ambience that reflects part of the Manhattan’s society in the early 1960’s, where smoking prevails, as well as white supremacy and sexism. Those themes are subtly integrated to racism personified by Sam, whose first shallow words are respectfully close to a mumble. But we see a shift in Sam’s speech when Don reduces a world without Old Gold to, “a tragedy”. Such hyperbolic metaphor reveals then the “chatty” Sam. A manipulative white man’s speech finally gets what it wants from that “disposable” black figure, a good pitch.
*** To improve paragraph unity, bring the point about race into the topic sentence.
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The opening scene of Mad Men demonstrates how everyone in the 1960’s is addicted to smoking, which is shown by Don and Sam arguing about which brand of cigarettes to smoke. Don asks Sam to try a new brand, but Sam wouldn’t budge, calling it a habit. This is interesting because earlier Don orders a drink called old fashioned, which symbolizes how old fashion people have old habits. As Don looks towards the bar, he sees everyone holding a cigarette, illustrating how smoking in the 1960’s was completely normal.
Mad Man (S1 E1) “Smoke gets in your eyes” reminds me of the old days, when socializing and indoor smoking was everywhere. The first dialog hands the audience a message: social class, racial gap, and skin color. The song’s lyrics relate to the humble purpose of a busboy life, no money expectations, just the happiness to go home with a carton of cigarettes, giving meaning to his unfair life. A world of black & white, where the blacks are the service and the whites are the ones who smoke and enjoy an old fashioned cocktail without a problem.
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The director uses setting, imagery and dialogue to suggest that most people didn’t see a problem with smoking in the 1960’s. The beginning of the scene creates visual imagery to compare with modern day’s smoking rules by showing people chatting happily while smoking and drinking in a public place. This is shown once again at the end, where the camera slowly zooms in on the joyful people, while making the slow, romantic music louder. In the dialogue between Sam and Don, Sam says “I love smoking” followed by “My wife hates smoking”, but laughs it off immediately after. (98)
Don’s Character
The setting is in a bar with a lot of chit chat noise and the song Band of Gold playing in the background. Don’s unsettled expressions and his almost unreadable scribbling on napkin establishes the ongoing chaos and unclarity in Don’s mind. The song foreshadows Don’s struggle about love and wealth. During his talk with Sam, Don scribble again but this time the words are readable, and the background noise also reduces showing the transition of Don’s chaotic to somewhat clear thought process. The emphasis of cigarettes in dialogues and scenes foreshadows the importance of cigarettes for the plot. (99 words)
*** This is a very good response, especially when it focuses on Don’s thought process. The topic sentence could state more clearly what the song implies (albeit ironically) about Don’s life.
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In the opening scene of Mad Men’s opening episode, we are “introduced” to Don, even without truly knowing anything about him. Don is approached by a server and initiates a conversation with him, until someone who appears to be a manager asks if the server was causing any trouble. This part is significant if you consider the era that the show is portrayed in. The server was black, while the manager was Caucasian. Don refutes that there was any sort of issue and continues his conversation with the server while the manager leaves to make him another “Old Fashioned” drink. The server was initially shy but became more talkative as the conversation went along. Upon the end of the scene and his conversation, we see Don glance at the patrons of the bar and watches them enjoy their cigarettes, drinks, and peers, as he looks perplexed. This segment perfectly illustrated that even in our busy worlds, we need to take time to look around and take in what is around us. Don was busy working on something, yet he took the time to interact with the server and showed character especially with how he stood up for the server and was possibly aware of the racial tension that may have existed between the workers.
*** This response is too long. The student covers the sympathetic side of Don well, yet needs to condense the ideas.
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The director creates an excellent contrast between a relaxed, buoyant bar crowd and Don’s isolated position, studiously jotting down notes with an intense look on his face. He is evidently unable to detract from his day job which is further emphasized as he quizzes a waiter on his preferred brand of cigarettes, particularly satisfied with one sentence: “I love smoking”. The concluding scene perfectly illustrates how a seemingly congenial atmosphere is translated in Don’s head to strategizing for his company. He stares at the patrons with an inquiring look on his face, clearly curious about their smoking preferences.
*** This is a very good response, although it needs a bit of proofreading and it could make a clearer line of argument in the topic sentence. What does this contrast mean in the context of the opening scene of the show?
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The opening scene serves to introduce Don as a confident, rich, creative ad man, while establishing the setting for the show. Don has a conversation with a server about smoking, asking what it would take to get him to switch to Don’s brand of cigarettes, “Lucky Strike”. The way Don sends the white server away is that of a confident, wealthy, man’s man type of character, socially ranked above the average white man. He expresses discontent towards the server’s statement “Reader’s Digest says it’ll kill you.” which foreshadows the problem he’s having at work, shown later in the episode.
