Techniques of Close Reading

Book excerpt: Techniques of Close Reading, Second Edition helps you gain a deeper understanding of what texts may be saying, whether they are written, oral, visual, or mediated. Renowned scholar and professor Barry Brummett explains and explores the various ways to "read" messages (such as speeches, cartoons, or magazine ads), teaching you how to see deeper levels of meaning and to share those insights with others. You will learn techniques for discovering form, rhetorical tropes, argument, and ideologies within texts. New to the Second Edition: A new Chapter 6 includes a selection of techniques from each chapter to show you how different techniques may be used together when reading text. A close reading of a group of ads from the insurance company, Liberty Mutual, offers you an opportunity to apply the techniques to recent texts.