Representation

Ashley Sommer

“Looking a Pictures and Looking at Things� by Kendall L Walton

Kendall L. Walton’s article about the nature of visual and verbal representation examines the ways in which visual and verbal representation are perceived by our minds. Walton establishes that pictures are forms of visual representation and letters (words) are verbal representations. In his opinion, Walton believes both of these forms of representation bring the viewer into a fictional “game of make-believe� in which pictures and words are just props in the fictional plot. Walton highlights the difference between visual and verbal representation by explaining the ways in which pictures are “much better props�. Looking at a picture is like looking at the real object, but reading about an object only gives the viewer as much information as the author portrays in the text. All text is the impression of the author, not the impression of the viewer. A picture allows people to view it for themselves and make discoveries or judgments based on their own observations, whereas any discoveries or judgments from text are based on the author’s portrayal of the scene. Also, the choice about the order of what to look at can be chosen by the viewer of a picture, but is chosen by the author of text for the viewer. Things are discovered sentence by sentence as you read along. One can stare at a picture indefinitely, but no additional understanding can be reached after reading a text. Walton also discusses the differences between different forms of visual representation, such as realistic painting versus cubism. He makes the argument that the cubist painting can actually lead to more discovery and understanding of a scene than the realistic painting because it forces the viewer to observe it in a different way than they normally would, which enhances discovery within the scene.