Week 5!!

See the Pear Deck demo videos in Canvas

WEEK 5/PART 3:
Chapter 2: Part 3
Viewers Make Meaning

Quick Note About Audio Track Discrepancies:

● some of the audio tracks were created during a 6 week iteration of this course
● some of the audio tracks were created during a 13 week iteration of this course
● some of the audio tracks were created during a 15 week in-person version of the
course
● listen to the audio track on this slide for more info
 LISTEN TO THE
AUDIO TRACKS
PROVIDED IN THE
PEAR DECK -

This presentation
has audio
components.

Keep an eye out

for the
headphones icon

The audio tracks

often provide
additional
information not
listed in the text
on the slide
 Video Links

● There may be video links in this presentation with

questions attached.
● If you have trouble with a link, you can cut and paste the
link into your preferred browser.
● Links are also accessible via the PDF copies of the Pear
Decks
● You may want to try using a different browser.
● See the Tech Help Document
● Reach out if the issue persists - you will get a zero for the
slide if you skip slides with questions attached to videos
● THE VIDEOS MAY ALSO BE AVAILABLE VIA THIS WEEK’S
COMPANION MATERIALS PAGE
 IMMERSIVE READER:
● the immersive reader function in Pear Deck can also be a
helpful tool
● the immersive reader gives you a different way to read
text
● the immersive reader also allows you to look up words in
different languages
● and more!
● click the immersive reader icon to use it (pictured below)
● See the immersive reader demo video in Canvas
 Chapter 2: Viewers Make Meaning!

● Review - we’ll look at question slides from past presentations

● 4 Elements are Involved in the Production of Meaning:
○ in action - we’ll apply the 4 elements to a specific image
■ Element 1: The Creation Itself
■ Element 2: Codes & Conventions This influences all the other
elements on the list
■ Element 3: Viewers & How They Experience/Interpret The Creation
● influenced by Codes & Convention
● context
○ creation/creator & viewer’s knowledge of context
○ viewer & their background/personal experience
● interpellation
■ Element 4: Exhibition & Presentation
● Stuart Hall
○ Encoding & Decoding
○ Reception Theory
● Additional slides
 Review

Let’s take a look at content covered in

a previous Pear Deck
 Element #3: Viewer Experience & Interpretation REVIEW

YOU WERE ASKED THIS QUESTION IN A PREVIOUS PEAR DECK:

Q1: How does this ad interpellate the viewer, in your opinion? Do your
best, I know this is new.

Think about how you are being addressed? What does Coke want you to think?
What values/beliefs are presented in this ad?
Advertising & Society NYU Class Blog -INTERESTING
ASSESSMENT OF INTERPELLATION & COKE
Element #3: Viewer Experience &
Interpretation REVIEW
● Interpellation & Coke’s “America is Beautiful” ad
● the ad signals us to conform to the ideology that we
are all one & that America is full of many different
types of people who come together through Coke.
● calls to us as individuals, helping us to relate to it &
therefore to the ideology that it represents.
● that the ad constructs the world around us and says
that this is what it should look like.
● Coke constructs America as a melting pot of
countless different kinds of people and then
constructs it as a world where we all come together
despite our differences. ● Before the Creative Revolution,
● the ad also disguises injustices and inequalities also conforming was considered the
present in “America”. ideal
● disguises the treatment many of the people ● new attitude during the Creative
depicted in the ad may actually face in the US Revolution individuality valued
● Ad appears to be the product of the Creative ● advertising that appeared during
Revolution in advertising this time period appealed to the
● Coke’s ad appeals to being individual and shows fact that people no longer wanted
that, yes, you can still be part of the group when you to conform
are being yourself. ○ they wanted to be unique
● America is made up of many individuals who come ● with ads - we should remember the
together as one under this uniting product. ultimate goal: SELLING
 Element #3: Viewer Experience & Interpretation - REVIEW link for
more info

INTERPELLATION:
GLOSSARY DEF
In popular culture - refers to
the ways that cultural products
● address their consumers
● recruit them into a
particular ideological
position.
● Images can be said to
● you watched this ad: 2014 Coke Ad
designate the kind of
● you read what other students have written about
viewer they intend us to
the ad
be
○ Advertising & Society NYU Class Blog
○ in speaking to us as
● Take a look at this article from Politico regarding
that kind of viewer,
controversy surrounding the ad
they help to shape
○ Right Radio Pops Off on Coke Ad
us as particular
○ About Politico
ideological subjects.
● think about how people with different ideologies
experienced this ad/reacted to the ad
Let’s Take The Four Elements
Out For a Spin

we’ll apply the four elements an

artwork
 Take a look at this piece of visual
culture.

Note the formal properties (what it

looks like, colors used, etc).

What is it? A painting? A drawing?

Something else?

Think about what you are seeing

and what this art work may be
about

What signs/signifiers are present?

What meanings do the signifiers
convey?

