Texts aren't just words on a page. They're rich, layered creations that generate significations, implications, hints, and connections. This means a text carries not only a direct meaning but also hidden or secondary meanings, references, and associations that may depend on context or reader's interpretation. For example, think about a popular song lyric - "We all live in a yellow submarine" - it directly mentions living in a submarine, but it might signify an alternative, happier world, a sense of community, or even a critique of conformist society, depending on your perspective.

To help understand texts, the text suggests using mental imagery. It gives the example of two photographs showing a person using a mobile phone, with the phone symbolizing a "text." These images provide contrasting approaches to interacting with texts.

• Image 1 - Active Engagement with Texts

  • In the first image, the person on the phone is part of the world-at-large and is an active participant in constructing the text's meaning. This signifies that the reader is not isolated but connected to a broader context. It's like reading a news article about global warming while at the park. The environment around you (the chirping birds, swaying trees, warm sunshine) can shape your interpretation of the text, making you feel more personally engaged in the issue.

• Image 2 - Isolated Engagement with Texts

  • In the second image, the person appears frustrated, intensely focused on the device, and cut-off from the world around them. It shows a reader who is singularly absorbed in a text, almost to the exclusion of everything else. Imagine reading a suspenseful thriller novel late at night in a quiet room - your sole focus is on the plot, and you're disconnected from the world outside the story.