Page 107 - Žagar, Igor Ž. 2021. Four Critical Essays on Argumentation. Ljubljana: Pedagoški inštitut.
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perception, infer ence, and understanding in visual argumentation (and beyond)

Calibrating the questionnaire: not too much and not too little
Each visual was preceded with a necessary but short introduction—nec-
essary for historically or chronologically framing the visual (but not ex-
plaining the context)—, while following each visual there were two ques-
tions, constructed in as neutral way as possible, at the same time trying
to avoid a very actual possibility in this kind of surveys that respondents
wouldn’t understand what the goal (the intention) of these questions was.
Here they are.

In the case of the smoking fish:
Introduction: The drawing below dates back to the seventies of the pre-

vious century. Please, take a good look at it, and then answer the two ques-
tions below.

Question 1: What do you see on the drawing (how would you describe
the ‘content’ or ‘what is going on’ in the drawing in the most correct and
objective way)?

Question 2: In your opinion, what could be the goal/purpose/meaning
of the drawing? In other words, how would you interpret it (e.g., advertise-
ment against smoking/cigarettes, advertisement in favour of smoking/cig-
arettes, advertisement in anglers’ bulletin, joke, caricature, other). Please,
give reasons for your opinion.

In the case of UvA for Women:
Introduction: The photograph below represents a poster that was to be

found around Amsterdam some time ago, probably especially in the vicini-
ty of the University of Amsterdam. The text on the poster reads: ‘University
of Amsterdam—for Women’. Please, take a good look at it, and then answer
the two questions below.

Question 1: What do you see on the poster (how would you describe
the ‘content’ or ‘what is going on’ in the poster in the most correct and ob-
jective way)?

Question 2: In your opinion, what could be the goal/purpose/mean-
ing of the poster? In other words, how would you interpret it (e.g. advertise-
ment for the university, call for enrollment, call for employment, joke, par-
ody, other). Please, give reasons for your opinion.

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