What meanings might be expressed

by this piece of visual culture.

What denotative and connotative

meanings are present?
Take a look at this additional image. Does this
change your initial impressions? How does this
add to your response?
The 4 Elements In Action!! LET’S USE THE ELEMENTS TO BREAK DOWN THIS IMAGE

4 Elements are Involved in the Production of

Meaning:
● Element 1: The Creation Itself
● Element 2: Codes & Conventions This
influences all the other elements on the list
● Element 3: Viewers & How They
Experience/Interpret The Creation
○ influenced by Codes & Convention
○ context
■ creation/creator & viewer’s
knowledge of context
■ viewer & their
background/personal experience
○ interpellation
● Element 4: Exhibition & Presentation

We’re going to apply the 4 Elements to

this cultural product.
 Applying the 4 Elements: Element #1

Element #1: The Creation Itself - Answer the

following question about Element #1:

Q1: What are some of the choices made by the

image creator, based on what you can observe?
Use the textbox below to help you answer this
question. What did they include in the image? Can you
guess what materials they used?

Do your best, I know you haven’t been given key

details about the artwork yet.

Element #1 includes
the formal choices made by the artist
● colors used
● how the composition is organized - how imagery,
text, etc is laid out
● materials used
● & more
 Applying the 4 Elements: Element #1 Element #1: The Creation Itself
● images present:
○ woman in a Navy uniform
○ wind blows the tie on front
○ she looks off to the side with a
smile
● text present:
○ “Gee!! I Wish I Were A Man”
○ “I’d Join the Navy”
○ “Be a man and do it”
○ United States Navy Recruiting
Station
○ when we look at the other image,
we can see the text at the bottom
changed
● materials used:
○ lithography - a reproducible
medium
○ see the next slide for more info
about lithography
● STYLE:
○ We could also consider the
artist’s style
Element #1 includes - the formal choices made by the artist ○ does the imagery look realistic
● colors used ○ is the imagery stylized
● how the composition is organized ● Colors:
● materials used ○ What colors do you see present?
● etc ○ why do you think the artist chose
those colors?
 Here’s a video
about
lithography:

what it is, how

it works, etc

Watch it!

LINK
FULL LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0So4M7Tbis
 Lithography!
● it was invented around 1796 in Germany by an
otherwise unknown Bavarian playwright, Alois
Senefelder
● he accidentally discovered that he could
duplicate his scripts by writing them in greasy
crayon on slabs of limestone and then printing
them with rolled-on ink.
● Thanks to ease of production and economical
distribution, it did not take long for lithography
to find a broad range of applications in art and
commerce.
● means of multiplying drawings → embraced by
portraitists and illustrators
● improvements in printing technology made it
possible to add color to lithography and
increase the size of the printing base →
commercial possibilities ballooned.
● Advertising was revolutionized in the 1880s-
90s by the production of bright mural posters
● color prints and illustrated books
● LINK TO FULL ARTICLE
Moulin Rouge: La Goulue, 1891, Henri de Toulouse-
Lautrec French
Affiches Américaines, Charles Lévy
 Codes & Conventions Codes:
REVIEW ● implicit rules by which meanings get put into
social practice & be read by their users.
● involve a systematic organization of signs.
● EX: codes of social conduct (like forms of
greeting) understood within a given society.
● EX: cinematic codes = visual aspects that are
codes & conventions used to film a single shot such as lightning,
sound objects, movement, shadow, color etc.
● Semiotics (the study of signs) shows that
● use this info to help language and representational media (EX film
you on the next slide & TV) are structured according to specific
codes.

Conventions:
● the generally accepted ways of doing something
● shared & defined by members of a culture
● used to generate & circulate meanings in/for
that culture
● Conventions are the expected ways in which
codes are organised in a product.
Applying the 4 Elements: Element #2 Element #2: Codes & Conventions
ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTION:

Q1: What codes and conventions might be at

play in this image (knowing what we know)?
Provide support for your position

● HINT 1: Think about the genre/type of art.

● HINT 2: what do you think this image is? A
painting, an advertisement, etc? The medium
could help us figure out the corresponding codes
& conventions

CODES:
● implicit rules by which meanings get put into social
practice & be read by their users.
● involve a systematic organization of signs.
CONVENTIONS:
● the generally accepted ways of doing something
● shared & defined by members of a culture
Element #2: CODES & CONVENTIONS
CODES:
CONVENTIONS:
CODES AND CONVENTIONS in this artwork
● POSTER CODES & CONVENTIONS
○ this poster builds on previously established
codes & conventions of
posters/advertisements
■ use of images AND text
■ desire to speak to the viewer a specific way
■ how image & text are related
■ the way the composition is structured
■ choice of font/lettering/typography may
have been inspired by trends in that period
of time
■ choice/use of printing method
● LANGUAGE CODES & CONVENTIONS
○ the words themselves are signs/signifiers
○ the specific words tell us something about
language conventions at that time (is GEE as
commonly used that way now)
● Maybe you came up with some other codes and
conventions
● implicit rules by which meanings get put into social practice & are read by
their users.
● involve a systematic organization of signs.
● the generally accepted ways of doing something
● shared & defined by members of a culture
Applying the 4 Elements: Element #3
CONTEXT - CREATION/CREATOR
Answer the following (2) questions
Q1: What kind of contextual information
related to the creation/creator could affect our
interpretation of this artwork’s meaning?
Explain your position.

