online discussions of Dr. Talinn Phillips' ENG 308J course at Ohio University
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Analyzing Visual Texts
What have you learned so far about doing visual rhetorical analysis? What kinds of things should you be looking for? How will you approach your analysis for your paper?
What I have learned so far about doing a visual rhetorical analysis is that it is important to open up to multiple different aspects of the piece. It is critical to look at the piece’s audience, argument, context, and visual constructs. Along with these four things, ethos, logos and pathos must me taken into account. Ethos is the appeal to the author, pathos is the appeal to the audience’s emotion, and logos is the appeal to reason. Some visual pieces may have all three of these things, but others may only have one or two. It is important to analyze the piece in such a way that one can understand exactly what went into it’s creation, and what it is trying to convey. When it comes to approaching my visual analysis paper, I will start by finding a strong piece that has a clear statement. Normally I have to analyze still photos, but for this project I will most likely choose some sort of commercial. Next, I will look at the piece’s audience and attempt to figure out exactly whom the commercial is trying to appeal to. I will then look at the context and argument that is being made. What medium is being used and what is trying to be said? I have not yet decided where I am going to incorporate the ethos, pathos, and logos argument yet, but most likely I’ll do it at the end after I have presented my ideas of the commercial. That way I can back up my argument. For me, this assignment will help with the way I visually analyze something. I have been taught to read visual pieces very quickly, so slowing down and writing it out will be something different. Now if I can only find a commercial I like…
I think visual stuff is a very interesting and special way to describe the world because it includes the combination between color, graphs, and texts. With more elements to work with, the visual stuff has more options to depict what it wants to in different ways. So far, I've learned that the more elements in a visual stuff, the more complicated and more decent an idea being convey. For example, when we do our brief visual analysis with a still picture, we can find less to say rather than we analyze a video or moving pictures. Videos and moving pictures can contain more elements which the composer has more option to pick the best ones. In this case, the more complicated the visual stuff can be analyzed.
In addition, pathos, ethos, and logos are really important method when analyzing a visual stuff. In terms of the characteristics of the idea, different methods will be used differently. For example, the topic of my brief visual analysis is a advocation to the equality, so pathos are used more than the other two. However, if a product wants to show its high credibility, ethos will be used more. Moreover, it's very hard to use all the three methods together to show every aspects of the visual stuff itself. If so, the audience will feel very confused and dizzy about the complication of the pictures. Thus, I think, a composer should focus on one or two methods to quickly grasp one aspect of the audience. I think this way is more effective.
When doing visual rhetorical analysis, it is important to keep in mind your audience, purpose, context, strategies, and rhetorical situations. Keeping in mind your audience is crucial because your target audience already has a set of beliefs that you as a persuader are looking to change. Also, you must think about when and where your audience will be viewing your message because that also can change how effective your persuasion is. You must also be on the lookout for Aristotle's art of persuasion containing ethos, pathos, and logos. Pathos will illicit emotion to persuade the audience, ethos used the credibility of the composer to persuade, and logos used logic and rational arguments to persuade. As I approach my paper, I will be looking for all of these components in the message and viewing how effective or ineffective the composer was at persuading.
Visual Rhetorical Analysis contains three important features. These feartures include pathos, logos and ethos. The targeted audience is important with the visual rhetorical analysis because many times only the targeted audience may understand the visual’s goals or relevance of the brand name.
When referring to ethos, the visual rhetorical analysis is restoring it’s credibility mainly through brand names somewhere in the text. Pathos is the use of emotions to persuade the audience to be drawn into the visual analysis. Logos is the rational argument attempted by the visual, based on use of statistics, cause/effect or any type of definitions presented. When analyzing a visual text, you should look out for ethos, pathos and logos to determine credibility, emotional appeal, the rational argument and the targeted audience. When approaching the analysis for my final paper, I will first choose a visual or commercial that has a pretty clearly targeted audience. Once I decide on a visual to use for my analysis, I will begin to analyze it for the targeted audience.
