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Critical Viewing Notes

This document discusses critical visual literacy and analyzing visual images and texts. It provides 3 key points: 1. Critical visual literacy involves critically examining the social, cultural, and economic contexts of visual texts to identify power relationships and allow learners to appreciate aesthetic qualities while analyzing ideological struggles. 2. When analyzing visual texts, learners should look at the representational/ideational function (what is depicted), interpersonal/interactional function (connection between viewer and image), and textual function (informational values, salience, framing). 3. A critical visual reader analyzes intentions, points of view, biases, socio-political contexts, identifies stereotypes, understands symbols, and evaluates assumptions depicted in

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Roshane Taguibao
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618 views5 pages

Critical Viewing Notes

This document discusses critical visual literacy and analyzing visual images and texts. It provides 3 key points: 1. Critical visual literacy involves critically examining the social, cultural, and economic contexts of visual texts to identify power relationships and allow learners to appreciate aesthetic qualities while analyzing ideological struggles. 2. When analyzing visual texts, learners should look at the representational/ideational function (what is depicted), interpersonal/interactional function (connection between viewer and image), and textual function (informational values, salience, framing). 3. A critical visual reader analyzes intentions, points of view, biases, socio-political contexts, identifies stereotypes, understands symbols, and evaluates assumptions depicted in

Uploaded by

Roshane Taguibao
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Lesson 2: Critical Viewing

Analysing Visual Images

You deal with multimodal texts every day. You watch videos from You Tube,
enjoy pictures from Facebook, and laugh at advertisements in televisions. Multimodal
texts abound in our society today. They come in the form of still pictures or moving
images with sound. The learners today including you, the Generation Z learners, absorb
tons of information from printed and visual texts. You are considered as visual learners.
You spend several hours a day in social media or searching the internet for information.
The various forms of technology allow you to see multitudinous images in the internet.
The study of Brumberger (2011), however, revealed that the college students are not
adept at producing and interpreting visual communication. The 21 st century
environment requires students to be digitally and visually literate, hence there is a need
for you to learn how to analyse multimodal texts.

The analysis of visual texts stemmed from the meta-functions of language by


Michael Halliday. These meta-functions were adopted by Gunther Kress and Van
Leeuwen(2006) as they analysed visual images.

The first meta-function is the ideational or representational function. This is the


semiotic function of constructing representation of what is going on in the world. Visual
images containing symbols, comic strips, maps, and advertisements with participants
connected by means of taxonomy are examples of images showing the ideational or
representational function.

Interpersonal or interactional function refers to the connection between the


participant and the viewer. If there is gaze from the represented participant casting to
viewers, the image mood is demand, if there is no gaze, the image mood is offer.
Social Distance can be realized by the size of frame varying from very close shot to
very-long-shot, that is, the distance between represented participants and the viewers.
Oblique camera angles can show the degree of detachment between the
participants and viewers.

Textual function of images includes the informational values, salience and


framing. Information values are attached according to how elements are spatially
placed in different ‘zones’ of an image left and right (given and new), top and bottom
(ideal and real), center and margin. Salience refers to the images that attract most
attention. The most salient subject in a photo is usually at the center. Framing
disconnects or connects elements of the image, signifying that they belong or do not
belong together.

Visual Literacy and Critical Visual Literacy

Principles and Aims of CVL

Visual literacy is reading the text whereas critical visual literacy is reading beyond
the text. Critical visual literacy is the critical examination of “social, cultural, and
economic ‘contexts’ of visual texts …to eliminate power relationships in society.” It is the
empowerment of learners to “appreciate the aesthetic qualities of texts; analyse these
texts as sites of ideological struggle, critically negotiate meanings with problems of
visual (mis)representation, and use creative tools as instruments for self-emancipation
and social activism” (Young, 2014)
CVL view students as active agents interrogating different forms of visual culture
in the process of deconstructing texts, and using their creative voices to promote an
equal democratic society. Its aim is the promotion of “social justice as it examines the
operation of texts in shaping the attitudes, beliefs and values of the individual and
group”. It also gives emphasis on texts as sites, signs, and sights of political agency for
transformative action”

How Does a Critical Visual Reader Look at Texts?

A critical visual reader

 Analyzes texts and looks at intentions, points of view and biases.

• Evaluates the texts’ socio-political context

• reads what images and passages are saying: what messages they are
suggesting, and how they are shaped to influence the attitudes, values and
beliefs of readers.

• Identifies bias in words and expressions

• Recognizes stereotypes in pictures and images

• Understands symbols

• Analyzes/ evaluates assumptions, beliefs, and practices

Questions for Discussion

1. Why do we need to be critical about the images that we encounter in our daily
life?

2. What are the challenges that you encounter in interpreting images?

ASSESSMENT 6

Analyze a video from You Tube by using the guide below.

Affective/ Perceptual Compositional/ Structural Critical/Ideological


How does the image make What elements can you What message does the
you feel? see in the image transmit?
foreground/background?
Why does it make you feel What text accompanies Who created it?
this way? the image, if any ( a For what purpose and in
caption, a title, etc.) what context?
What does it add to the
image?
What other images come How is the image framed In what forms of media will
to mind when you see it? or composed? the image be seen?
What personal relevance What do you think lies Who is the intended
does it have for you, if beyond the frame? audience for the image?
any?
What does the image From what angle or point In what context did you
remind you of? of view has the image view the image?
been taken?
The original context or the
another one? What is the
difference?
Do you identify with or Which parts of the image In how many different
relate to the image in any are centrally focused? ways could the image be
way? If so, how? interpreted?
Do you think the image is What has been altered, Are any of the images
positive or negative? Or omitted from or included in stereotypical, idealized,
do you feel indifferent the image? non-representative or
towards it? Why? anachronistic?

ASSESSMENT 7

Analyze the print ads below as you accomplish the visual worksheet.
Visual worksheet
Sender/s of the Belo
message

Medium/ mode Print Media


used

What the images


and words are
saying

What the images


and words are
suggesting

Assumptions The fairer your complexion, the more attractive the guy appears.
indicated in the If you are fair, women are attracted to you.
images and
words used

Intentions/ Male are more powerful.


biases/power
relations
revealed

Potential impact
on the attitudes,
beliefs, and
values of the
target audience

How various
readers/ listeners/
viewers may
respond

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