Seeing Is Believing

Rhetoric has many different aspects. This week in one of my classes, a speaker came in to talk about multi-media. As he spoke he noted that videos are crucial to conveying an argument and instantly my mind jumped to this class. This reminded me of rhetoric and the idea that “seeing is believing.”

It is much easier to persuade someone of something when they can see it with their own eyes. That being said, the ability to harness this idea can be a crucial rhetorical tool. There is only so much we can convey with words – often an image or video can say more without ever saying anything at all.

When you think about it, the multimedia age we are in today completely changes how we communicate. When a person watches a video, it is much like reading a story – he/she becomes engulfed – and it is much easier to convince a person of something, when they are fully invested with what you are saying.

Yet, what complicates the idea of multimedia rhetoric is one of design and production. There are various forms of audio, interface, and presentation that all achieve different levels of persuasion. A more elaborate showcase will get the upper hand in a debate, even if their argument lacks support.

This new age form of rhetoric can also present negative images and can easily show lies. When you are only watching a video, there is less contextual evidence. It is more difficult to spot out what is erroneous or untrue, as everything is right before your eyes.

Arguments are made through emotional appeal, often, and thus it is just as easy to persuade against something, as it is to persuade for something.

In the end though, multimedia is a great tool in rhetoric. What we observe plays a key role in what we believe.

A picture is, after all, worth a thousand words.