After I have my analysis and understand the targeted audience, I will begin to review it for evidence of ethos, pathos and logos. For ethos, I will examine for credibility of the visual based on brand names of companies or organizations presented in the visual. For pathos, I will review the visual for any emotional appeal presented in efforts to persuade the audience to feel excitement, sadness, happiness or whatever the goal of the visual is. For logos, I will further evaluate the visual to understand the rational argument of the visual or commercial based on any statistics or in terms of arrangement.
What I have learned about doing a visual rhetorical analysis is that you need to focus on the main points that are going on in the commercial, short film or whatever it is that you are analyzing. You should always look for what audience the producer is aiming for and also the context of the whole piece. Also, look for and understand ethos, pathos and logos. It is important to be open-minded and really try and get in to the production of whatever it is you are analyzing. When approaching my analysis for my paper, I will begin by finding a visual that has a clear and strong point. Analyzing a commercial, there can be many different things going on that I will have to understand the purpose. I need to ask myself questions such as, "what audience is this commercial mostly appealing to?" "What emotions do I feel while watching?" "What about credibility?" and "Does the commercial attempt to create a rational argument?" All of these questions have to do with ethos, pathos and logos. I also have to understand the context of the commercial. I'm sure that there are many other to look for besides the one's I have just discussed but that is just the start!
I have learned that visuals follow the same rules for rhetoric as written arguments. Visual rhetoric makes the same use of ethos, pathos and logos in an attempt to generate interest or shape opinion. By dissecting these properties within a visual argument, one can learn whether or not an argument is strong or weak. Some commercials may be entertaining but ineffective for selling the product or service for various reasons. Likewise, any visual argument may present good reason (logos) but remain ineffective because of a lack of entertainment value.
A balance has to struck between pleasing the audience by meeting their needs and also ensuring that the needs of the composer are met. If the audience doesn't feel it's needs are met, then they will lose interest. If the composer doesn't have good reason to believe that the audience will respond in the desired manner, then they risk wasting time, effort or money on a fool's errand.
What I have learned so far about visual analysis: Visual texts can be analyzed very thoroughly like I never imagined. I always knew advertisements had a message that was simple enough for the targeted audience to read but I never realized how every bit of a text can be analyzed and every bit of text means something specific. I think it is fun to look at different advertisements and what each is trying to say. Using the ethos, pathos, and logos levels of analysis has made this process easier. I also like the questions that an analyzer should ask when looking at a text regarding the audience, purpose, context, and author.
The kinds of things I should be looking for: The thing I will first look for is what is the composer is using as his advertisement strategy whether that be ethos, pathos, or logos. I will research the company who put out the advertisement and look up their credibility. Each company will have a different approach to what they are selling and I will look for which one works best. The humane society using logos in one advertisement will not be as effective as another advertisement using pathos.
How I will approach the analysis for the paper: I will first look up the ethos, pathos, or logos of the paper and dig deep into every piece of the advertisement. I will use the paper as a guide for questions to ask. I will make sure my audience knows exactly what I am seeing through my eyes of analysis.
So far visual rhetorical analysis has taught me to view videos and images as arguments. Most people realize that commercials or advertisements are trying to sell us something, but when you view them as more of a proposal, other characteristics become apparent. When viewing a comercial or ad one normally just tries to ignore it. However in this class, actually focusing on an ad, no matter how benign it may seem, can bring out some down right strange or hilarious points. Visual analysis has allowed me to look critically at the types of visuals I would normally block out because of disinterest or to spite being sold something.
Some things I now look for are the different ways an argument can be given in a visual media. Appealing to the type of audience, using emotion to draw them in, and convincing them of your argument with your credibility is how an advertiser can use the three themes of rhetoric.
For my paper on Visual analysis, I will try to find a video with an obvious argument. I can then make my own argument of how the makers used themes of rhetoric to try to convince an audience of this argument.
