Chapter 3
What is the difference between denotation and connotation?
Denotation: the literal, common-sense meaning of a symbol, ostensibly value-free and objective. Dictionary
definition (50)
Connotation: emotional or cultural meaning attached to a symbol; varies with usage and context (50)
What are the types of visual rhetoric
Photos, bodies, monuments, memorials, museums.
What are the 3 spheres of argumentation?
Personal, Technical, Public
What is a conceptual framework that views story-telling as the basis of human communication
narrative paradigm
the idea that the structure of a language influences
the way people perceive the world is _______
linguistic relativity
How does circulation affect visual rhetorics?
Movement changes meaning.
What's the difference between Confirmation bias and Disconfirmation bias?
Confirmation bias: the tendency for people to search for or interpret information in a manner that favors their current beliefs (139)
Disconfirmation bias: the tendency for people to not look for, favorably interpret, or recall evidence that is contrary to their current beliefs (139)
What is the difference between narrative probability and narrative fidelity?
Narrative probability: internal consistency of the story. Does the story hang together? Do the characters act in a reliable fashion? (172)
Narrative fidelity: whether the story corresponds to audience’s experiences and understanding of reality. Does the story ring true? (172)
Bill Clinton's public address was an example of _______? Explain why for full credit.
Doublespeak because he purposely misled the audience and obfuscated what had happened instead of providing clarity on the situation (*he did in fact have sexual relations with that woman*).
Visual rhetoric is concerned with what?
Concerned not just with aesthetic qualities or what an image means, but asks what an image does rhetorically
What is a logical argument based on a shared and unstated premise. Some premises are unspoken, constructed jointly between the rhetor and the audience
Enthymeme
List and define characteristics of narratives:
Vivacity: a sense of immediacy or presence created through the use of descriptions, imagery, and colorful language that make an idea come alive (163)
Plot: the arc of the story or chain of events within a narrative (165)
Character development: the process of describing the actions of and relationships among actors within the story (165)
Authorial intent: whether the rhetor intends to make factual claims (167)
Empirical truth (whether the narrative is factually correct) vs. social truth (whether the narrative reflects an agreed upon social reality) (167-172)
According to chapter 3, social reality is constructed by:
• Linguistic relativity
• Terministic screens
• Public vocabulary
What makes a photograph iconic?
1. Recognized by everyone
2. Understood to represent significant events
3. Objects of strong emotional identification and response
4. Regularly reproduced across a range of media, genres, and topics (91)
What type of argument is being made below? Must know and define the vocab word, and list each part of the argument
1) We always have recitation on Fridays.
2) Today is Friday.
3) We have class today
Syllogism: a deductive argument in which a conclusion is inferred from the truth of two premises
1) major premise
2) minor premise
3) conclusion
What what is the comic frame:
- A viewpoint that would have you see others as mistaken rather than evil (174)
- Disagreement is a sign of being mistaken
- Assumes the possibility for correction
According to Kenneth Burke, language is a _______, _______, and ______ of reality, as per the definition of _______________ (*hint* it's a chapter 3 vocab word)
Language is:
• a REFLECTION of reality
• a SELECTION of reality
• a DEFLECTION of reality
as per the definition of Terministic Screens (52)
Define and provide 3 examples of body rhetoric
Body rhetoric: foregrounds the body as part of the
symbolic act (92). Bodies “can function as proof of an argument; they can be the argument; and they can argue when speech has been restricted” (96)
Examples: AIDS tombstone protest, climate-change sit-in protests, school shooting die-in protests, etc.
List of and define all parts of the Toulimin Model:
Toulmin model:
- Claim: the conclusion whose merits we are seeking to establish (125)
- Data: the information or evidence to support the claim (125)
- Warrant:the generalization that links the data to the claim (why this data would lead you to believe the
claim is correct) (126)
- Rebuttal: conditions under which the warrant might be incorrect (126)
- Backing: support for the warrant (127)
- Qualifier: indicates different levels of certainty (127)
What makes the tragic frame different from the comic one?
- A viewpoint that would have you see others as vicious and evil rather than as mistaken (174)
- Disagreement is a sign of evil or viciousness
- Requires destruction rather than correction