Re-thinking the Pedagogy for Visual Rhetoric
by Michelle Swindell
Navigating around this task of teaching a group of budding engineers and biologists the argument of images can be difficult and at times problematic. As an art historian, whose livelihood depends on looking at art and finding an argument within it, my brain is automatically wired for this type of thinking. During my first semester with rhetoric students I thought I would simply select a few compelling slides, we would have a lively heated discussion, and then they would be ready to write a 5 page paper on one image. There we were in the darkened classroom with Goya's Third of May illuminating the back wall. I threw out all the relative questions: "What's the thesis here?" "Is the artist for or against the war?" "In what way are the colors significant?" Complete silence.
This was then supplemented with lectures on editorial cartoons, magazine ads, etc., as well as a few group projects. They just couldn't get a handle on image as argument. After three students dropped the class over the project, I knew that it was time to revise my pedagogy for teaching visual rhetoric.
I have always been a hands-on teacher, aware of the statistics for information retained through student-led learning (90%) versus a teacher-directed lecture (10%). Student-led learning has always been the direction that I have taken through my own teaching yet somehow I felt it necessary to continue with the art historical tradition of a slide-based lecture. I started to re-think how I could incorporate Lingua MOO and perhaps some alternate forms of argument, such as the graphic novel, in order to really get this concept through to my students.
For the first day beginning this unit, they had to arrive to class having read the chapter in the text on visual rhetoric. When they arrived, they wrote their expected observation. The day's topic was "What was their understanding, thus far, of visual rhetoric?" After reading the responses, the majority of the students regurgitated the text without a complete understanding of what was meant by visual rhetoric. This, of course, is to be expected. I conducted a group discussion in which I asked them to explain their responses. Then, I asked them to log onto the MOO. I had previously created a slide projector in the MOO, again with compelling images. The reason that I chose a web projector rather than the traditional slide projector was that I have noticed that students are more inclined to speak up when they can hide behind an identity. Based on my students' responses in the lecture from the previous semester I felt that my past students must have felt insecure about the topic and didn't feel comfortable discussing images. They were worried they would be wrong. As the logs show, both classes had a lot to say. Almost every class member participated on some level. This would not necessarily have happened in an open face-to-face discussion. Another advantage of using the MOO was that I was able to record the conversation. Therefore, my students could refer back to the log if they still did not quite catch on to the concepts or the line of questioning involved in looking at arguments in images.
The following class period, the students were required to bring in editorial cartoons and to complete the assignment in the textbook, which involved answering a set of questions. We had a class discussion based on this assignment. They broke up into their small groups to discuss their individual cartoons and then shared them with the class.
The next class period, based on Tom Ferstle's suggestion, I had my students draw their own editorial based on the arguments addressed in their first essay on race and/or class. Not only did some natural artists emerge, even my non-artists took some creative solutions to creating a cartoon by using cut outs or Adobe Illustrator. The majority of the class was able to successfully look at their classmate's work and pick out their claims. By this point, the class finally had a stronger understanding of what was required in looking at image as argument.
The final day before they began drafting their essays, I showed my students the Dali film, Le Chien Andalou. Based on their observations on this film, I felt confident that they were beginning to question images and agree or disagree in response to what they had seen. I stepped away from the role of always providing the answers and put my students in the position to seek them for themselves.
Un Chien Andalou
France 1928. Director: Luis Buñuel
Cast: Simone Mareuil, Pierre Batcheff, Jaime Miravilles, Salvador Dali, and
Luis Buñuel
I had added an assignment to the syllabus that I had not had in the past, the
option of creating a graphic novel. Fortunately, our readings and discussions
for the Textuality Seminar made my approach to this project clearer. We had
several readings based on questioning the essay. What is writing? Can it involve
alternative media? One of the goals of rhetoric 1302 is to teach our students
to think critically. If indeed ‘a picture is worth 1,000 words,’ why not allow
my students to utilize both text and image in order to frame their argument.
To encourage my students to consider this project I photocopied a few chapters
of Cruse's Stuck Rubber Baby, which dealt with issues of racism, homosexuality,
and the Vietnam War. My students were able see how text, images, and the narrative
could work together to create an argument far more convincing than ripping an
ad out of a magazine and writing five pages. I had 6 students step up to the
challenge of a graphic novel. Throughout the drafting process my students collaborated
with me and their group members to design a story line, organize their composition,
and rework how they were going to tackle their particular issues that they wanted
to address. They arrived at school bleary-eyed and with Red Bulls energy drinks
in hand, but the outcome of their hard work was remarkable.
Joe, a brusque Italian with a strong Brooklyn accent, created an enchanting children's story in the style of Madeline. Rather than a traditional and predictable story, he addressed the very real issue of self-image, how we can be our own worse enemies. The watercolor illustrations also became symbolic when looking at the main character in comparison to other classmates, adults, and when he is looking at himself in the mirror. Chris, an art tech senior who kept pushing back the rhetoric class because he was intimidated by writing, created a professional and emotional graphic novel dealing with drug use. He advised Ann in her graphic novel, and as a result her composition and layout improved significantly. For a student whose second language is English, this project gave him an extraordinary amount of confidence. Travis, who acknowledges that he has no artistic ability, cut and pasted scenes using Adobe to create a satire on Bush's space program. Bob and Evan collaborated together to create a series based on game culture (in Lingua MOO, type @go Black Mage, then view Comic). Though they required an extension to finish this project, the wait was certainly worth it.