What I have learned about writing a visual rhetorical analysis is that you must first observe the rhetorical elements of persuasion or the rhetorical strategies, ethos, logos, and pathos. When considering these in the visual analysis you must also have an understanding of rhetoric, the art of persuasion. The first strategy, ethos, appeals to the viewer’s sense of credibility toward the author and the content. The author may use credibility of powerful brand names or titles. The author can also use testimonials that ensure the credibility of the work. There are many more aspects of credibility that can be analyzed in a visual persuasion. The second rhetorical strategy is pathos, or the ability to appeal to the viewer’s sense of emotion, or passion. The author can elect emotion many ways and one of the easiest ways in which to achieve this is to use children or animals. The third and final rhetorical strategy is logos or, the author’s ability to appeal to the viewer’s sense of logic or reason. The easiest way to achieve this rationality is through science and statistics but can also be achieved through the use of testimonials and visual arrangements. The author also uses many things to develop visual appeal to the viewer including the visual content and context.
What have I learned? Firstly, I have learned about Ethos, Pathos, and Logos, which are all words that I have seen before and I have known had something to do with writing, but never actually knew anything about. Advertisements are very specifically augmentative pieces that are aimed towards audiences, which is why vis com and graphic design kids have a one up on this project. I know that in preparing to argue about a piece I should be looking for the things that are used in it and how those things relate to the scene that is being set up, as well as the interaction between everything in the piece. I then need to approach the analysis by laying out all the factors and details that have gone into the making of the piece that I am analyzing. It will be important to make notes on all the details about why they are used and what those details say to an audience and how they make sense in our world. Details that are used in anything arguing against why a certain product is better than another product, for example, can make all the difference in whether or not that product can be taken seriously. After I have all the detailed picked out and in front of me, I can then begin to critique every part of the piece in order to understand what approaches the piece has used to reach out to an audience and whether or not it is effective.
So far for the visual rhetorical analysis I have learned more in depth about rhetorical strategies for an argument. These include ethos, pathos, and logos. Ethos focuses on the credibility of the author giving the argument. This can be very influential in persuading a target audience. Pathos is the emotional appeal to an argument. This can include anything to pull sadness, excitement, or fear out of the viewer. Last is logos which is the rational side of the argument, and what really sells you on a product. Logos can include an analysis that presents facts that supports the argument. I will approach my paper similarly to how I chose my print advertisement. I will choose an ad that is directed to a target audience that I belong too, this way I will know more about the setting. Then I will chose an ad that might not be too well known but is still credible. I will look for the key theme and apply my knowledge about the different rhetorical strategies.
I have learned that I have to expand my thinking for advertisements if I'm going to complete these assignments. I get the meaning of what the commercial/ ad/ video thing is telling me, but I don't see all of the- 'why did they put that where it is, why those colors, etc.' unless it is clearly obvious to me and my father's brother's uncle's nephew's former roommate. I feel like that is something that I need work on in general, expanding my depth vision. While I do feel like it's better than it has been in the past, it still is not good enough for where this course is requiring it to be. How it can be improved is actively, (and silently), analyzing everything I see for 'x' amount of time,
As far as approaching the paper, I will need to put the active analysis into practice through thinking carefully about what themes I want to draw from my source, and choosing a certain amount to focus on. Once I have established the themes from the source, I must then decide what it is about these themes that make them important for completing the message, further deciphering what sort of appeal these details make to the person overall. Lastly, it's a matter of effective writing and presentation to report the findings and such.
I have learned a lot about visual rhetorical analysis in this class thus far. Visual analysis defines the way the audience views a visual piece. This piece could be an ad, flyer, commercial, or even a video game cover. This class has taught me to deeply look into a visual piece and break it down. Some questions I now ask myself are, “What are the author/creators intentions for the ad?” “How does the ad use Ethos, Pathos, and Logos to appeal to the audience?” “Does the ad try to get emotion from the reader, or does it simply want the reader to buy the intended product or service?”
Some things I look for in these visual pieces are the color schemes they used or how the items in the piece are scaled to promote optimal marketing. I look to see if an ad or commercial took an art approach to spike the reader’s imagination. Some visual pieces are filled with unanswered questions in order to keep the audience guessing or wondering.
These are all important aspects to consider when writing a paper about visual rhetorical analysis. I will throw some of my questions at these ads or commercials. I will analyse the visual piece so that the reader of my paper will have a different take on it. We need to see all of the sides and angles of the many visual pieces out there.
