Study Task 08 - Design Principles - Typesetting

Re-typeset Lewis Carroll's - A Mouses Tale using a postmodern approach and a modernist approach. Modernist Typographic styles are typically very ordered and precise with little room for character, meaning the type hardly ever has a personality of its own. Modernist typography is set to create order, legibility and clarity, not to convey meanings through its physical appearance. These are the elements that you will commonly find in modernist typography: - Grids, Margins and Columns - Standardised Typefaces - Consistent type Size & relationship - Control over orphans, widows & rivers - Legibility and Readability Post-modern typography on the other hand is very different. Words and phrases are set to leap out at you from a page with their own individual personalities and messages. Colour, layout, size and style all play a part in expressing the message of the type; not just the meaning it is spelling out. It is about communication and as David Carson puts it: 'Just because something is legible doesn't mean it communicates, and more importantly, doesn't mean it communicates the right thing.These are the elements that you will commonly find in post-modern typography: - Breaking the rules - Expressionism - Concrete Poetry Concrete poetry, pattern poetry or shape poetry is a form of post-modernism where the poem physical takes the shape of elements relating to the poem. The typographical arrangement of words is as important in conveying the intended effect as the conventional elements of the poem, such as meaning or words, rhythm, rhyme and so on. For study task 8 we were given Lewis Carol's poem, 'The Mouse's Tale' to typeset in both of these typographic styles, practically exploring the ways in which they differ.  For the modernist approach I kept the writing flushed left, to reduce the stress on the readers eye, allowing it to travel back to the same place at the start of each new line. I then considered line length. I didn't want the lines to be too long or short as both of these factors can effect readability however I also needed to be aware of the natural breaks in the content of the poem and keep my eye on the rough edge of poem (on the right hand side).   In the end I finished up with quite short line lengths, however the overall appearance was still neat, legible and clear to read. I had to also watch out for orphans and widows when rearranging the text to fit within the lines. It is clear I had some difficulty in the 2nd/3rd lines of the poem, not sure whether to keep as one line or split in to two as you can see. I found the concrete poetry / post-modern approach much easier to typeset, though that too came with some difficulties. I used the approach of filling the shape of a mouse with the text from the poem and added a head to make it actually look like a mouse. I think it worked quite well is terms of appearance however legibility and readability is somewhat reduced. Kerning on the tail was also an issue and keeping the spacing between the lines consistent was an issue. I