Introduction
Throughout history, various tools and forms of communication have been developed in order to help people interact and understand each other more effectively. As such, such developments have played a pivotal role in determining how our societies react to different information.
Various communication channels can be used to drive public opinion, relay current affairs and advance some social values. However, communication is at best a complex factor and there are some factors that should be considered when trying to convey a particular message. This paper shall set out to deconstruct and discuss a particular message in a bid to show how the sender perceives plagiarism.
This shall be in an attempt to articulate that senders normally include various notions and sentiments into a message through the text, graphics and audio features incorporated into the message. To this end, factors such as tone, color, texture and pictorial presentation found within the selected presentation shall be discussed and their relevance towards making the message therein more understandable analyzed.
Description of the presentation
The power point presentation being analyzed aims at enlightening the reader on matters pertaining to plagiarism and the internet. The primary objective of this document is to highlight the dangers of plagiarism in an educational and professional setting. The creator has used relevant pictures, colors, formats and languages (English and Arabic) to convey the intended message. Each of these features play a pivotal role in advancing the message as shall be elaborated throughout this essay.
Text analysis
Texts used in any presentation often have a myriad of meanings apart from the obvious message a given document purports to sell. The font used, the casing (whether capital letters, small letters or a mixture of both), color and the language used greatly influences how a reader understands the message. In this case, I used a mixture of capital and small letters to input the text. Capital letters were used to create the titles of each slide, while small letters were used for the sub-texts.
The reason behind this choice is because capital letters are used to reinforce the importance of the text. As such, the capitalized statements in my presentation catch the attention of the reader and are indicative of the gravity of the message being conveyed. On the same note, I have used some Arabic words that warn against plagiarism. Similarly, the use of these words aims at emphasizing that plagiarism is wrong no matter the tribal, cultural or religious affiliations.
Similarly, a simple review of the words and images portrayed in the presentation enables the reader to understand suggestions made. In this presentation, the words used specifically aims at warning the readers against plagiarism. From the message contained within the presentation, the reader is able to understand that not all internet sources are credible.
As such, caution should be taken when using internet sources because they may lead to plagiaristic tendencies in school and office settings. When deconstructing the text in any message, it is always important to understand what the message implies without necessarily stating the facts. In this case, the presented message implies that there are legal and moral dangers of using internet sources that have no authors. However, the text used does not explicitly state them.
Color analysis
Colors elicit different reactions. For example, red is known to symbolize danger or blood, white is for peace and black represents chaos in most cases. In my presentation, the slides used have a black background, which is complemented by red and orange foreground. The main aim of using these colors is to emphasize on the dangers of plagiarism.
Considering that my target audience is people in the educational and professional realms, these colors are most appropriate since they symbolize danger. In addition, the Arabic community associates red and orange with danger and the message targets people from this ethnic faction.
Similarly, these colors have been used to create the flaming effect. Looking at the slides, there are flames surrounding the text. These flames also emphasize on the dangers associated with plagiarism. It is a known fact that fire is dangerous. As such, displaying it on any surface often symbolizes danger. Using this effect enables the reader to associate the message to danger, thereby ensuring that they get the message being purported.
Imagery analysis
It is always important to ensure that the reader is able to identify him/herself with the message being conveyed. To this end, I have used imagery as an agent to facilitate this. At the top of the first slide, I have inserted pictures of a mosque and a fierce looking tiger. These two images are relevant since they reinforce my claim that plagiarism is a dangerous and an offensive practice.
The mosque also shows that Muslims view plagiarism as a sin. As such, when the reader sees this picture, he/she understands that whatever is being discussed has some religious implications. On the other hand, the tiger and the flames are symbolic in the sense that they represent danger. On the last slide, the background is orange with red supplements.
Taking a closer look, one can see that the red markings are not random. They in fact create a circled “F”. This is symbolic to the grading system used in schools whereby an “F” implies a fail. This imagery further enables the reader to understand the implications of plagiarism to one’s educational future. As such, this image is relevant since it reinforces the claims that I want the readers to understand in regard to plagiarism and the internet.
Format analysis
There are formatting factors that one has to consider in order to create a successful presentation. These factors include but are not limited to using key phrases about the topic being discussed, slide layout, use of contrasting colors and avoiding the use of excessive animations and transitions among others. Using these tips as guidelines, I ensured that I used standard fonts, which are readable and neat. In addition, I used key phrase words such as plagiarism and internet in order to emphasize my points.
The layout used is simple and easy to follow with the headings at the top and few concise bullet points at the center. This enables the reader to understand the main point and its explanation faster. The use of contrasting colors is relevant since it makes the presentation look interesting and ensures visibility as well as readability.
In as much as my presentation looks neat, visible and concise, I decided not to include transitions and animations. This choice was influenced by the fact that it is a short presentation and including such effects would distract the reader from what the presentation is all about. The slide show should only be used as a visual aid and not as the main focus of the presentation. With this in mind, I decided not to use such effects in order to ensure that the message being forwarded is understood completely.
Discussion
From the analysis presented herein, it is evident that caution should be taken when creating a message. At the end of the day, a message is gauged by its totality. This means that an effective message should have a target audience and should be conclusive. My presentation aimed at highlighting various factors of plagiarism.
From the first slide to the last one, it is a continuous story starting from the introduction, to the causes and finally the effects of using internet sources that are not credible. As such, this presentation is effective since the reader can understand the topic and the lesson.
Conclusion
Communication is the cornerstone on which any relationship is formed. As such, communicators should ensure that they communicate in a manner that is interesting, concise and understandable. This paper set out to present an analysis of a power point presentation I had made regarding the internet and plagiarism.
To this end, various factors such as color, format, text and imagery used to create the presentation have been evaluated. From this analysis, it is evident that each factor plays a pivotal role in determining how the message is received. The relevance of the choices I made has also been highlighted. As such, these factors, among others, should always be considered whenever one wishes to communicate to a targeted audience using power point slides.