Module 7: Decoding Images, Sound, & Film
Composition I by Tiffani Tijerina and Magnus Florini is licensed CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 International
Composition I by Tiffani Tijerina and Magnus Florini is licensed CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 International
Deconstruct complex visual and auditory elements to explain how non-verbal choices communicate thematic and emotional arguments.
Use rhetorical reading strategies to analyze complex media texts and academic scholarship efficiently.
Synthesize specific, timestamped scenes and visual details from a music video as concrete evidence to support analytical claims in academic prose.
Construct relative, nominal, and adverbial clauses correctly to build nuanced analytical sentences that establish clear relationships of cause, time, condition, and detail.
*Explainer generated with Notebook LM, using Writing Guide with Handbook, Ch 17 as the source content.
Did you know that visual albums Frank Ocean's Endless, album packaging, and lyric visualizers are composition? That's right! Multimodal cohesion and sound analysis involves analyzing how sound, lyrics, and visual art reinforce one another to communicate overarching themes, symbolism, and emotional tone.
Review Section 11: Relative Clauses, Section 12: Nominal Clauses, and Section 13: Adverbial Clauses.
Craft a response (around 250-300 words) addressing the following three parts:
What Works for Me: Your textbook describes these terms: arrangement, color and symbol, juxtaposition, light, line, and perspective. Choose a music video you think conveys meaning with its visual elements (if you’ve already chosen one for assignment 2, feel free to use that). This can be an argument, theme, or emotional experience. Next, explain how those visual elements work to produce that meaning using at least three of the terms previously mentioned and by providing the timestamp of the video you’re referring to (ex. 1:42-1:58) (and a link to the music video).
What Works for Someone Else: In Rosenburg’s “Reading Games,” she says, “if you’re not the primary audience, don’t be surprised if you find that the writing isn’t appealing to you.” In pursuit of separating our personal opinions from rhetorical techniques, find a music video you don’t like and argue about why it’s a good music video for its intended audience. Who is the audience, and how do specific elements of the visual or auditory elements appeal to that audience? Provide timestamps you’re referring to (and a link to the music video).
Reply to at least two classmates answering the following:
Learning from Them: What can you learn from this student’s perspective and apply to your music video? Did what the student say about their music video apply to yours? Did it contrast against, highlight, or reveal something new? Provide a timestamp of the part of the video that demonstrates these ideas.
Learning from Me, part 1: Watch the student’s provided timestamp from Step 1 Question 1 (watch more if more context can help). Add something new to the student’s perspective. What else do you notice? Can you expand upon one of their ideas? Do you think another element is important? Do you think something is contradictory?
Learning from Me, part 2: Watch the student’s provided timestamp (or more) from Step 1 Question 2. Add something new to the student’s perspective. You can explore your own ideas or use the same questions from before (What else do you notice? Can you expand upon one of their ideas? Do you think another element is important? Do you think something is contradictory?).