Visual Argumentation

Visual arguments use images to engage viewers and persuade them to accept a particular idea or point of view. Advertisements use images to make a product appealing or to link a product to a particular lifestyle or identity. However, advertisements are only one type of visual argument. In almost every discipline, visual arguments are used to support claims and present new research.

Visual arguments contain three main elements: Claims Evidence Warrants (assumptions) “Reading” visual arguments involves analyzing all three of these elements.

Claims Claims are declarative statements that are either true or false but not both. Effective argumentation requires evidence (supporting material) to support each claim. The thesis is the central claim of the argument. It is also called the conclusion as it is the conclusion you want your audience to support. In visual arguments, the conclusion is often implicit (audience has to come to their own).

Evidence/Supporting Material Visual arguments use several types of evidence to support their claims: expert testimony, examples, facts, and often, definition and/or statistics. In order to persuade, they appeal to beliefs, needs, core values, attitudes. They also use Aristotle’s strategical “available means of persuasion:” ethos, logos, and pathos.

Evaluation Analyze the visual argument carefully, and ask yourself if the evidence is both accurate and adequate. Visual information can be distorted or manipulated just as words can. Analyze visual evidence to be sure it’s fair, precise, and credible. Similarly, visual evidence should also be relevant and adequate. It should pertain directly to the issue of the topic central to the proposition/thesis. It should avoid sensational or purely emotional effect.

Consider: What is the message in picture A vs. B? How do you know?

Discovering Assumptions and Unstated Premises Visual arguments are based on assumptions and unstated premises about why and how the evidence relates to the claims. In visual arguments, the key assumptions often involve the following: Beliefs about the target audience: Who they are Where they will see or encounter the visual argument What they already know and believe about the subject What kinds of information or ideas they will find persuasive

Don’t accept visual arguments at face value! Visual arguments are powerful tools of persuasion that appear in a myriad of forms in our media culture. To become critically literate and informed, we learn and practice the skills of reading visual arguments critically. Just as we would not accept an opinion as true just because we found it in print, so too, we should not simply accept visual arguments. Evaluate them by examining their claims, weighing the evidence offered in support of those claims, and by exploring the unstated claims (premises), assumptions the arguer makes about the target audience and their particular belief systems.

Visual Argumentation Fallacies Visual fallacies can take the form of misleading images. The power of images can make them especially difficult to analyze: people tend to believe what they see. Photos and other visuals can be manipulated to present a false impression. Think of photos that make a politician look misleadingly bad or good.

Observe: Composition / focal points of the picture; Subject’s clothing; Pose/body language Formatting of picture (retouched? Why?)

End Notes BE OBSERVANT! “Little” details matter in visual arguments. Be aware of strategies that manipulate you. Weigh the evidence against the claim to come to your own conclusion!