Rastamouse Controversy Article

Rastamouse: righteous rodent or rank stereotype?

Rastamouse producer Greg Boardman on the reggae-playing rodent's appeal, reinforcing stereotypes, the show's adult fans – and all those mentions of 'cheese'

 

The Guardian:

http://gu.com/p/2n5kp

 

 

 

 

The language issue is represented very objectively and it allows the reader to decide whether they would like to view Rastamouse as positive or negative. The article opens with a paragraph which includes the line "And, of course, a backlash". The use of this simple sentence tells the audience that it is expected that a new show would receive some criticism and that this show should not be judged badly immediately. This shows the writer is trying not to persuade the audience to think something in particular, if anything he is trying to argue in favour of the show.

 

The writer effectively shapes the readers response by using a semantic field of positivity. The use of various lexis including "pleasingly", "love", and "wonderful" all create a positive representation of the programme and allow the audience to focus on the positive aspects of the show. This semantic field subtly makes the audience feel positive and they will soon begin feeling better about the show, removing any negative feels they may have had before.

 

The writer represents himself as somewhat unsure, and very impartial about the issues raised. He effectively does this by not having any arrogance or certainty about what he is writing. He uses the simple sentence, or clause, "this may be something of an understatement" which retracts what he said previously and gives the readers both sides of the argument.