English 1311 Visual Analysis

Isaac Lopez Visual Analysis University of Texas at El Paso

English 1311 Visual Analysis

The image that will be analyzed is a photograph of people protesting against what appears to be companies that employ hydraulic fracturing. Hydraulic fracturing is a process that increases the amount of oils that can be extracted from the earth. Although there are benefits from this process, there are several negative effects. Several aspects of the photograph will be investigated including its purpose, message, audience, as well as the photographers strategic use of ethos, pathos, and logos to communicate with the audience. The purpose of the image is to convey to its viewers the negative views of the public on the topic of hydraulic fracking. Many people in the image are holding up signs; one has the word FRACK with a red slash across it, the same slash used over a cigarette in non-smoking areas. The bulk of the message is found in a very large sign being carried by more than one person that reads Its a crime to poison us in white letters on a crimson background. Its message is simple; the public does not want fracking to continue, they feel it is a crime. It is also a message to the companies which partake in this method which tells them that the public knows what they are doing is wrong. The image has the potential to reach out to many different audiences. Fracking is an issue going on within the United States so the people of America make up the largest audience of the image. More specifically though it probably targets those who are being affected directly by fracking, telling them that they can voice their opinions too. Lastly the image targets the companies that employ the method of fracking. This is obvious since it is the companies actions the people in the image are protesting. There is not much evidence pointing towards any use of ethos in the image. Even though there is a message stating that it is a crime to poison humans there is no credibility to show that

English 1311 Visual Analysis

fracking is the cause of this toxicity. Even with the scientific evidence that fracking does lead to situations of harmful contamination, no where in the image does it state any of this evidence. This image encompasses as well as invokes many emotions by both the subjects of the image as well as its audiences. The audience will probably have feelings of anger when viewing the image since it conveys ideas of people being harmed in the form of the crimson sign. This anger is directed at the corporations that exercise this method of oil extraction. The people depicted in the image seem to be angry since they are protesting and the majority of them have signs of negative content. There is an element of sympathy in the image because of the text Its a crime to poison us. Sympathy because it is evident that there are people in the world whose lives have been affected negatively due to the process of hydraulic fracturing. There is an element of logos in this image, although not very clear at first. It is possible to extrapolate from the signs the people are carrying that the process of fracking leads to the poisoning of humans. Other than this there is no other use of logos in the image. The photographer has strategically placed the large crimson sign in the center of the image making it the main focus of the picture. This was because the photographer wanted to make that the main message conveyed in the image. There is also his use of pathos by sharing with the world the dismay people are put through by companies using this process. This is strategic in that it can trigger a deep emotional response from the audience in hopes that they too will help in the effort to stop companies from using hydraulic fracturing. However, the photographer has not the job of making use of ethos in his image. He will struggle convincing his audience to agree with the image without evidence or credibility.