Imagining Images

Imagining Images

What’s the tastiest food in the world? Before someone can respond, they should think about this. The image I’ve just placed in a readers head is a positive one, and no matter what cultural background a person comes from they will immediately think of a delicious food they enjoy. This is a perfect example of positive imagery to influence a reader to feel enjoyment for the text. Imagery is everywhere, but in order for a reader to fully absorb an intended message there are a few other things they will need to understand. The main focus of my point is that understanding imagery is important and beneficial. Mainly, why is imagery important, the use of language in imagery, and how different sources can affect an image.

Imagery affects us in all walks of life, not just literature. Ad campaigns use it to influence what people buy, music uses it to influence what we listen to, and the media uses it to influence how the masses view themselves. There are multiple things a reader must take into consideration when trying to understand the imagery of a situation. What does a message mean to them as an individual, what could it mean to someone of a different background, and what was the intended message; these are the most prominent questions to take into consideration. Imagery in literature can take on such wild forms that to truly understand it a person must look between the lines to find the true intended message. The short story “This is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona” by Sherman Alexie is an exceptional example of this. The outside message contains a story of a Native American man dealing with his father’s death. The deeper message and intended imagery revolve around the rebirth of a man reconnecting with his roots. This is cleverly reinforced by the author who chooses “Phoenix” as the destination.

The use of language is very important in regards to portraying a specific message. For example; the words robust and strength can elicit greatly varying images based on the connection a certain individual feels towards the word. Using words that can relate to widely accepted positive things, like idioms, are generally more likely to extract a positive response from an audience. The same can be done with negative connotations. A story about boys that have an issue with an older bully could extract a negative image. However, a story about Jewish boys having issues with a