Date of Award
Summer 2012
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts in Professional Writing (MAPW)
Department
English
First Advisor
Dr. Elizabeth Giddens
Second Advisor
Dr. Mary Lou Odom
Abstract
This study examines the potential role of visuals in a first-year composition classroom. Essential theoretical questions include whether visual images have rhetorical power, and specifically, whether they can sustain an argument. If we suppose that visual images, like verbal texts, can be arranged to create or extend an argument, then the inclusion of visuals in a writing classroom becomes a question not of if but of how. Study findings and recommendations are relevant for first-year writing instructors, administrators, and others involved in the design and delivery of first-year writing programs.
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