Q2: What questions could you ask me to

gather some key contextual details regarding
the creation/creator?

Element 3: Viewers & How They Experience/Interpret

The Creation
● influences of Codes & Convention - already
discussed
● context - 1) creation/creator 2) viewer & their
background/personal experience
● interpellation
 Applying the 4 Elements: CONTEXT - CREATION/CREATOR
Element #3 ❖ WHO made it (who is the artist)? Howard Chandler Christy
❖ WHAT is it called? “Gee!! I wish I were a man—I’d join the
Navy”
❖ WHEN was it made? 1917
❖ HOW was is made? WHAT MATERIALS were used and WHY?
○ Lithography.
○ This medium was likely chosen for its reproducibility
and poster printing trends of the time period
❖ WHAT CULTURE/SOCIETY does the artist/artwork belong to?
○ born in Morgan County
○ attended early school in Duncan Falls, Ohio
○ studied in New York at the Art Students League from
1890- 1891 and then at the National Academy under
William Merritt Chase
❖ WHERE did they make it? in the US - not sure where specifically
❖ WHY did they make it?
○ Why did Howard Chandler Christy make this artwork
○ Let’s find out - see the next few slides

Howard Chandler Christy, “Gee!! I wish I

Element 3: Viewers & How They Experience/Interpret The Creation
were a man—I’d join the Navy” (1917);
● influences of Codes & Conventions - already discussed
● context - 1) creation/creator 2) viewer & their background/personal experience
● interpellation
 Element #3: CONTEXT - ARTIST BACKGROUND: HOWARD CHANDLER CHRISTY
CREATION/CREATOR ● renowned magazine illustrator in the late 19thC and
early 20thC
● combat artist and war correspondent during the
Spanish-American War.
● Chandler was most famous for the “Christy Girl,”
○ a depiction of his vision of the idealized American
woman.
○ The “Christy Girl” was beautiful, modern, and
educated, and she loved the outdoors and sports.
● was committed to assisting the war effort
● many of Chandler’s Christy Girl paintings were
reproduced as posters promoting recruitment, bond
sales, victory loans, and service organizations

ABOUT POSTERS & WWI

● Posters were a vibrant means of mass communication
during World War I
● Posters played an essential role in mustering national
support.
● They were designed to inspire, inform, and persuade
their audience and to ultimately encourage patriotism
and sacrifice

Howard Chandler Christy, “Gee!! I wish I were a LINK TO MORE INFO

man—I’d join the Navy” (1917);
 Element #3: CONTEXT -
CREATION/CREATOR
Howard Chandler Christy, “Gee!! I wish I
were a man—I’d join the Navy” (1917);
ONE VERSION OF THIS POSTER’S ORIGIN STORY - LINK 1 LINK 2
● 20-year old Bernice Smith Tongate walked into a California
Navy recruiting office in 1917 wanting to join the Navy
● she was denied admission to the Navy at that time
● she proclaimed “Gee, I wish I were a man, I’d join the
Navy!”
● Illustrator and artist Howard Chandler Christy was in
earshot of Smith when she announced her “wishful
declaration.”
● Christy recruited her to playfully pose in a white cap &
sailor blues for this poster urging young men to serve their
country.
● Three days after modeling for Christy, Smith again tried to
enlist in the Navy & was accepted as a yeoman
● Yeomen were enlisted members of the military who served
as clerical or administrative assistants either aboard vessels
or in offices on shore.
ANOTHER VERSION LINK 3
● Mrs. E. LeRoy Finch was the model for the World War I
Howard Chandler Christy recruiting poster Gee!! I Wish I
Were a Man
● She received a plaque 1/30/77 recognizing her long-time
assistance to the Navy's recruiting efforts.
I COULD NOT CONFIRM WHICH WOMAN ULTIMATELY MODELED
FOR CHRISTY VERIFIED RESOURCES CONTAIN CONFLICTING INFO
 Element #3: CONTEXT of the FROM MOMA - LINK
CREATION & Time Period ● In World War I, the frontline was not viewed as a
place fit for a woman.
● While kept away from direct combat, however,
women were a valuable asset in recruiting men
to the navy.
● The winsome pin–up in Gee!! I Wish I Were a
Man sports a fluttering naval uniform
● the whole look and chatty tone was extremely
effective in underscoring the masculine appeal of
serving soldiers.
● Here was a woman worth fighting for.
● The poster was admired for its American “punch”
and "air of glad youth which came like a Spring
wind over our war-weary spirits."

