Bart: You got a new cat? What color is it?
Ted: She’s a tortoiseshell.
Bart: A what?
Ted: She’s kind of black with orange mixed in, but the orange parts are stripey and … here, just look at this photo on my phone.
Bart: Oh, I’ve seen cats like that before. It’s hard to describe, isn’t it?
Ted: You know what they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.
When you look at a picture, you can see in only a second many details that would be difficult to put into words. A picture can also get an emotional response more easily. If you read about a disaster or tragedy in words, it does not always feel as real as when you see a picture of flooded houses or injured people.
バート：猫を飼ったって？何色の？
テッド：さび猫だよ。
バート：何だって？
テッド：なんだか黒くて、茶色が混ざってて、でも茶色い部分にしまが…ほら、携帯の写真を見て。
バート：おお、なるほど、こうゆう猫見たことあるよ。説明しにくいよね。
テッド：まあ、よく言うだろう。百聞は一見に如かずって。
絵や写真をたった一秒見るだけでも、文字からは入って来ないたくさんの情報が得られます。人の感情を動かすのも写真の方がより効果的です。天災や悲劇のニュースを文字で読むより、洪水の被害や負傷者の写真を見る方が実際の状況を感じとれます。
