Visual Literacy

Use of Language and Visual techniques

Visual Features
 Colour
 Font
 Image
 Graphics
 Size
 Layout

Text Features (Persuasive Language Techniques)

 Use of statistics, quotations from experts and facts
 Emotive words
 Rhetorical questions
 Repetition
 Colloquial language
 Technical jargon
 Imperatives or direct commands
 Exaggeration, hyperbole
 Adjectives
 Appeal to authority
 Call to action
 Puns
 Elipses
 Logo

Image of film
Camera Angles
Lighting, include colour, filters, tone
Allusions and inter-textuality
Sound – digetic and non digetic
Symbolism
Editing
SFX. Special effects
Text- What is the purpose?
-To Encourage
-To Persuade
-To Instruct
-To amuse
-To Entertain
-To Raise Awareness

Pun- using a word or words that have more than one meaning – play on words

Imagery- The use of vivid description in sensory words, to create pictures or images
in the reader’s minds.

Idiom- an expression that has a different meaning to its individuals words E.g. It’s
raining cats and dogs

Assonance- the repetition of the vowel sound in two or more words. E.g. don’t
squeeze the cheese please

Personification – giving human qualities, feelings, actions, or characteristics to

inmate (nonliving) objects

Alliteration- the repetition of the first consonant on two or more words

Hyperbole- An exaggeration or overstatement without being taken literally

Onomatopoeia- words that imitate the sound or noise of the objects or actions to
which they refer.

Colloquial –relating to conversation, conversational, informal etc.

Cliché - a time-worn phrase used to explain thought or feeling. They are usually
images that have lost their power to surprise because of over-use. eg. like a bat out of
hell

Euphemism - an acceptable or mild expression which replaces an unpleasant or

hurtful one. For example, some people find it too distressing to speak of death and so
soften the effect by such terms as: he has passed on; she has gone to a better place etc.

Irony – implies opposite of what is said. Eg “I cant wait till detention”.

Metaphor – a comparison where something is said to be another thing.

Oxymoron - a contradiction in two words placed next to each other to heighten the
contrast Eg. “Parting is such sweet sorrow.”

Similes – A figure of speech in which two essentially unlike things are compared,
similar etc.

Symbolism – where an image is used to represent

 What is an essay?

1) You MUST have one idea which holds you essay together from start to finish
2) You MUST make a statement about this idea at the beginning of the essay
3) You SHOULD NOT just write about everything you know on the topic.
Instead, you should choose information and ideas which help you develop
your statement
4) You MUST organise or structure the whole essay, so that the reader can make
sense of it

WHY write and essay?

You write essays to show your teacher

1) What you think about a topic (your ideas and opinions)
2) What you know about the topic (facts, and other peoples opinions)
3) That you can use what you know to support and develop your ideas and opinion

The PURPOSE is to:

To convenience your reader what you are saying is right or at least a pint of view.

DON’T SHOW WHAT, but how and why

Make reference. Identify Text Types.