What I have, thus far, learned about visual rhetorical analysis is that the quality of the analysis itself can be affected by the quality of the choice image. The stronger an advertisement can convey its intent the more availability one has to relate what devices it uses in a critical manner of its understanding rather than its lack thereof. Looking for the individual devices, like connotations or ethos, becomes easier and you can focus on the more subtle details, and better develop arguments with reasoning.
Approaching the paper with a better understanding of the diversity in which rhetorical devices are used, to better articulate and understand its message, and in turn, develop the paper in a more stream lined manner to convey to the reader the adverts’ intent and success therein or failure therein.
Mainly what I have learned about visual analysis is how the composer attempts to persuade their audience. They use pathos, ethos, and logos to draw in their audience. Composers always have an ideal audience they are trying to reach. A popular use of ethos is use a celebrity. When using pathos many advertisements charity leaving their audience a good feeling after contributing. Lastly, I observed when using logos not many advertisement in class resorted to this tactic.
The main thing I look for in visual rhetorical analysis is to identify the purpose of the composer. And how is the composer trying to get their purpose across to their audience? I will focus on the primary things going in the commercial, and then describe my argument by stating the composer’s purpose. And finally, give examples that support my argument.
Visual rhetorical analysis has two main parts with many sub-analysis. Audience, argument, contest and visual constructs are the first group and Ethos, Pathos, and Logos make up the second part. The first four make up the ad as a whole the background to the ad. While the other three get more in depth into the analysis of the ad. Ethos has to do with the credibility of the composer. This can be something that helps the credibility of the composer or hurts the credibility of him/her. It can also make you want to look more closely at the advertisement. If the name of a well known company is on there you might be more inclined to look and pay attention. Pathos has to do with creating an emotional response. This is most often done through pictures. It can be done through words as well but we don't see this as often. I think that Pathos is used most often in advertisements because it connects directly to the reader drawing them in to look at the ad. Lastly we have Logos. This covers the question of is the ad in a logical order. Does it make sense to the reader? Is it arranged in a way that makes sense and is easy to follow. These are questions that when analyzing an ad you want to be looking at. Another part of Logos is about statistics. If there are statistics in the ad are they easy to under stand. These three item are what we are looking for as we analyze an ad.
I also learned that I have a different view on what is acceptable and what makes sense to the reader. Something that made perfect sense to me was not as accepted to others. This will make it difficult to write a good analysis of a commercial but that is why I am in this class to learn the skills to see it not from my point of view but a broader point of view.
My approach for the paper will be to first find a commercial and then do my best to pick apart the different parts of it. Trying to go less on what I think is correct and more on what the visually correct analysis is. That is how I feel will be the way for me to get the best score possible.
What I have learned about visual rhetorical analysis is that there is always an audience that the visual design is aiming for, some are large audiences and some are small. If have learned that still images usually have a line that a company wants the readers eyes to follow. They will use color, text, and images to get the line some use one of them and some use all of them. What kind of things should I be looking for? The first thing that I should be looking for is what audience is the visual aiming for, what is the message are they getting crossed, are they using ethos, logos, pathos, or are they using all of them and how well are they using them. The first thing I want to do is sit back and experience something for the first time and be open minded. Then, I will start looking at the visual and breaking it down in my mind, for example who is the audience, what is the message are they getting crossed, are they using ethos, logos, pathos, or are they using all of them and how well are they using them. Finally, do the have a good argument, does it work, and why it works.
Doing a visual rhetorical analysis has taught me how each and every article or advertisement has a specific purpose and is aiming the image towards a certain target market. I have learned more about using persuasion and how it is used in specific examples. Ethos, Pathos, and Logos are new to my vocabulary and are becoming more familiar to me. I should pay more attention to the little things that make up an image as well as the big picture. I should look for things such as how the image makes me feel,what the argument is if any, and who is the audience. I will also consider the context of the image. In my paper, I will use the tools and information I have learned so far. They will help guide me in the right direction in order to successfully analyze the image being used.
