In Class: Chapter 14 Visual Arguments Analysis

The first question on page 418 is an extremely important one: Who created this visual text? This says almost everything about it's purpose and intent. It's very similar to the 'follow the money' concept we have extensively used in our analyses of different arguments. If the creator of a cigarette campaign is Marlboro, we are going to look at it much differently than if it were created by an anti smoking group (i forget the name of the one that always does the commercials). We would definitely be much more suspicious and less trusting of the advertisement's message.

Another question is: Is any particular information (such as name, face, or scene) highlighted or stressed in some way to attract your attention? The girl in the 'candy cigarette' photo immediately stood out in my mind. Along with the question of how light and color are used, this photo focused directly on a young girl holding a 'cigarette.' There was no color, and very little lighting. The girl was caught in solemn and desolate glance and seemed a bit more aged than appropriate for her group of children. the cigarette was held perfectly as if she really was a smoker, the only hint we had that it was fake was the title of the portrait...