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Adrian Sosa
Prof. Malvin
English 115
19 October 2015
Whats wrong with Number 10?
To many, seeing an image of the best soccer player in the world right after he lost
the biggest tournament in sports would bring several emotions out of the beholder. Lionel
Messi is arguably the best soccer player in the world and he has an unimaginable fan base
across the planet, even in places where people cant afford a television to watch their hero
play. The photographer of this image managed to capture a perfect moment in which
Messi is expressing a body gesture and facial expression that gets different reactions from
different people. So showing a fan an image of Messi in an almost submissive state while
accompanied by his teammates, who dont seem to share his thoughts, can bring out
emotions and opinions that vary depending on who you ask.
The photo takes place in the hot and humid Brazilian stadium where the
championship match between Germany and Argentina led by their captain Lionel Messi
has just reached a conclusion in which Germany has won by one goal. A mixed feeling
had overtaken the world where soccer fans celebrated the German victory but were still
sympathetic towards their hero and the other Argentinian stars that made up the underdog
squad. The photographer of the image captured the moment Messi seemed to
submissively bow his head to the victors being presented their medals while the rest of
his team seems to look on with indifferent emotions and thoughts. Messis body gesture
leaves the meaning of the photo up to interpretation, however, but using rhetoric, it is

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possible to formulate a theory as to what Messi bowing his head with a blank look on his
face may mean.
As humans, we have a tendency to identify the sight of something and formulate
an idea of what is going on. At first glance of the image, the setting is enough to tell an
average viewer what is going on in the image and then the image gets dismissed without
further thought. An interviewee with little to no background knowledge of soccer
described a soccer player bowing his head simply because he lost. When the interviewee
was asked what the soccer player could be thinking, she said that he is most likely
thinking that he let his team and himself down and now theyve lost. In this appeal to
ethos, the photographer created an image that has a sorrowful face value that is
recognizable to anyone and causes any viewer with no background knowledge of soccer
to argue that the message of the image is that the soccer player lost.
How an image makes a viewer feel emotionally is important to convey the
meaning of the photo. With more knowledge of the image, an individual will actually
begin to feel for the subject. In this case, knowing how good the player is and how the
rest of his team is good but isnt on par with the players level of ability, viewers could
begin to feel sympathetic for the Messi and his situation. This would be the images
appeal to pathos. When the previously mentioned interviewee was described to who the
player is and what his situation was, she said that she felt sorry for him and wanted to
know more of him and the other team, so that she could formulate a more specific idea of
what the image means. At this point of the interview, the interviewee is fascinated with
the image is expressing her sympathy for Messi as if she knew him personally.

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Finally, there is the point of view of someone who already knew Messis
background and right away knew the setting of the image. This interviewee has always
watched Messi on TV because he is Spanish and Messi plays for arguably the best team
in the world, FC Barcelona, which is in Spain. When asked what the possible meaning of
the image is, the interviewee had a partially different opinion. As a fan of Messi, the
interviewee stated that he felt sorry for Messi but at the same time understands how
humble the player is. With this knowledge, the interviewee suggested maybe the players
body gesture doesnt just express sorrow, but also expresses the Messis ambition or drive
forcing him to think of his future as a professional soccer player and his countrys future
in international soccer in future world cup competitions. The interviewee also suggested
that perhaps the reason the rest of the players in the image are looking up because their
minds are in the moment, almost as if theyre making Messi the focal point of the image.
The prior knowledge of the image could create a scenario in which the image has an
appeal to logos.
There is, however, one more way to interpret the meaning of the image with no
prior knowledge of the sport or the players visible in the image. This method is to analyze
the lines in the image. By doing so, one can assume that contrasting lines or patterns are
setting a mood or provoking an emotion. For example, in her book Picture This: How
Pictures Work, Molly Bang states that Diagonal shapes are dynamic because they
imply motion or tension (Bang 31). This applies to the image mainly because if there is
a contrast of lines. If Messi had been standing straight up with an indifferent look on his
face like his teammates, then the image would have no emotional meaning. But because
he is slouching down at an angle, he is setting himself apart from the rest of the people in

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the image, giving the image a sense of tension. At first glance, the eye is drown to Messi
because he is the only one looking down and slouching, making him the main subject of
the image. This paired with Bangs idea that diagonal lines add a sense of tension, it
would be possible for someone to conclude that the main subject of the image is Messi
and that the meaning of the photo is that he lost, and that he is the only one in the image
humble enough to contemplate the loss.
An image is great when it opens a discussion or provokes thought. When people
begin to think about what caused the event pictured and what it could mean, the
photographer or image creator is successful. However, like any other visual art, the
meaning of the image is open to interpretation. Having prior knowledge of the images
subject would yield a different opinion of the meaning compared to not having prior
knowledge. But a simpler analysis of the image could yield a much more general
interpretation of the image.

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Work Cited
Bang, Molly. Picture This: How Pictures Work. New York: SeaStar, 2000. Print.

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