What I have learned so far about doing a visual rhetorical analysis is that it is important to open up to multiple different aspects of the piece. It is critical to look at the piece’s audience, argument, context, and visual constructs. Along with these four things, ethos, logos and pathos must me taken into account. Ethos is the appeal to the author, pathos is the appeal to the audience’s emotion, and logos is the appeal to reason. Some visual pieces may have all three of these things, but others may only have one or two. It is important to analyze the piece in such a way that one can understand exactly what went into it’s creation, and what it is trying to convey.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to approaching my visual analysis paper, I will start by finding a strong piece that has a clear statement. Normally I have to analyze still photos, but for this project I will most likely choose some sort of commercial. Next, I will look at the piece’s audience and attempt to figure out exactly whom the commercial is trying to appeal to. I will then look at the context and argument that is being made. What medium is being used and what is trying to be said? I have not yet decided where I am going to incorporate the ethos, pathos, and logos argument yet, but most likely I’ll do it at the end after I have presented my ideas of the commercial. That way I can back up my argument.
For me, this assignment will help with the way I visually analyze something. I have been taught to read visual pieces very quickly, so slowing down and writing it out will be something different. Now if I can only find a commercial I like…
Alex Goodlett
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI think visual stuff is a very interesting and special way to describe the world because it includes the combination between color, graphs, and texts. With more elements to work with, the visual stuff has more options to depict what it wants to in different ways. So far, I've learned that the more elements in a visual stuff, the more complicated and more decent an idea being convey. For example, when we do our brief visual analysis with a still picture, we can find less to say rather than we analyze a video or moving pictures. Videos and moving pictures can contain more elements which the composer has more option to pick the best ones. In this case, the more complicated the visual stuff can be analyzed.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, pathos, ethos, and logos are really important method when analyzing a visual stuff. In terms of the characteristics of the idea, different methods will be used differently. For example, the topic of my brief visual analysis is a advocation to the equality, so pathos are used more than the other two. However, if a product wants to show its high credibility, ethos will be used more. Moreover, it's very hard to use all the three methods together to show every aspects of the visual stuff itself. If so, the audience will feel very confused and dizzy about the complication of the pictures. Thus, I think, a composer should focus on one or two methods to quickly grasp one aspect of the audience. I think this way is more effective.
When doing visual rhetorical analysis, it is important to keep in mind your audience, purpose, context, strategies, and rhetorical situations. Keeping in mind your audience is crucial because your target audience already has a set of beliefs that you as a persuader are looking to change. Also, you must think about when and where your audience will be viewing your message because that also can change how effective your persuasion is. You must also be on the lookout for Aristotle's art of persuasion containing ethos, pathos, and logos. Pathos will illicit emotion to persuade the audience, ethos used the credibility of the composer to persuade, and logos used logic and rational arguments to persuade. As I approach my paper, I will be looking for all of these components in the message and viewing how effective or ineffective the composer was at persuading.
ReplyDeleteVisual Rhetorical Analysis contains three important features. These feartures include pathos, logos and ethos. The targeted audience is important with the visual rhetorical analysis because many times only the targeted audience may understand the visual’s goals or relevance of the brand name.
ReplyDeleteWhen referring to ethos, the visual rhetorical analysis is restoring it’s credibility mainly through brand names somewhere in the text. Pathos is the use of emotions to persuade the audience to be drawn into the visual analysis. Logos is the rational argument attempted by the visual, based on use of statistics, cause/effect or any type of definitions presented.
When analyzing a visual text, you should look out for ethos, pathos and logos to determine credibility, emotional appeal, the rational argument and the targeted audience. When approaching the analysis for my final paper, I will first choose a visual or commercial that has a pretty clearly targeted audience. Once I decide on a visual to use for my analysis, I will begin to analyze it for the targeted audience.
After I have my analysis and understand the targeted audience, I will begin to review it for evidence of ethos, pathos and logos. For ethos, I will examine for credibility of the visual based on brand names of companies or organizations presented in the visual. For pathos, I will review the visual for any emotional appeal presented in efforts to persuade the audience to feel excitement, sadness, happiness or whatever the goal of the visual is. For logos, I will further evaluate the visual to understand the rational argument of the visual or commercial based on any statistics or in terms of arrangement.