Element 3: Viewers & How They Experience/Interpret The Creation

● influences of Codes & Convention - already discussed
● context - 1) creation/creator 2) viewer & their
background/personal experience
● interpellation

Howard Chandler Christy, “Gee!! I wish I were a man—I’d join the Navy” (1917);
Applying the 4 Elements:
VIEWER’S PERSONAL BACKGROUND/ KNOWLEDGE
Element #3
OF CONTEXT

ANSWER BOTH QUESTIONS:

Q1: How might a viewer’s personal experiences
and/or background affect the meaning/message
they get from this artwork, in your opinion?

Q2: How might your personal experiences and/or

background effect the meaning/message you get
from this artwork? Did you receive the message
the artist intended?

Element 3: Viewers & How They Experience/Interpret The

Creation
● influences of Codes & Convention - already discussed
● context - 1) creation/creator 2) viewer & their
background/personal experience knowledge of/(reaction
to contextual info
● interpellation
 ELEMENT 3: VIEWER’S
PERSONAL BACKGROUND/ KNOWLEDGE OF CONTEXT
PERSONAL BACKGROUND/
KNOWLEDGE OF CONTEXT
Element 3: Viewers & How They
Experience/Interpret The Creation
● influences of Codes & Convention
● context - 1) creation/creator 2)
viewer & their
background/personal experience
knowledge of/(reaction to
contextual info
● interpellation
❖ the viewer’s own societal/cultural background may affect
how they view and/or experience this artwork
○ whether or not the viewer has direct experience living in the
US, the time period in which they lived in the US, etc could
affect their experience
○ other factors related to culture and personal experience
could affect their experience
❖ personal experience with the military could affect how the
viewer experiences the artwork
○ direct experience with military service could influence a
viewer’s experience
○ loss of loved ones who served could also be relevant
❖ knowledge of US history and patriotism in the US
○ a viewer’s own stance on patriotism and how patriotism
is demonstrated by US citizens may affect the viewer’s
experience
❖ as we learned, personal background and knowledge of
contextual info can affect the connotative meaning we get
from a piece of visual culture - our own knowledge of WWI and
the conditions surrounding WWI could affect our experience
❖ other factors may also be in the mix
○ a viewer’s gender expression could affect their experience of
this image
○ a viewer’s personal experience of sexism or treatment due to
gender expression could affect their experience
 Applying the 4 Elements: Element #3
INTERVIEW WITH BERNICE SMITH TONGATE LINK
Howard Chandler Christy, “Gee!! I wish I were a
man—I’d join the Navy” (1917);
CONTEXT - VIEWER HERE’S AN EXCERPT FROM AN
● 70 years after she posed for a Navy recruiting poster
in WWI Bernice Smith Tongate says she’s had
second thoughts about recommending military
service to anyone.
● She became the first California woman to enlist
during World War I, after arguing with Navy
recruiters in Los Angeles in 1917.
● The fuss she created caught the eye of artist Howard
Chandler Christy, who used her as a model in Navy
garb to create a recruiting poster.
● Tongate was reluctant to talk about her poster days
because of what happened after a 1977 newspaper
article.
● ″Dozens of people called and said that maybe my
husband, or my cousin or my father might have
come home if they had never seen that poster,″
● ″How would you feel if after making a
recommendation like that, someone joined the
service and got killed? You wake up at two in the
morning and think about that.″
● Tongate served three years as a Navy clerk in WWI
and served as an Army clerk in WWII
Element #4: Exhibition and THIS IS A POSTER (how/where are posters and advertisements
Presentation presented and exhibited)
● how the image is presented/exhibited could add to the meaning
we get from the poster
● where might posters like this be displayed?
● because this is a reproducible image it displayed multiple places at
once
● this image can have a wide reach - we can gain meaning from
seeing it displayed multiple places throughout the day
● this image could also appear in magazines and other types of
publication - the intended purpose is REACH
● EXHIBITION PRACTICES SURROUNDING POSTERS MAY DIFFER
FROM OTHER TYPES OF ART WHERE THERE IS ONLY ONE COPY
● CONTENT/MESSAGE OF THE POSTER MAY DETERMINE WHERE IT
GETS DISPLAYED AND HOW
● If the poster was hung up beside another image with a competing
message - that might affect the meaning we get from the poster

4 Elements Checklist
● Element 1: The Creation Itself check
● Element 2: Codes & Convention This influences all the other elements on the list
check
● Element 3: Viewers & How They Experience and/or Interpret The Creation check
○ influenced by Codes & Convention check
Howard Chandler Christy, “Gee!! I wish I ○ context: 1) creation/creator 2) viewer & their background and personal
were a man—I’d join the Navy” (1917); experience check
○ interpellation check
● Element 4: Exhibition & Presentation check
Meaning & Stuart Hall’s
Reception Theory
STUART HALL & ENCODING/DECODING Encoding &
Decoding
ENCODING (in cultural consumption) GLOSSARY
● the production of meaning in cultural products.
● Used by Stuart Hall to describe the work done by cultural
producers in encoding cultural products with preferred
meaning that will then be decoded by viewers.

