Draft: J.K. Rowling Website

There are many different websites that I could have chosen, but not all of them were as enticing as this one. I am a huge fan of Harry Potter and loved this site even before we got this assignment. J.K. Rowlings site is very unique. When you first go to her website you are brought to a page that asked if you want to continue on to the part that is accessible. When you click there it brings you to a page looks like a desk, a very messy one. The page is one that is one that is very interactive. As you run your mouse over the page different items can be clicked on. It is really fun to figure out.

I think the goal of her page is to excite and entertain her readers even more. It looks like she is trying to persuade them to come to her page often and see what different things have been posted or what is going on. This page doesn’t have a whole lot of text that you read, but all of the graphics and sounds and things like that, I think that it is very effective for her audience, which is mainly children and others who enjoy her books. This page is defiantly geared towards a specific audience. You can see that when you first see the page when you find all of the exciting things that you can click on. Those are something that her audience does want to click on and explore.

J.K. Rowling uses many different tools to attract people to her website. The first that I noticed was her use of connotation. She uses a newspaper “The Daily News” to post information that the readers might be interested in. It is similar to or reminds you of the newspapers in the books in some ways. It gives you a little sense of being a character out of her books. You can almost imagine the pictures moving. I think this part of her page uses ethos to make the audience think about they feel about the books, if they liked the books or if they didn’t the books. It might also remind them of did or didn’t like about particular elements in the books, such as moving pictures or stairs. I think this tool really works for the audience because it really does catch their attention and make them want to read what it is about.

Next she uses Allusion. At one point on the page she has a text that you can click on that says “Wizard of the month archive”. This text is making a clear reference to the wizards in her books. I think that this tool appeals to the audiences’ emotions. It is enticing them to click on the link to find out who the Wizard of the month actually is. Is it my favorite character? Is it the one I hate the most? Or is it one of weird random characters that we don’t seem to remember? I’m telling you it works. People really do love to look at it.

After that you can see that she uses imagery. I think this page uses a tremendous amount of imagery. When you first look at the page you see the layout of all the things on this “desk” and it makes you think about what her desk might look like. While she wrote these books, was is a mess, did she have odd things just lying around? This is another example of how she uses ethos on this page. She is getting the audience to think about the possible emotions and thought process behind her writing. It is always intriguing to look into the authors mind and see how they think. I am defiantly using this tool to imagine how the books where written or what might have taken place when the work came together.

Following her use of imagery, she uses the tool of personification. She gives a purpose to some very strange things on her page. As you scroll your mouse over the page you can find what different objects have a links to something. Like the paperclips take you to her FAQ page and the eraser doesn’t tell you what is coming, but it makes you want to find out what it is when all it shows you is a question mark. It still uses emotions to make the reader want to find out what objects have links and why that object has that particular link. It is causing the audience to become engaged in the page.

If you haven’t noticed yet, there seems to be a trend to appealing to the audiences’ emotions. :)

Later, she uses some irony. Irony is used on one part of the page where the text to the link says “Rumours! Free Special Edition.” This link is extremely ironic that she is going to be posting all of the Rumors that have been going around about her or her books. It is interesting that something like rumors, would in fact, entice someone to read that page. Once again it is an ethos appeal. The audience wants to know what crazy things are being said true or not. Our society runs on rumors and gossip. It is because of the way our society works that this appeal works.

Then she uses some pretty crazy overstatements. I think she really exaggerates the perception of how cluttered her desk really is. After a while you get tired of looking at all of the different things to a point where you don’t know if you like it. She is really appealing to logos here. When we look at the desk we know that logically people don’t usually work in such environments but with ethos, we are still intrigued by all the things that are there and the fact that her desk might really look like that. It really does make the audience think about all of the individual pieces that are on that page and why she might have placed them there.

Afterward, she uses tone. She uses a tone that excites and audience and makes them want to continue coming to this page. It is an appeal of ethos. She uses the emotions you might have felt in the books on her page to keep you wanting more. The audience is coming back for more. When people hear about how exciting her page is it makes them want to see it also.

And last but not lease, she uses some very good diction. She uses specific text throughout the page that really makes you think about what she wants you to get from it. She specifically uses on part where the text says “Everything you might want to know.” Well everything is a strong word, so it makes you wonder what that everything is that the author thinks you would want to know. I think it is once again appealing to the audience with ethos. It is using the audiences intrigue to get them to continue reading and looking at things on her page. We know that it is working because people look at her page and then continue to come back to see her page.

I believe that this page is an excellent example of how to get a lot of people (your desired audience) to look at and participate on. I really believe that with the understanding she has of who her audience is and what they are interested in she has made this page what it is: A great page for readers of all ages, and who of course love Harry Potter.