For other students who wanted to think beyond the five-page essay, but were intimidated by the daunting task of creating a graphic novel, two chose to analyze films. On the assignment's due date, both brought their films, showed clips that they addressed in their essay, and presented a mini-presentation to the class.
One student even presented an alternative project, creating a game. I told him that as long as he could construct a clear argument within the game I was open to the idea. The end result was a computer game similar to Zelda. The main character was an 8-year-old girl with a wooden spoon and a magic pendant that didn't do anything. Each room that she entered was an oxymoron. The giant palaces were tiny closets; the little huts were huge palaces. He created a government character that was not with the FBI, CIA, or President's cabinet—a census taker. She fights the occasional bad guy with her spoon, and buys useless materials that don't do anything either. When the young girl finally meets her nemesis, the audience learns that it was he who originally gave her the pendant. He ends that they will meet again, but then says something to the effect "Actually, no we won't meet again. I'll head my way and you'll head yours." The game lasted 20 minutes. He presented it to the class. Since the majority of my college students were gamers, they picked up on the subtleties of his argument.
These projects leads me to question why we should allow our students so much flexibility in their visual rhetoric assignment. Isn't it easier to assign the essay, teach them the basic structure, and assume that they have a full understanding of visual rhetoric by the time that they turn it in?
My response to this is that there is an astounding difference in the way that
these students responded to their process and what they learned from the assignment
in comparison to those that chose the traditional route. In their argument for
their final grade, many of the traditionalists ignored this essay altogether
or did not draw any particular attention to it, while those that put a great
deal of time and effort into their projects were certain to remind me of that
fact. All of them were required to write an observation on their process. The
most rewarding responses came from those that invested more in the project.
These students were looking at images with a much closer eye.
"I would say that overall, I spent about 8 hours searching the web for
the perfect pictures to use in my comic, and trust me, they were not very fun.
After selecting the photos, I then proceeded to lay them out and select the
ones that would best represent each frame."
"Other than simply illustrating a children's book with empty images and
meaningless text, I have spent lengthy time to convey an appropriate idea for
an appropriate audience, an audience consisting of children to old timers. To
say the least, the book wasn’t a speedily created covenant that was completed
haphazardly."
"My first semi draft looked horrible; in my opinion the drawings were
messy, funny looking, and the story was moving extremely slow. After discussing
my draft over with several classmates, I received some good advice. Some gave
suggestions of how to end the novel and to speed up the story. I left the class
feeling a whole lot more confident in my drawings, and I believe it shows in
the characters. The idea for the novel originally came from a close friend’s
own experience. As I got further into the novel, it changed and sort of became
its own."
"If you look at each detail individually, they really aren't that odd or
peculiar. A lot of the things in this story are not only plausible, but realistic
and believable on a second glance. The outrageous, almost surreal, feel of the
piece comes from the reflection of what it is mocking and what it is contrary
to; the cliches that have become normal. As I put it, 'This is the story of
how the world was kept from going stale.' All I want to do is urge writers and
programmers to be passionate and original with their pieces. A better story
is formed when the seemingly non-important details are filled in, and when the
mold of the over-used plot device is broken. You can't get better with writing
unless you take a risk. Side note: Anyone thinking about doing a similar project
in years to come should heed this warning. If you love your sanity, don't. Programming
is extensive and has many tedious hours of bug testing. I also gained a lot
of respect for proper map designers. It is harder than it looks. Still, I loved
doing this project and hope people enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it."
"I was further given the opportunity to present the movie to the class. This, to me, was the greatest of all collaborations throughout the year. After a short bout with the DVD software and the projector (an interesting technological experience), I was able to share my thoughts on portions of the movie with the entire class. I offered explanations of these scenes and received feedback about my ideas. This feedback might not have been much more than a nod of the head or an 'ahhh that makes sense' but it was satisfying knowing that the ideas I had worked hard to develop were understandable and made sense in context. This was a true step in terms of my own confidence. I was able to step up to the plate and actually teach to the class what I had found through my research and critical thinking."
Something else that I noticed is that these projects are no longer placed in this giant graveyard for long lost essays. These students have been able to move beyond this one assignment. I, of course, now have outstanding examples to share with future classes. Chris now has another piece to add to his portfolio. Bob and Evan are both changing their majors to Art Tech, and are in the process of finding a game website interested in their cartoon. Joe is looking to send his book to publishers, and he too is changing his major from sociology to writing. Nick is also changing his major to game studies. These students uncovered hidden talents and secret passions that will undoubtedly change the direction of their careers. Why not go beyond teaching them a 5-page essay with claims and evidence supporting a stance in an argument? Why not create artists, authors, and game developers who are more responsible, who have been taught to critically analyze the images that they are producing?
We have to think beyond the written word to fully connect with our students.
They are a multi-media generation, and it is our responsibility as educators
to embrace that aspect of their learning style. By working outside the bounds
of a traditional liberal arts education and the standard lecture format, we
are able to bring in more active participants and engaged learners. This pedagogy
can be incorporated into other humanities classes, particularly my own field
of art history—a course where students are required to see the argument in images.
It is imperative that we revise current practices, demand more from our students,
and they will perform.
Useful Resources