Overview
• Setting a scene is both geographic and emotional; it is both physical and social.
• For the DB person to feel connected to the environment and have basic information, it means that we must set the scene.
• Naming a city or store is not enough. A few specific details are essential.
• Here too, use a top-down discourse style.
Grocery Shopping
• On the way, what area of town are you going through?– City streets?
– Suburban streets?
• What kind of stores are these?– Supermarket?
– Co-ops?
– “Mom & Pop” grocery?
Inside the Store• What kind of mood does this store have?
• What kind of values do you infer from the décor? Why would someone choose to shop here instead of another store?
• The Safeway, Whole Foods and 7-Eleven are very different grocery stores. What distinguishes them from each other?
Groceries
• Look at the following pictures of grocery stores. What distinguishes them?
• What details do you notice that set the tone?
• Which details would the DB person herself notice?
• If this was the first time the DB person shopped here, how could you efficiently describe the store to set the scene?
Variation
• Some stores are ‘big box stores’ designed to keep the costs as low as possible, buying in bulk and providing little sales assistance.
• Other stores cater to a particular market such as healthy eating or lots of customer service.
• Space, lighting, as well as added décor details signal the stores’ target audience.
• Did you notice the piñatas in one of the previous pictures?
Distinguishing Marks
• Size and a sense of space is definitely one marker.
• Lighting and the use of color is another.
• Style of organization is telling. Is everything in tall, neat rows on big shelves or is there an artful asymmetry? Is the focus efficiency or coziness?
Geography, Topography
• What area are you going through?– City
– Country
– Suburbs
– Strip malls
– Small town
– Desert
• Thus begins the top-down description.
City
• The city will be distinguished by its – Age (the era of the architecture)
– Size
– Overall prosperity
– Overall energy (bustling, quiet, etc.)
– Style
• Look at the following photos and again, note what gives each its character.
Activities
• Part of what gives a city its flavor is the kind of activities they promote there, e.g. great book stores and coffee shops vs. a great beach town with surfing, snorkeling, etc.
• Of course this is influenced by the geography, weather and primary commercial activities. Both Portland and San Diego are port cities but they have a very different ethos or style.
History
• History also influences the style and tone of a city. San Diego is close to Mexico and has its roots in that culture, although it is thoroughly of the United States today.
• Portland, Oregon, on the other hand, was more influenced by the Native American cultures and its early logging industry. Trees are still very much a part of its identity.
Focus
• Choose details that add meaning. This will take practice.
• Choose details that set the mood or tone.
• When possible, include a description of the people and what they are doing.
• We will elaborate on describing people in the presentation, “Visual Information Part V: Describing People.”
Top Related