What I have learned about doing a visual rhetorical analysis is that you need to focus on the main points that are going on in the commercial, short film or whatever it is that you are analyzing. You should always look for what audience the producer is aiming for and also the context of the whole piece. Also, look for and understand ethos, pathos and logos. It is important to be open-minded and really try and get in to the production of whatever it is you are analyzing.
ReplyDeleteWhen approaching my analysis for my paper, I will begin by finding a visual that has a clear and strong point. Analyzing a commercial, there can be many different things going on that I will have to understand the purpose. I need to ask myself questions such as, "what audience is this commercial mostly appealing to?" "What emotions do I feel while watching?" "What about credibility?" and "Does the commercial attempt to create a rational argument?" All of these questions have to do with ethos, pathos and logos. I also have to understand the context of the commercial.
I'm sure that there are many other to look for besides the one's I have just discussed but that is just the start!
I have learned that visuals follow the same rules for rhetoric as written arguments. Visual rhetoric makes the same use of ethos, pathos and logos in an attempt to generate interest or shape opinion. By dissecting these properties within a visual argument, one can learn whether or not an argument is strong or weak. Some commercials may be entertaining but ineffective for selling the product or service for various reasons. Likewise, any visual argument may present good reason (logos) but remain ineffective because of a lack of entertainment value.
ReplyDeleteA balance has to struck between pleasing the audience by meeting their needs and also ensuring that the needs of the composer are met. If the audience doesn't feel it's needs are met, then they will lose interest. If the composer doesn't have good reason to believe that the audience will respond in the desired manner, then they risk wasting time, effort or money on a fool's errand.
What I have learned so far about visual analysis:
ReplyDeleteVisual texts can be analyzed very thoroughly like I never imagined. I always knew advertisements had a message that was simple enough for the targeted audience to read but I never realized how every bit of a text can be analyzed and every bit of text means something specific. I think it is fun to look at different advertisements and what each is trying to say. Using the ethos, pathos, and logos levels of analysis has made this process easier. I also like the questions that an analyzer should ask when looking at a text regarding the audience, purpose, context, and author.
The kinds of things I should be looking for:
The thing I will first look for is what is the composer is using as his advertisement strategy whether that be ethos, pathos, or logos. I will research the company who put out the advertisement and look up their credibility. Each company will have a different approach to what they are selling and I will look for which one works best. The humane society using logos in one advertisement will not be as effective as another advertisement using pathos.
How I will approach the analysis for the paper:
I will first look up the ethos, pathos, or logos of the paper and dig deep into every piece of the advertisement. I will use the paper as a guide for questions to ask. I will make sure my audience knows exactly what I am seeing through my eyes of analysis.
So far visual rhetorical analysis has taught me to view videos and images as arguments. Most people realize that commercials or advertisements are trying to sell us something, but when you view them as more of a proposal, other characteristics become apparent. When viewing a comercial or ad one normally just tries to ignore it. However in this class, actually focusing on an ad, no matter how benign it may seem, can bring out some down right strange or hilarious points. Visual analysis has allowed me to look critically at the types of visuals I would normally block out because of disinterest or to spite being sold something.
ReplyDeleteSome things I now look for are the different ways an argument can be given in a visual media. Appealing to the type of audience, using emotion to draw them in, and convincing them of your argument with your credibility is how an advertiser can use the three themes of rhetoric.
For my paper on Visual analysis, I will try to find a video with an obvious argument. I can then make my own argument of how the makers used themes of rhetoric to try to convince an audience of this argument.
What I have learned about writing a visual rhetorical analysis is that you must first observe the rhetorical elements of persuasion or the rhetorical strategies, ethos, logos, and pathos. When considering these in the visual analysis you must also have an understanding of rhetoric, the art of persuasion. The first strategy, ethos, appeals to the viewer’s sense of credibility toward the author and the content. The author may use credibility of powerful brand names or titles. The author can also use testimonials that ensure the credibility of the work. There are many more aspects of credibility that can be analyzed in a visual persuasion. The second rhetorical strategy is pathos, or the ability to appeal to the viewer’s sense of emotion, or passion. The author can elect emotion many ways and one of the easiest ways in which to achieve this is to use children or animals. The third and final rhetorical strategy is logos or, the author’s ability to appeal to the viewer’s sense of logic or reason. The easiest way to achieve this rationality is through science and statistics but can also be achieved through the use of testimonials and visual arrangements. The author also uses many things to develop visual appeal to the viewer including the visual content and context.
