Blog Post 6: Visual Text Analysis

1.) The photographer of this photo is named Eric Gay and published on the website Independent Website. The photographer Eric Gay, didn’t have any articles about this exact picture but when you search his name he has a history of taking pictures of natural disasters. The publisher or photographer do not play a role in the image but the website does notify everyone in the U.S of exactly what was going on during Hurricane Harvey.

2.) The intended message behind this picture is to show the devastation that the survivors of natural disasters go through. Although not everyone lives in areas where natural disasters happen, it’s important to show them that it can happen to anyone and how we can help them as much as possible. It can also be intended to not leave your animals behind because they’re not able to help themselves and depend on their owners to get them out of the natural disasters.

3.) The message/image is not persuasive. This image shows the reality of survivors including the man in the picture named Sam Speights. Although Speights leaves no quote in the article where his picture is posted on Independent Website, his image says enough.

4.) The intended audience for this image is worldwide. Across the world, natural disasters happen and it can express to others that they’re not alone in these situations where your home is taken away from you in just a few minutes. It can also make people from around the world get together to help those in need that are found in helpless situations like the one in the image above.

5.) In this image by Eric Gay, He captures Speights home in the background absolutely destroyed. It takes place after Hurricane Harvey does it’s destruction and not to long ago due to the emotional hurt Speight is in. Speight could be thinking about where he and his animals are going to sleep or how they’re going to eat since his body language comes off as concerned, worried, and comforting while trying to hold back tears. Overall, the image can be delivered as capturing a survivor in a devastating time in his life.

Semiotic Elements

Symbolic: A man with nothing in his hands but his four small and helpless dogs is the main subject of the photo. The cloudy and destroyed background is to express the loss and grief that the man is going through. The animals in the picture seem to be looking at their owner in hope of direction and comfort. No other humans are around him which could symbolize the type of loneliness the survivor is feeling. The body language of him comforting his animals and looking to the far distance symbolizes his hope for help.

Written: The caption of the article reads: ‘Unprecedented’ Houston flooding to leave 30,000 people homeless. The bold font of the article show the readers that it’s a serious topic. The choice of words to use homelessness is a reality that many survivors are going to have to face because of the natural disasters. The article brings awareness to the homeless rate rising after Hurricane Harvey, the effect/damage it had on Texas, and the outcome of what had happened so far after the hurricane hit. This article was written by Mythili Sampathkumar.