DECODING (in cultural consumption) GLOSSARY

● the process of interpreting and giving meaning to cultural Stuart Hall
products in conformity with shared cultural codes.
● describes the work done by cultural consumers when they
view and interpret cultural products that have been encoded
by producers
cultural
products
According to Hall, THESE FACTORS INFLUENCE the process of examples:
encoding AND decoding: (television
● “frameworks of knowledge” shows, films,
● class status, cultural knowledge, and taste of the producers ads, etc.)
● “relations of production” (labor contexts of the production)
● “technical infrastructure” (the technological context of the
production)
 Encoding & Decoding:
According to Stuart Hall

According to Stuart Hall cultural products are:

● encoded with meaning (by the Stuart Hall

creator/producer)
● meaning is decoded (by the viewer)

THESE FACTORS INFLUENCE the process of

encoding AND decoding:
● “frameworks of knowledge”
● class status, cultural knowledge, and taste of
the producers
● “relations of production” (labor contexts of the
production)
● “technical infrastructure” (the technological
this image can help you think about
context of the production)
the process:
We’ll look at a few more slides expanding on this sender = producer/creator
idea. There are also more slides in the additional receiver = viewer/audience
slides portion of the presentation listen to audio for more info
ENCODING (in cultural consumption)
● the production of meaning in cultural products.

DECODING (in cultural consumption)

● the process of interpreting and giving meaning to cultural products in conformity with shared cultural codes.
STUART HALL’S RECEPTION THEORY: Reception Theory:
there are (3) positions a viewer can take when decoding cultural products 3 Positions for
Decoding Images
DOMINANT READING (AKA Preferred Reading):
● the viewer/audience decodes the message exactly as the
producer intended.
● They don’t question the message
● may suggest the viewer shares the same cultural &/or
ideological position as the producer

OPPOSITIONAL READING:
● it’s just like it sounds. The viewer/audience takes an
oppositional position:
● completely disagrees with the ideological position embodied in
the text
Stuart Hall
● completely rejects the dominant message/way the producer
wants us to read a media text
This theory will
NEGOTIATED READING: help us with the
● compromise between the dominant and oppositional readings
● the viewer/audience accepts parts of the producers’ views but
final project
has their own views as well.
WATCHING TV - RECEPTION THEORY STYLE Reception Theory:
3 Positions for
1) DOMINANT/PREFERRED READING POSITION = Decoding Images
AGREEMENT
a) viewer watches TV in an unquestioning manner,
accepting the message sent by the program
b) this position does not work so well for this class

1) OPPOSITIONAL READING: POSITION = OPPOSITION

a) viewer completely rejects the ideological position
embodied in the program they watch
b) they reject the message contained in the program Stuart Hall

1) NEGOTIATED READING: POSITION = NEGOTIATION

a) the viewer approaches the program with a This theory
willingness to question and a willingness to accept will help us
b) they may accept some aspects of the message sent with the final
as intended project
c) however, they may reject other aspects of the
producer’s intended message
 Decoding Images: It’s a Process!

Process of deciphering a Interpretation = a mental

process of...
cultural product (piece of
VC) brings into play:

● memories, acceptance rejection

knowledge, a cultural
framework, etc
● the product itself
● dominant meanings
(we’ll discuss “dominant of associated meanings that
meanings” more later in are attached to a given image
Chapter 2) → through the force of
dominant ideologies
 Decoding Images
Viewers Actively Struggle With Dominant
Meanings
● viewers may allow culturally & personally
specific meanings to
○ transform &/or override dominant
meanings Stuart Hall
■ (dominant meanings imposed by the
producer/creator)
● this concepts shares a similarity with
Gramsci’s theories regarding hegemony &
counter hegemony (we’ll talk about this later)

This is what NEGOTIATION is all about Antonio Gramsci

 Reception Theory: ● Dominant/Preferred Reading: the
3 Positions for Decoding Images viewer/audience decodes and accepts the
message exactly as the producer intended
● Oppositional Reading: the viewer/audience
takes an oppositional position. (The viewer
rejects the message intended by the message
producer. They construct their own meaning.)
● Negotiated Reading: compromise between the
dominant and oppositional readings, where the
viewer/audience accepts parts of the
producers’ views but has their own views as
well.

● The Parisian reader of Paris Match might be

in a better position to have a dominant
reading of this magazine cover.

● Resident of French occupied Upper Volta

(now Burkina Faso) might be more likely to
Paris Match, no. 326, June 25– July 2, 1955
have a oppositional reading of this
magazine cover.
Dominant/Preferred Reading: viewer accepts the
intended message Doritos likely wants to send the
message that Doritos is a cool product that’s
edgy and maybe a little punk. The purpose of this
ad is to sell the product, perhaps appealing to
people in the edgy or punk rock demographic or
people who want to tap into those qualities. Like
“we’re hip and with it.” Perhaps, if you eat this
product, the coolness will rub off on you.

