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Language Structures and Conventions. 2

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23 views17 pages

Language Structures and Conventions. 2

Uploaded by

beautylebo847
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Language structures and

conventions.

Visual Literacy
Visual Literacy

Visual literacy is the ability to make meaning of


information presented in the form of an image. In other
words, if you are visually literate you understand what the
drawings and cartoons or photographs in an
advertisement are communicating to you.
Analysing A Cartoon.
A simple drawing showing the features of it’s subjects in a
humorously exaggerated way, especially a satirical one in
a newspaper or magazine. It could also be defined as a
full size drawing made by an artist as a preliminary design
for a painting or other work of art.
Simply put a cartoon is a humorous drawn picture.
Cartoons can be light-hearted fun/ reflect social trends /
highlights serious issues.
When studying cartoons
look at:
Body Language: Provides clues/ communication about their mood
and attitude; this is seen through elements such as: body pose,
gestures, facial expressions and eye movements.
Caricature: Features or actions of a person are exaggerated e.g.
Nelson Mandela may be drawn with big ears, long chin and big
teeth
Intention: Is the cartoon meant to amuse, make a political
statement, or ridicule someone (satire).
Speech bubbles or a line between the speaker and the words to
indicate who is speaking.
Thought bubbles: looks like a cloud, indicates unspoken thoughts
showing that the person is thinking.
Caption: Title, brief explanation or comment accompanying an
illustration.
Studying cartoons cont.
Frame: One drawing in a comic strip.
Movement: Indicated by means of vertical, curved and diagonal
lines. Speedy actions is indicated by streaky lines, or by the action
going out of the frame.
Punctuation: Clever use is made of punctuation to create meaning.
Stereotypes: An exaggerated preconceived generalisation about
the typical behaviour, attitudes, dress etc. of various types of
people.
Verbal clues: some parts of the drawing may be used to help the
readers establish what the cartoon is about.
Visual metaphor: In a metaphor two things are compared, in a
visual metaphor, a picture stands for or represents something else.
Irony: When one thing is said but something else is meant.
Cont.
Parody: An imitation of a piece of writing used to ridicule the
original or create a satirical point.
Satire: Uses humour to make a serious point, It involves using wit,
irony or sarcasm to highlight human voices or follies.
Aspects of analysing a
cartoon.
Actions:
What is happening in the Cartoon?
How is the action portrayed?

Characters:
What emotions are communicated through facial expressions?
What actions and emotions are communicated through the body
Language?
What does the language suggest about the relations between the
characters.
Cont.
Language:
What words have been used?
How has punctuation been used to suggest emotion?

Setting:
Where and when is the cartoon set?
What is the particular social context?

Stereotypes/symbols:
Has the cartoonist made use of stereotypes- an over generalized
belief about a particular category of people e.g. all teenagers are
rebels?
Has the cartoonist used any symbols to represent something else?
5 key elements to help
answer cartoon questions.
Speech bubbles.
Thought bubbles.
Facial Expressions.
Body language.
Movement lines.
Onomatopoeia.
Facial expressions:
It is important to note that facial expressions are not the same a body
language.
Taking a look at facial expressions and what they could possibly
indicate:
Raised eyebrows: shock, enthusiasm, interest.
Furrowed eyebrows: Skepticism, concentration, focus, frustration.
Frown: sadness, confusion.
Smile: joy, pleased/pleasure, satisfaction.
Rolled eyes: annoyance, frustration.
Enlarged eyes: shock, admiration, energetic.
Wide mouth open: excitement, shock, enthusiasm.
Smirk: satisfaction, conceited, smug, self-satisfied, playful.
Grimace: Pain, disgust, disapproval.
Body Language:
Always point out the obvious, it does not matter how clear an
expression through body language (or facial expression) may seem.
Examples of body language and what they may indicate:
Outstretched arms: exaggeration emphasis.
Slumped posture: Uninterested, bored, tired.
Head buried hands: overwhelmed, frustrated, tired, crying.
Head placed on one hand: (usually paired with an eye-roll)
annoyance, impatience, frustration.
Head/body turned away: disinterest, ignoring someone or
something.
Speech Bubbles:
These are easily identifiable they are bubbles with spoken words.
when asked to refer to diction, text, language or words in the cartoon
this is where to look.
When used as a technique:
A lack of speech bubbles especially in a comic strip where people
are interacting or having a conversation can be used to convey a
message or a cartoon character’s attitude/reaction to something or
someone.
Examples:
Indicating shock/surprise.
Emphasising anger.
Creating tension.
Confusion.
Thought bubbles:
The introverted cousin of speech bubbles.
These are usually in the shape of a cloud and contain words that are
not spoken (thoughts).
When used as a technique:
The presence of thought bubbles can indicate or show the following:
A character is very deep in thought/concentrating hard and is thus
not speaking.
Someone has a thought but does not want to say it aloud; they do
not want to others to know what they are thinking.
This could be an exclamation, or a secret comment e.g. A
character is annoyed with their classmate but will not voice their
irritation (it stays in their thought bubble) as it will lead to more,
unnecessary conflict.
It could show the thought process behind what has been said e.g.
the thoughts of a child before asking their parents for money.
Movement lines:
These lines or squiggles indicate movement or a specific action.
When used as a technique:
Movement lines are effective in showing the reader how the
characters move and can highlight their movements and motives.
Examples:
A powerful punch can be indicated by sharp movement lines around
a hand and the person who is hit will then show aggression or anger.
A hand that is waving desperately to get someone’s attention in a
crowed would possibly be surrounded by lots of movement lines to
show their frantic gesture.
Onomatopoeia:
Words that mimic a sound of an object or action e.g. ‘pow’, ‘click’, ‘slurp’,
‘boing’, ‘crash’.
They are usually outside speech bubbles and are accompanied by
movement lines.
When used as a technique:
They can add humour.
They can indicate an action without anything having to be said.
Growing tensions.
Onomatopoeia words written in large, bold fonts can indicate louder
sounds, whilst smaller fonts can indicate softer sounds.

These elements of a cartoon can also help when commenting on and


identifying the massage of the cartoon.
Examples of cartoonist
messages:
Criticism of human nature.
To highlight the unfairness of something.
To make people question something.
Showing how it is ironic that…
To criticise systems or leaders (usually with satire)
Questions you need to
think about when
coming across a cartoon.
1. Is this meant to make me laugh or think seriously about something, or to do
both?
2. What do I notice about the body language of each person or animal in
the frames?
3. What do I notice about the font and size used for the words?
4. What do I notice about the punctuation?
5. What connections can I make between the words and the drawings?

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