ITAP Lecture 8

How text can change the context

Adding text to an image can have a very great effect. A few words can completely change the meaning of an image. For example this image shows an image of a pipe and underneath it says 'This is not a pipe'. I think what the artist means by this is that it is an image of a pipe. Text may be added to an image to explain something or to express an opinion or focus on a subject. You may look at an image and think of it in a certain way, but once text is added it will make you look at it from a different point of view and change your perspective.

The way text is used to persuade or influence

Text can have very powerful meanings and have ways of putting across certain points of view. Text in advertising is usually used in a way to persuade or influence the audience to make them buy a certain product or support a certain campaign. This image shows two examples of a political poster by the conservatives. They show an image of Gordon Brown and state two bad things that have happened while he has been in power. This persuades the audience not to vote for his party and they are more likely to vote for the conservatives instead as they would assume that because the poster is by the conservative party, they would not let the things happen that Gordon brown has. Another way text can be used is to persuade or influence emotionally by making the audience feel a certain way such as guilty, happy, motivated etc.