Oppositional Reading: it’s just like it sounds. The

viewer takes an oppositional position. We don’t
think Doritos are cool or edgy, we think this is a
desperate attempt to seem cool and/or possibly
appeal to cool people. Perhaps we do not want to
consume the product as a result of these feelings.

Negotiated Reading: viewer can negotiate an

interpretation from the image & the dominant
meanings (it’s kind of a combo of #1 & #3). Even
though this advertisement does not convince us
Doritos are cool, we still think Doritos are a good
product that we want to consume. Maybe we
think the design is clever
 ● Dominant/Preferred Reading: the viewer/audience
Reception Theory and “Gee!!
decodes and accepts the message exactly as the producer
I Wish I Were a Man”
intended
● Oppositional Reading: the viewer/audience rejects the
message intended by the message producer. They
construct their own meaning.
● Negotiated Reading: the viewer/audience accepts parts of
the producers’ views but maybe rejects other parts (has
their own views as well)

Answer each of the following questions as best you can.

Q1: What is a possible dominant reading of this poster by

Howard Chandler Christy? Provide support for your position

Q2: What is a possible oppositional reading of this poster by

Howard Chandler Christy? Provide support for your position

Q3: What is a possible negotiated reading of this poster by

Howard Chandler Christy? Provide support for your position
 ● Dominant Reading: the viewer/audience decodes
and accepts the message exactly as the producer
intended
● Oppositional Reading: the viewer/audience
rejects the message intended by the message
producer. They construct their own meaning.
● Negotiated Reading: the viewer/audience accepts
parts of the producers’ views but maybe rejects
other parts (has their own views as well)

Answer each of the following questions as best you

can. Try to provide some support for your answer

Q1: What is a dominant reading of this

advertisement?

Q2: What is a possible oppositional reading of this

advertisement?

Q3: What is a possible negotiated reading of this

advertisement?
LINK TO THE IMAGE
The text at the bottom of the image is provided on the next slide
this might help you read
the small text
 Remember to submit the URL in Check out the additional
Canvas to indicate the assignment slides after this one for
is complete. reference

That’s It For This Pear Deck!

CHECK YOUR WORK & INTERNET CONNECTION
BEFORE LEAVING THE PEAR DECK
 some of the
Additional Slides for Reference audio contained
in the additional
slides are from
past
You are not required to read through additional presentations.
slides. They’re here to help if you were unclear on
any topics They may not
have been
● More slides on lithography updated for this
● Slides on Propaganda in the US - we may cover presentation
these slides in an upcoming presentation and could
contain some
● More slides on Propaganda - we may cover these
information not
slides in an upcoming presentation relevant to this
● Interpellation Review course.
● More slides on Stuart Hall’s Theories
More slides on Lithography
LINK
FULL LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZmpDMvwdvs
Propaganda & the United
States
Propaganda in the United States: From PBS ARTICLE Art and Power: Power
● 1917: journalist George Creel wrote a letter to and Propaganda
President Woodrow Wilson. (US on brink of WWI)
● Creel learned that some in the U.S. military were calling
for strict censorship of the wartime press.
● Creel’s letter outlined an alternative policy to
censorship
○ focused on asserting positive values & the
encouragement of patriotism
● Wilson was impressed & invited Creel to become
Chairman of the Committee on Public Information.
● As chairman Creel became the mastermind behind the
U.S. government’s propaganda campaign in WWI
● For two years, he:
○ rallied the American public to the cause of war
○ sold a particular vision of America
○ sold President Wilson’s plans for a world order.
● Creel’s efforts changed the ideological landscape at
home and abroad George Creel
○ many of the methods and approaches he
pioneered became a standard part of U.S.
statecraft.
Propaganda in the United States: From PBS ARTICLE Art and Power: Power and
● Creel’s CPI drew together a generation of “great Propaganda
American communicators” from advertising, graphic
arts, and newspapers.
● Artists involved:
○ Charles Dana Gibson (creator of the iconic
Gibson girl illustrations of the ‘ideal’ American
woman) led the Division of Pictorial Publicity.
○ Writers who joined the CPI included:
■ future Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Booth
Tarkington
■ noted muckraker Ida Tarbell
■ renowned newspaper editor William Allen
White
○ Edward Bernays, the future “father of public
relations,” chaired the CPI Export Service
● CPI strategies included spectacular exhibitions,
posters, and upbeat leaflet
● Hollywood played a part: produced movies for the CPI
○ including feature-length documentaries like
Howard Chandler Christie, “Gee!! I wish I
Pershing’s Crusaders and America’s Answer were a man—I’d join the Navy” (1917);
Propaganda in the United States: From PBS ARTICLE Art and Power: Power
● the Hollywood industry became a consideration in American and Propaganda
foreign policy.
○ CPI blocked the export of films depicting American
crime or even Wild West banditry
○ CPI insisted on positive, educational images.
○ CPI used access to Hollywood products as leverage to
persuade foreign exhibition circuits to cease showing
German films.
■ effectively closed off what had been a large
market for Germany in some northern European
countries.
● Creel understood the susceptibility of Americans to celebrity
○ recruited some of the best known people of the era to
speak for his cause
● Creel knew Americans viewed neighbors as having credibility
○ established a network of 75,000 “four minute men”
lecturers:
■ citizens primed to deliver talking points provided
by the CPI in neighborhood movie theaters across
the country.
■ The network of venues included churches, lodges, "U.S. Official War Pictures", CPI
colleges, and schools (schools had their own poster by Louis D. Fancher
junior team of lecturers)
Left: CPI poster with space for a message. Right: “Pershing’s Crusaders”, a documentary on American troops in France released
by the Committee on Public Information.
Propaganda in the US: From HYPERALLERGIC ARTICLE Art and Power: Power and
● Creel understood the propaganda role that posters Propaganda
could play
○ partly b/c combatant nations had been using
them for years, since the outbreak of war in
1914.
● In the United States, Creel later wrote in How We
Advertised America (published in 1920),
○ “The poster must play a great role in the fight for
public opinion. The printed word might not be read;
people might choose not to attend meetings or to
watch motion pictures, but the billboard was
something that caught even the most indifferent
eye.”
● The roots of WWI visual propaganda sprouted in the
last decades of the 19thC in:
○ refinements to large format chromolithography
○ the development of a spot color design aesthetic
by fin-de-siècle French poster designers.
■ EX: commercial design practice exploited by
Jules Chéret and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec of
modern color assignations for communicative
purposes.
● an international “poster craze” followed the French
example in Europe and America. James Montgomery Flagg, “Wake up, America! Civilization calls
every man, woman, and child” (April 1917); the poster was
produced for the Mayor’s Committee in New York City, one of
many poster-commissioning entities
 Some questions to consider based on what
you’ve learned about US propaganda in the
last few slides