ReplyDeleteChris Ewry
What have I learned? Firstly, I have learned about Ethos, Pathos, and Logos, which are all words that I have seen before and I have known had something to do with writing, but never actually knew anything about. Advertisements are very specifically augmentative pieces that are aimed towards audiences, which is why vis com and graphic design kids have a one up on this project. I know that in preparing to argue about a piece I should be looking for the things that are used in it and how those things relate to the scene that is being set up, as well as the interaction between everything in the piece. I then need to approach the analysis by laying out all the factors and details that have gone into the making of the piece that I am analyzing. It will be important to make notes on all the details about why they are used and what those details say to an audience and how they make sense in our world. Details that are used in anything arguing against why a certain product is better than another product, for example, can make all the difference in whether or not that product can be taken seriously. After I have all the detailed picked out and in front of me, I can then begin to critique every part of the piece in order to understand what approaches the piece has used to reach out to an audience and whether or not it is effective.
ReplyDeleteSo far for the visual rhetorical analysis I have learned more in depth about rhetorical strategies for an argument. These include ethos, pathos, and logos. Ethos focuses on the credibility of the author giving the argument. This can be very influential in persuading a target audience. Pathos is the emotional appeal to an argument. This can include anything to pull sadness, excitement, or fear out of the viewer. Last is logos which is the rational side of the argument, and what really sells you on a product. Logos can include an analysis that presents facts that supports the argument.
ReplyDeleteI will approach my paper similarly to how I chose my print advertisement. I will choose an ad that is directed to a target audience that I belong too, this way I will know more about the setting. Then I will chose an ad that might not be too well known but is still credible. I will look for the key theme and apply my knowledge about the different rhetorical strategies.
I have learned that I have to expand my thinking for advertisements if I'm going to complete these assignments. I get the meaning of what the commercial/ ad/ video thing is telling me, but I don't see all of the- 'why did they put that where it is, why those colors, etc.' unless it is clearly obvious to me and my father's brother's uncle's nephew's former roommate. I feel like that is something that I need work on in general, expanding my depth vision. While I do feel like it's better than it has been in the past, it still is not good enough for where this course is requiring it to be. How it can be improved is actively, (and silently), analyzing everything I see for 'x' amount of time,
ReplyDeleteAs far as approaching the paper, I will need to put the active analysis into practice through thinking carefully about what themes I want to draw from my source, and choosing a certain amount to focus on. Once I have established the themes from the source, I must then decide what it is about these themes that make them important for completing the message, further deciphering what sort of appeal these details make to the person overall. Lastly, it's a matter of effective writing and presentation to report the findings and such.
I have learned a lot about visual rhetorical analysis in this class thus far. Visual analysis defines the way the audience views a visual piece. This piece could be an ad, flyer, commercial, or even a video game cover. This class has taught me to deeply look into a visual piece and break it down. Some questions I now ask myself are, “What are the author/creators intentions for the ad?” “How does the ad use Ethos, Pathos, and Logos to appeal to the audience?” “Does the ad try to get emotion from the reader, or does it simply want the reader to buy the intended product or service?”
ReplyDeleteSome things I look for in these visual pieces are the color schemes they used or how the items in the piece are scaled to promote optimal marketing. I look to see if an ad or commercial took an art approach to spike the reader’s imagination. Some visual pieces are filled with unanswered questions in order to keep the audience guessing or wondering.
These are all important aspects to consider when writing a paper about visual rhetorical analysis. I will throw some of my questions at these ads or commercials. I will analyse the visual piece so that the reader of my paper will have a different take on it. We need to see all of the sides and angles of the many visual pieces out there.
