“At the heart of representation are acts of deliberate selection and emphasis.”
How do the texts you have studied demonstrate this in relation to Conflicting Perspectives?
Composers of texts attempt to influence and manipulate audiences into adopting their perspective of events, personalities and situations, in order to convince audiences of the veracity of their arguments. The fact that truth is subjective means that the representation of truth will also be subjective. In particular, it becomes clear through examination of texts such as The Justice Game, by Geoffrey Robertson, and Julian Barnes’ 1991 novel Talking It Over, that bias is inherent in every perspective that is presented by a composer.
Geoffrey Robertson’s non-fiction text, The Justice Game, is a clear example of a composer deliberately selecting and emphasising various facts and events in order to influence a reader. Through The Justice Game, Robertson presents his perspective of the British legal system, which he believes to be archaic and unjust, with too much potential for the transgression of human rights, through an evidently biased, subjective view, using the techniques of selection and omission to highlight various arguments to persuade readers.
The Trials of Oz recounts the obscenity trials of the editors of Oz Magazine, highlighting the issues of freedom of speech and censorship, as well as the overarching concept of conflicting perspectives which are inherently present in every event or situation. The conflicting perspectives that are present in this case are instantly clear, as the avant-garde editors of Oz are challenged by the significantly more conservative character of Judge Argyle, whom Robertson views as a personification of the legal system. Judge Argyle, who presided over the case, is immediately presented in an unfavourable light, characterised as a conservative, out-of-touch and perhaps backward man, who Robertson implies sees his judgeship as “a career consolation for the...