Q1: We learned the CPI and those involved

with the CPI rallied the American public to
the cause of WWI. Looking at the poster on
the left, how did Howard Chandler Christy’s
choice of images and text help further the
CPI’s message/role? What artistic strategies
did he employ to assist the CPI? Be specific
and explain your position

Q2: In 3-4 sentences, what is your response

to US strategies in using propaganda to
define and shape attitudes held by US
citizens?

Howard Chandler Christy, “Gee!! I wish I

were a man—I’d join the Navy” (1917);
More slides on
Propaganda
 Art and Power: Power and Propaganda

● Modern techniques of propaganda - linked to

Revolutionary period in France
● French public was systematically bombarded by
the press & various groups to:
○ manipulate its opinion
○ consolidate a new sense of loyalty & national
identity.
● This included forms with popular appeal and
ability to reach the masses:
○ newspapers, pamphlets and engravings for
mass distribution, cartoons, caricatures,
plays, songs, & public monuments.
● Leaders of the French Revolution
○ needed to unite the masses with a new
sense of patriotism
○ realized the power of art (in many forms) to
reach and influence the population.
● New imagery was needed to both illustrate and
sell the principles of the Republic
○ such as Liberty and Equality – visible to a
largely illiterate public. we’ll talk more about Illustrated literary supplement, January 1903. The inexpensive
this imagery later in the Pear Deck eight-page color supplement covered world affairs and national
politics on the cover, but specializing catastrophes shipwrecks,
mining disasters, riots --the more gruesome or gossipy, the better
 Art and Power: Revolution & Challenging the Powers That Be

● during the often violent transition into our

modern era
○ art remained deeply involved with
politics and the social order
● the perspective of the artist changed
profoundly during this transition
○ artists were no longer exclusively
serving those in power
○ the artist was now a citizen among
other citizens, free to make art that
took sides in the debates of the day
● MORE INFO REGARDING THE PAINTINGS ON
THIS SLIDE APPEARS WITH THE ADDITIONAL
SLIDES

