Rhetorical Analysis of A Visual Text

Abby Yim
Professor Echols
English 1202
October 1 , 2021
¨What is Love¨
The meaning of love can differ depending on the person. Jaymes Young and Haddaway
wrote two different versions of the song ¨What is Love''. These artists were able to completely
transform the song using the tempo and beat of the music. While the lyrics may be the exact same,
these two music videos send two very different messages about the idea of love. The song “What
Is Love” is ultimately about pondering the meaning and feeling of love as a whole.
Haddway released the original version of the song, May 8, 1993. Haddaway´s music video
is upbeat and has a fast tempo, but don’t let that fool you. The lyrics are more about a man
trying to love a girl that doesn’t love him back. There is a lot of dancing and positive energy in
this music video. He expresses that he feels helpless without her. The music video is very flashy
and it cuts to different scenes of people dancing. People who feel helplessly in love, but can’t
get the girl would find this song appealing. The story being told in the music video is a man
trying to figure out what the meaning of love is. It shows all kinds of different romance scenes.
The story being told makes the listener think about the meaning of love and how the feeling can
be both a positive and negative thing. In the song he says “baby don’t hurt me anymore” this
displays that love can be the greatest feeling in the world, but it can also bring pain. There were
mainly Pathos in this music video because the man singing used facial expressions to show the
way he was feeling. I think the facial expressions along with the lyrics will get an emotional
reaction from the viewer. The audience for this video would be someone who is in the mood for
an upbeat tune about the ups and downs of love.

Jaymes Young released his version of ¨What is Love¨ in 2013. Jaymes Youngsś music
video has a slow and gloomy beat. The opening scene is a couple getting into a bad car crash.
The wife didn't survive the accident and it displayed memories that they had together, and then
it cuts to him alone. The man is dreaming about her and helplessly missing her everyday. It
shows him experiencing multiple levels of grief and emotions. There were mainly pathos in this
music video because it displayed a lot of emotional events suchs as a man in a hospital
wounded, a wedding, and special times a couple spent together. These events will get an
emotional reaction from the viewer if they can relate to losing someone you love. He slows
down the music and lyrics to create a more dramatic effect on the song. The music video is
more serious and allows the audience to relate on a deeper level.The audience in this version
would be someone who is heart broken or feeling defeated. The video tells more of a story
about a man who lost his wife. It shows the phases of a relationship and makes the listener
think about what it’s like to be in love and then lose it. In the video it shows a man having
flashbacks to a perfect relationship and then realizing she isn’t there anymore. The video shows
how that experience can make a person feel. The audience for this music video would be
someone who has lost a loved one or someone who is heartbroken.
These two music videos have a lot in common such as how they are both about love and
have the exact same lyrics. The lyrics ``baby don’t hurt me, don’t hurt me no more” and “what is
love” shows these videos are both about men who are having love troubles, and trying to figure
out the meaning of love. They are reluctant to love because they don't want to get hurt. They
show both sides, and how there are both ups and downs when it comes to love. They are both
about how love can be both painful and fulfilling. On the other hand, these music videos do have
a lot of differences too. The audiences of the two music videos would be different because they
are two completely different moods. Haddways version is upbeat and all about enjoying the
crazy ups and downs of love. Jaymes Young's version is gloomy and has a slow tempo. These
are different because Hallway's video was more about the music and dancing, and Jaymes'
video had more of a sad story line about losing a loved one.
There are endless ways to perceive the meaning of love and all of the emotions that
come with it. The artists, Haddaway and Jaymes Young were really able to show that by
producing two very different music videos with the same song foundation simply based off of
their different perspectives on love.
CoconutMusicGermany, CoconutMusicGermany. “Haddaway - What Is Love [Official].”
YouTube, YouTube, 18 June 2014, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HEXWRTEbj1I.
jamesbond007ptit, bonD. “What Is Love - Jaymes Young (Cinematic Video).” YouTube,
YouTube, 27 Apr. 2019, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nIvvHKp0JNI.

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Abby Yim

an upbeat tune about the ups and downs of love.

someone who has lost a loved one or someone who is heartbroken.

their different perspectives on love.

CoconutMusicGermany, CoconutMusicGermany. “Haddaway - What Is Love [Official].”

YouTube, YouTube, 18 June 2014, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HEXWRTEbj1I.

jamesbond007ptit, bonD. “What Is Love - Jaymes Young (Cinematic Video).” YouTube,

YouTube, 27 Apr. 2019, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nIvvHKp0JNI.

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