Vision seems to be the most influential sense on our minds immediate perceptions and beliefs. Magicians make a living out of confusing our minds by playing misleading our sense of vision. But, do book covers do this as well? In the novel Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, the cover says a lot about the book and helps to foreshadow the argument that Kingsolver makes throughout the book. When presenting arguments of definition design issues such as “boldface and italics, headings or links in online text — can make a powerful contribution to how credible and persuasive it is” (Everything’s an Argument, 232). In this case the book conveys the importance of understanding nature and agriculture through numerous visual displays. The book cover is the color green, one in that we often associate with a healthy landscape. The paper appears to have been recycled expressing Kingsolver’s ideas on conserving and reusing our surrounding environment. Also the hands pictured on the cover are cupped holding beans as if to suggest that we hold the power and ability to produce our body’s nourishments. Does the cover completely convey the meaning of the author’s work? No, however the cover gives the novel a “focal point of emphasis in your definition” that the reader can look back upon to understand the general definition of the key concept (Everything’s an Argument, 232).
P.S. The verdict is still out as to whether this type of cover judging works on people, but for now it is not recommended.
