Typesetting study task

Idea No.1

Basing the typesetting on a family tree.

Using a grid to divide up the page into four columns and multiple rows to create a baseline for the text and also sections to order information, which in this case was family members.

Lines that spoke of the father are aligned in the furthest left column, lines that mentioned the mother in the far right and lines referring to the sister are placed center left, (to be more towards the other female). Lines spoken of Pip (the narrator) are directly centered.

Through using each family members name to create the text’s layout, the names are enlarged to create hierarchy. This is also done with the title and is emphasized with how these words, ‘Great Expectations’ stand alone as the text is spaced multiple lines below.

The line ‘and never saw any likeness of either of them’ was crossed out to visualized this idea.

“The shape of the letters on my father’s grave, gave me an odd idea that he was a square, stout, dark man, with curly black hair.” Taking the word square and using it in the typesetting was also done by running the text along the sides of a square that within it, includes the lines spoken about the father.

The last paragraph talks not of the family but of a river, therefore separating this piece from the text that speaks of the family was an initial decision, which lead to placing it very low on the page as it if it is a river. Putting the text in italic was done to give it a more water-like personality.

Idea. No2.

Basing the typesetting on the idea of ‘Great Expectations’.

This idea was based upon the way I reacted to the title mainly. ‘Expectations’ can be something stressful and unclear as to whether they will be achieved. In light of this I experimented with the tracking and kerning of the text, attempting to make it as stressful and unclear to read.

I took part of the text that spoke about the narrator’s mother and father ‘and never saw any likeness of either of them’ and singled it out. This was in reaction to how ‘expectations’ often can come from our parents.

The title is placed centred to focus the attention on the purpose of this typesetting. With the word ‘Great’ making the word ‘expectations’ appear small. This was done to reiterate the idea that although they can be thought to be big and ‘great’ the reality and fear of them can be them being small.