[Review] 'Roman' by Teen Top
http://www.allkpop.com/2011/08/review-roman-teen-top
Although this article pertains to the entire album, I'll mostly be referring to part of this review, as it is the most opinionated. The song "No More Perfume on You" was a hit among teens and adults alike, evident through this cheerful and overly positive review.
On a personal level, this song really wasn't that energetic or adrenaline boosting. Truthfully, I thought it was a bit of a downer. Really, a group of young boys singing about how to cheat on their girlfriends isn't a great influence to anyone, but apparently, this reviewer at allkpop.com certainly believed it was quite an astounding song!
Most convincingly, the diction of this review brings a positive vibe to everything said in this review. For example, the reviewer states, "By the time the chorus ends, TEEN TOP have already plowed through two tanks of adrenaline and they’re halfway through their third." The diction is clearly very positive, using metaphors to compare the high energy upbeat song to "plowed through two tanks of adrenaline" instead of just saying something along the lines of “this song was very high in adrenaline”. This shows a positive, cheerful, and fond view of this song.
Not only does the language convince me that this reviewer is quite fond of this album, but the syntax of the writing is also quite a big hint. The reviewer says of the singing: “What’s most surprising is that the other three vocalists aside from Neil – Changjo, Chunji, and Ricky– are, low and behold, not as inferior as we may have thought”. The way that this sentence is worded gives an overtone of surprise in the voice, but with a positive connotation. Due to the placing of the “low and behold” phrase, this sentence also has a sarcastic voice. In a way, it feels like the reviewer is saying “Woah! These singers can actually sing!” in a slightly brusque tone, which gives readers quite a chuckle. This syntax definitely shows the reviewer’s fondness of the vocals in this album in a humorous way.
More than that, the language also shows the viewpoint of the reviewer, as he states that this song is a "strong pop song next to its predecessors". The use of the word ‘strong’ shows fervent approval of the song “No More Perfume on You”. The reviewer also favors a particular singer’s voice, saying that “Chunji in particular really shines here, and his timbre is probably my favorite. It’s insurmountably smooth and all the tiny melismas he throws in gives me the shivers”. Well, if that language isn’t considered to be positive, I don’t know what would be! The review uses language with an extremely positive connotation, such as ‘favorite’ or ‘shines’, and even ‘insurmountable smooth’. The overall upbeat and positive language that is used gives readers the sense that the reviewer really does enjoy this album.
Hi Erin. I thought that you showed a good understanding of the language in the review, noting the connotations and effects that these words have on the reader. However, this is actually diction, not language, but i think if you just switched the words around in your paragraph it would still work. Your section on syntax was really more about diction rather than the punctuation or construction of the sentence, but thats not really that bad because i dont think anyone really knew what syntax was until a few days ago, haha. Also i think your diction section is also strong, but should be language instead of diction. great voice and organization!
ReplyDelete-Nico
Hey Erin! Good job with this one as well! I was a little bit confused with which specific technique you are dealing with since you used the words differently at different places. This is very hard for me personally, but maybe you could try describing the effects without coming right out and saying which ones you are analyzing. The meaning of the author is well supported by your evidence, so great job on that! Also, I really liked how you added a personal response in the beginning about what you thought of it. Just by putting in that little paragraph about your own thoughts, you made me as the reader more interested in what you were talking about, so good job!
ReplyDelete-Nikki
Hello! Alright, so you did a really nice job with this close reading. You really captured the thoughts and ideas the author of the article had and related them to what a reader feels when reading the review of the song. Personally it seems like the techniques we learned (DIDLS) are pretty related to one another, and sometimes it is difficult to pick it apart and decide what is what. I think that your paragraph on diction almost describes language a little better, because you talk about the use of a metaphor comparing the upbeat song to tanks of adrenaline. This and your other evidence in this paragraph would probably better be described as language. Considering we are just learning about syntax now, your syntax paragraph is pretty good! haha knowing what we know now, I am confident you would be able to write a paragraph analyzing sentence lengths, structures, and elements of sentences rather than the feel that the words in a sentence give the reader. In general your piece was very well written and described your opinion on the music, as well as what you thought others would think. it was also very organized and easy to follow! Awesome job!
ReplyDeleteKelly