What I have, thus far, learned about visual rhetorical analysis is that the quality of the analysis itself can be affected by the quality of the choice image. The stronger an advertisement can convey its intent the more availability one has to relate what devices it uses in a critical manner of its understanding rather than its lack thereof.
ReplyDeleteLooking for the individual devices, like connotations or ethos, becomes easier and you can focus on the more subtle details, and better develop arguments with reasoning.
Approaching the paper with a better understanding of the diversity in which rhetorical devices are used, to better articulate and understand its message, and in turn, develop the paper in a more stream lined manner to convey to the reader the adverts’ intent and success therein or failure therein.
Mainly what I have learned about visual analysis is how the composer attempts to persuade their audience. They use pathos, ethos, and logos to draw in their audience. Composers always have an ideal audience they are trying to reach. A popular use of ethos is use a celebrity. When using pathos many advertisements charity leaving their audience a good feeling after contributing. Lastly, I observed when using logos not many advertisement in class resorted to this tactic.
ReplyDeleteThe main thing I look for in visual rhetorical analysis is to identify the purpose of the composer. And how is the composer trying to get their purpose across to their audience? I will focus on the primary things going in the commercial, and then describe my argument by stating the composer’s purpose. And finally, give examples that support my argument.
Visual rhetorical analysis has two main parts with many sub-analysis. Audience, argument, contest and visual constructs are the first group and Ethos, Pathos, and Logos make up the second part. The first four make up the ad as a whole the background to the ad. While the other three get more in depth into the analysis of the ad. Ethos has to do with the credibility of the composer. This can be something that helps the credibility of the composer or hurts the credibility of him/her. It can also make you want to look more closely at the advertisement. If the name of a well known company is on there you might be more inclined to look and pay attention. Pathos has to do with creating an emotional response. This is most often done through pictures. It can be done through words as well but we don't see this as often. I think that Pathos is used most often in advertisements because it connects directly to the reader drawing them in to look at the ad. Lastly we have Logos. This covers the question of is the ad in a logical order. Does it make sense to the reader? Is it arranged in a way that makes sense and is easy to follow. These are questions that when analyzing an ad you want to be looking at. Another part of Logos is about statistics. If there are statistics in the ad are they easy to under stand. These three item are what we are looking for as we analyze an ad.
ReplyDeleteI also learned that I have a different view on what is acceptable and what makes sense to the reader. Something that made perfect sense to me was not as accepted to others. This will make it difficult to write a good analysis of a commercial but that is why I am in this class to learn the skills to see it not from my point of view but a broader point of view.
My approach for the paper will be to first find a commercial and then do my best to pick apart the different parts of it. Trying to go less on what I think is correct and more on what the visually correct analysis is. That is how I feel will be the way for me to get the best score possible.
Malia Reimann
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWhat I have learned about visual rhetorical analysis is that there is always an audience that the visual design is aiming for, some are large audiences and some are small. If have learned that still images usually have a line that a company wants the readers eyes to follow. They will use color, text, and images to get the line some use one of them and some use all of them.
ReplyDeleteWhat kind of things should I be looking for? The first thing that I should be looking for is what audience is the visual aiming for, what is the message are they getting crossed, are they using ethos, logos, pathos, or are they using all of them and how well are they using them.
The first thing I want to do is sit back and experience something for the first time and be open minded. Then, I will start looking at the visual and breaking it down in my mind, for example who is the audience, what is the message are they getting crossed, are they using ethos, logos, pathos, or are they using all of them and how well are they using them. Finally, do the have a good argument, does it work, and why it works.
Doing a visual rhetorical analysis has taught me how each and every article or advertisement has a specific purpose and is aiming the image towards a certain target market. I have learned more about using persuasion and how it is used in specific examples. Ethos, Pathos, and Logos are new to my vocabulary and are becoming more familiar to me.
ReplyDeleteI should pay more attention to the little things that make up an image as well as the big picture. I should look for things such as how the image makes me feel,what the argument is if any, and who is the audience. I will also consider the context of the image.
In my paper, I will use the tools and information I have learned so far. They will help guide me in the right direction in order to successfully analyze the image being used.