VIC3001MidtermCH3

  1. What is Max Wertheimer's famous statement that
    describes his Gestalt theory?
    “The whole is different from the sum of its parts.”
  2. What are
    the four fundamental principles of grouping which allow the brain to understand
    a scene? Be able to describe each.
    • Similarity: objects that look
    • similar will be automatically grouped together by the brain

    • Proximity: the brain more
    • closely associate objects close to each other than it does two objects that are
    • farther apart

    • Continuation: the brain does
    • not prefer sudden or unusual changes in the movement of a line; seeks a smooth
    • continuation

    • Common Fate: direct a viewer’s
    • eyes toward or away from a graphic element in a picture or design
  3. Who helped invent a genre of photography known as
    "snapshot aesthetic"?
    Diane Arbus
  4. How did
    Gestalt help change the front page layouts of newspapers? Be able to describe
    the layouts before and after the theory.
    • Before: newspapers were a
    • mind-numbing collection of grey words on a page separated by columns, with a
    • small headline and smaller subheads, no pictures or breaks

    • After: varied collection of
    • different sized headlines, columns, and pictures; easily differentiated.
  5. Why has the
    gestalt approach been criticized?
    • For describing perceptions rather than giving
    • explanations of how these perceptions actually give meaning to an image.
  6. What is
    Semiotics? Who was one of the first people to propose this? (Hint: His name
    contains that of an animal.)
    • Semiotics is the study or science of signs ;
    • Augustine of Hippo.
  7. Who is considered to be the founder of the field of
    semiotics?
    Ferdinand de Saussure
  8. What are
    the three types of signs? Be able to give an example of each?
    • Iconic Signs: they most closely
    • resemble the thing they are meant to represent ; example: cave paintings of
    • animals

    • Indexical Signs: have a
    • logical, common sense connection to the thing or idea they represent rather
    • than a direct resemblance to the object ; example: the sun’s shadow implies the
    • movement of time, footprints

    • Symbolic Signs: have to be
    • taught, social and cultural
    • considerations influence them greatly ; example: flags, logos, music
  9. What are Asa Berger's four types of codes? Be able
    to describe each and give an example of each.
    • Metonymic Code: a collection of
    • signs that cause the viewer to make assumptions about what is seen ; example: a
    • magazine ad for cotton comforters

    • Analogical Code: a group of
    • signs that cause the viewer to make mental comparisons ; example: figures of
    • speech

    • Displaced Code: a transfer of
    • meaning from one set of signs to another ; example: liquor, lipstick, and
    • cigarettes linked with possible sexual conquest

    • Condensed Code: several signs
    • that combine to form a new, composite message ; example: televised music videos
    • and the advertisements
  10. What are the mental activities cultural anthropologist
    Carolyn Bloomer identified which affect visual perception?
    • Memory, projection, expectation, selectivity,
    • habituation, salience, dissonance, culture, and words.
Author
marcyeaker
ID
108295
Card Set
VIC3001MidtermCH3
Description
Visual communication midterm chapter 3
Updated