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The scene is shown to be a bar full of businessmen off-work, drinking and socializing with one another - directly contrasting with Don. Even after office-hours, he’s working whilst sitting alone among groups of chatty friends and the bar's warm, inviting atmosphere. Surprisingly, when the bars black waiter approaches him, Don chats friendly with him for work purposes. This uncaring about the race of his waiter in the racial climate of the ‘60s, just to talk about work, shows that Don is a person that puts work first even when in an inviting, social atmosphere, and before prejudices.
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In the opening bar scene in episode one of the television series “Mad Men”, Don uses rhetoric as a way to persuade his potential customers. He does this through persuasion, using pathos, which is the appeal to emotion. Instead of asking his bartender why he smokes cigarettes, Don asks the rhetorical question of why he smokes Old Golds. By doing this he is making the bartender ask himself that same question. At the end of the scene, the bartender says he loves smoking, although he heard it’s bad for him. This fits in perfectly with Don's mode of persuasion which is propelled through emotion, rather than fact or logic.
*** Use proper title format.
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In a stark contrast, Don sits alone in a bar packed with people socializing and having a good time. Our feelings are stirred to see him scramble words on a lipstick stained napkin, striking up a conversation about cigarettes with Sam. By repeatedly asking the waiter why he would not change his favourite cigarette brand, Don finally receives the answer “I love smoking”. From Don’s reaction we realize that all previous napkin scrambles were work related. We get a glimpse at his personality, as he realizes how large is his target audience to sell cigarettes. Our sympathy starts to fade. (100 words)
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The scene’s mood gives a perfect sense of the time, with everyone drinking and smoking carelessly, making it seem like just another day, which helps introduce the isolated protagonist, Don, as a busy man doing his homework in a crowded bar. While others socialize with friends, Don converses with the waiter, Sam, regarding his smoking preferences. Sam seems hesitant at first, while Don seems interested. Their conversation is revealed to be a survey when Don jots down Sam’s answers. The roles of interest are reversed towards the end of the conversation, as the workaholic Don is there solely for business. (100 words)
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The opening scene of Mad Men’s (S1 Ep1) begins with the definition of the eponymous phrase Mad Men. This informs viewers immediately that the protagonist is most likely an advertising executive. It is then emphasized that advertising executives gave themselves the name and this implies that the protagonist is in control of how people in his person and work life view him. He most likely has carefully cultivated persona which is in stark contrast with his actual personality and beliefs. The song “Band of Gold” by Don Cherry is played during the entire opening scene. The songs speaks about commitment and speaks of loyalty particular to ones spouse. This most likely foreshadows future central conflicts or even a critical flaw in the protagonist’s character.
*** Use proper title format.
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The first scene in Mad Men’s first season opens with the song Band of Gold. This sets the tone for what will come in the season because Don is only focused on wealth and love. Don is immediately drawn to the type of cigarette the waiter uses: Old Gold. Sam is an old married man with a Band of Gold and smokes just out of habit. Don, however, is easily influenced and goes with the trends. He is not as stable in a relationship and his cigarette type is Lucky Strike: he takes risks which he hopes will pan out. (100)
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Dons cigarettes, “Lucky Strike” metaphorically express his desire for a golden chance in love. At the beginning the viewer is exposed to Don comfortably sitting alone smoking “Lucky Strike “cigarettes, in a lively and sociable setting. The following shot implies the waiter’s success in love as he mentions he smokes only “Old Gold” cigarettes. The lyrics “Just want a little band of gold, to prove that you are mine”, faintly play in the background illustrating Don is still waiting for his “Lucky Strike” with a women to achieve his “Old Gold” in love.
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The opening bar scene of Mad Men S1E1 begins by deliberately isolating it’s protagonist Don Draper from the rest of the bar crowd. This is achieved by introducing him to the audience unaccompanied and visibly focused, contrasting the lively and celebratory nature of the surrounding scene. Don’s presence at this bar is given a sense of significant meaning, distancing him from the absent minded crowd. His isolation is not meant to degrade him, but rather empower him, giving Don the upper hand on the bar crowd that he has now recognized as his target market. (95 words)
*** This response makes a very good point, but it tends to repeat that point instead of giving supporting arguments and details. Try to condense the language (perhaps leaving out the third sentence altogether) and cover more ground. At the end of the response, I am left asking myself, How exactly does this isolation empower Don? Also, note: it’s = it is.