1. AP Language and Composition N. Guthrie
Visual Rhetoric
AP Language and Composition
N. Guthrie

2. Image as argument…
Selection and arrangement of various elements for some purpose
Purposes can range from persuasion to aesthetic pleasure

6. Every genre has its own conventions
Photographs:
composition lines
contrast
color
Political cartoons
exaggeration
symbolism
Paintings
allusion to tell a story about their subjects

7. Every genre has its own conventions (continued)
Posters and advertisements
color and composition to attract attention
symbolism and imagery to persuade
Graphs and charts
select sets of data and present them in a manner that makes them easy to interpret
sometimes show trends or contrasts

8. OPTIC Strategy
O is for overview: Write down a few notes on what the visual appears to be about.
P is for parts: Zero in on the parts of the visual. Write down any elements or details that seem important.
T is for title: Highlight the words of the title of the visual (if one is available).
I is for interrelationships: Use the title as the theory and the parts of the visual as clues to detect and specify the interrelationships in the graphic.
C is for conclusion: Draw a conclusion about the visual as a whole.

9. Use OPTIC for this photo:
Bruce Davidson, “Young Interracial Couple”

10. SCANS Strategy
Subject
Contents
Attitudes
Narrative
Symbolism

11. Subject
Identify the subject of the visual: determine as much as possible from the information provided what the context, date, and subject matter are

12. Contents
Identify:
major components, such as characters, visual details, colors, symbols
verbal clues, such as titles, tag lines, date, author, dialogue
the positions/actions of any characters, especially relative to one another or to their surroundings
traits of the characters or objects
significant images, including repeated or patterned imagery
composition lines (parallel, crossing)

13. Attitudes
Notice position and size of details: exaggerations, focal points, or emphases of other kinds
Notice details that create positive or negative reactions to characters or objects portrayed in the visual
Does the author indicate alternative viewpoints?
Does the place and environment create mood?
What are the reactions of other characters to the central character(s)?
Is there any irony in the way characters or situations are portrayed? How do you know it’s ironic?

14. Narrative
Does there appear to be any conflict? What are the attitudes of the characters to the conflict? How does that conflict seem to be progressing?
Does something refer to an event or person in literature or history? What do you know about this literary or historical person or situation?
What do the actions of the characters or their relative positions say about them and their relationships?

15. Symbolism Do some of the concrete items represent abstract ideas?
What colours are used and what do these colours symbolize?
Are there contrasts of lightness and darkness, of colour, of shape, of size?
How do composition lines break up or align parts of the image?

16. Now try the SCANS strategy:
Bruce Davidson, “Young Interracial Couple”

17. Some questions about the photo:
Focus on the expression of each face. How would you describe each expression?
What does the photograph suggest about the couple’s relationship? Anna Norris, when she was studying photography at the Tisch School of the Arts in New York, wrote that “pictures are fashioned to serve a particular purpose.” Do you imagine Davidson’s purpose was to give us the couple or to give us something more? Explain.

18. Other elements of photos…
Camera angle
Framing (focal point)
Lighting
Shapes
Space
Repetition
Vantage point

19. Rule of thirds
The part of the photo that attracts attention is called the subject.
Alignment with intersections creates more tension than centering.

22. Golden Ratio From a geometric formula Parthenon, pyramids, Mona Lisa
Creates a compelling viewing experience

24. Lines You can extend lines from the features in a photograph
Horizontal lines are said to be more peaceful; so are curved lines
Diagonal lines add action and excitement

25. Background Is the background in focus or out of focus?
What is the relationship of the background to the subject?

26. Compare the following:

27. "The image survives the subject and becomes the remembered reality
"The image survives the subject and becomes the remembered reality." - John Szarkowski (Director of Photography Department, Museum of Modern Art, New York, )

28. Joe Rosenthall, “Flag Raised on Iwo Jima”

29. A photograph taken by Will Counts of Elizabeth Eckford attempting to enter Little Rock School on 4th September, 1957."

30. “Destitute pea pickers in California. Mother of seven children
“Destitute pea pickers in California. Mother of seven children. Age thirty-two. Nipomo, California.” Feb Photo by Dorothea Lange.

31. Ansel Adams, “Maple Leaves, Mud, Zion”

32. www.msnbc.com, “Campus in Mourning”

33. Victor Jorgensen U.S. Navy, Aug 14, 1945
“V-J Day Kiss”

34. Douglas Collier
“A soldier says good-bye”

36. Audience matters…

39. The visual equivalent... …of a pun!
Vertumnus" ( ) by Giuseppe Arcimboldo.
…of a pun!

40. Analyzing “spoof ads”

41. Analyzing “spoof ads”

42. Analyzing “spoof ads”

43. Analyzing architecture

46. “The Gates”, Central Park, NYC, Feb. 2005

47. Analyzing political cartoons

50. Analyzing a web site
UNC
Duke

51. Analyzing charts and graphs