● The Second of May 1808, Francisco Goya, oil on

canvas, 1814
● The Third of May, Francisco Goya, oil on canvas,
1814
Eugene Delacroix's Liberty Leading the
People Art and Power: Revolution &
● this painting commemorates the July Challenging the Powers That Be
Revolution of 1830, which toppled
King Charles X of France.
○ popular uprising in Paris that
toppled one government and
installed another
● Delacroix completed the painting in
the same year
● it retains:
○ The Passion of his idealized view of
the Insurrection
○ the hopes he had for the future it
would bring
● the center is Liberty herself
personified as a Greek statue come to
life holding the French flag High
● she rallies the citizens of Paris who
surged toward us brandishing pistols Liberty Leading the People (French: La Liberté guidant
and Sabres as though about to burst le peuple), Eugène Delacroix, 1830,oil on canvas, 260
cm × 325 cm
out of the painting
○ before them lie the bodies of slain
government troops
 Eugene Delacroix's Liberty Leading Art and Power: Revolution &
the People Challenging the Powers That Be
● When the painting was displayed to
the public in 1831
○ it was bought by Louis Philippe
the citizen King that the
revolution had put in power
○ he returned the painting to
Delacroix after a few months
● Liberty Leading the People did not
go on permanent public display until
1863
○ after a vast urban renewal
program had minimized the
possibility of angry citizens
again taking control of the
streets
● painting could be seen glorifying Liberty Leading the People (French: La Liberté guidant
violence in service of democracy le peuple), Eugène Delacroix, 1830,oil on canvas, 260
cm × 325 cm
● New imagery was needed to represent the Art and Power: Revolution &
new principles of the Republic
○ Liberty and Equality were part of these
Challenging the Powers That Be
new principles – imagery was needed to
make these principles visible to a
largely illiterate public.
● This new imagery was required:
○ for ‘high art’(paintings, sculptures, etc)
○ for application on coins, letterhead,
various publications and prints.
○ even playing cards had to be redesigned
to eliminate royal imagery.
● Imagery that promoted the ideals of the
Revolution included:
○ the Republic, represented as a woman
draped in Classical clothing & wearing
the red Phrygian cap of Liberty.
○ Equality (also depicted as a woman)
holding a level over her head. Liberty Leading the People (French: La Liberté guidant le
○ Fraternity was shown through the peuple), Eugène Delacroix, 1830,oil on canvas, 260 cm × 325 cm
fasces (fasces = bundles of birch sticks
bound with a leather strap) Other symbols included the pike as the weapon
■ This symbol was derived from of the people, the tricolour rosette, the rake –
ancient Rome to denote to represent the Third Estate – and the lion to
strength through unity.
represent power.
Interpellation Review
 INTERPELLATION REVIEW

INTERPELLATION PROCESS REVIEW: INTERPELLATION

● To be interpellated is to be hailed or called in a way in ● Interpellation explains the
which you recognize yourself to be the person intended by way in which ideas get into
the call
our heads & have an effect
● Imagine you are driving a car.
● You hear a siren wail behind you. on our lives
● The sound catches your attention & makes you look into ● cultural ideas have such a
your rearview mirror hold on us that we believe
○ you see spinning lights on a police car. they are our own.
● You are “hailed” by the sound and image ● Interpellation is a process, a
○ you recognize yourself as the possible intended process in which we
recipient of this address meant to tell you “pull
encounter our culture’s
over.”
● You may feel personally implicated, even if you believe the
values and internalize them.
address can’t possibly be meant for you ● Interpellation expresses the
○ (let’s say you weren’t speeding, you didn’t run a idea that an idea is not
light). simply yours alone (such as
● Hailed by the police car, you instantly recognize yourself “I like blue, I always have”)
as a subject of the (traffic) law of the state ○ ideas have been
○ even if you know you are not guilty of any legal presented to you for
infraction.
you to accept. .
● In fact, you may feel interpellated (hailed) even if in fact
the address was not intended for you—
○ police car pulls past you and pursues someone else.
● You still felt called out, for an instant.
More Slides on Stuart
Hall’s Theories
 Encoding & Decoding

According to Stuart Hall: a visual/media

text is:
○ encoded with meaning (by the Stuart Hall
creator/producer)
○ meaning is decoded (by the
viewer)

● Encoding = the creation of messages (which

you want to communicate with other
person).
● Decoding = interpreting the meaning of the
message by the listener or audience of
encoded message.
● Example: a breakfast cereal company wants
to convey their message to you to buy its this image can help you think about
product. They will create an ad for the the process:
purposes and you will see or hear it on tv,
sender = producer/creator
radio or other social media. You will
interpret and attempt to understand the
receiver = viewer
company’s message
Dominant Reading: viewer accepts the intended
message Doritos likely wants to send the
message that Doritos is a cool product that’s
edgy and maybe a little punk. The purpose of
this ad is to sell the product, perhaps appealing
to people in the edgy or punk rock demographic
or people who want to tap into those qualities.
Like “we’re hip and with it.” Perhaps, if you eat
this product, the coolness will rub off on you.

Oppositional Reading: it’s just like it sounds. The

viewer takes an oppositional position. We don’t
think Doritos are cool or edgy, we think this is a
desperate attempt to seem cool and/or possibly
appeal to cool people. Perhaps we do not want
to consume the product as a result of these
feelings.

Negotiated Reading: viewer can negotiate an

interpretation from the image & the dominant
meanings (it’s kind of a combo of #1 & #3). Even
though this advertisement does not convince us
Doritos are cool, we still think Doritos are a
good product that we want to consume. Maybe
we think the design is clever
THE END!