English UK » Swedish | 46 [forty-six] | In the discotheque

46 [fyrtiosex] På diskoteket

Is this seat taken?	Är den här platsen ledig?
May I sit with you?	Får jag sätta mig hos er?
Sure.	Gärna.
How do you like the music?	Vad tycker ni om musiken?
A little too loud.	Litet för högljudd.
But the band plays very well.	Men bandet spelar väldigt bra.
Do you come here often?	Är ni ofta här?
No, this is the first time.	Nej, det är första gången.
I’ve never been here before.	Jag har aldrig varit här förut.
Would you like to dance?	Dansar ni?
Maybe later.	Senare kanske.
I can’t dance very well.	Jag kan inte dansa så bra.
It’s very easy.	Det är mycket enkelt.
I’ll show you.	Jag ska visa er.
No, maybe some other time.	Nej, hellre en annan gång.
Are you waiting for someone?	Väntar ni på någon?
Yes, for my boyfriend.	Ja, på min vän.
There he is!	Där borta kommer han ju!

The language of pictures

A German saying goes: A picture says more than a thousand words. That means that pictures are often understood faster than speech. Pictures can also convey emotions better. Because of this, advertising uses a lot of pictures. Pictures function differently than speech. They show us several things simultaneously and in their totality. That means that the whole image together has a certain effect. With speech, considerably more words are needed. But images and speech go together. We need speech in order to describe a picture. By the same token, many texts are first understood through images. The relationship between images and speech is being studied by linguists. It also raises the question whether pictures are a language in their own right. If something is only filmed, we can look at the images. But the message of the film isn't concrete. If an image is meant to function as speech, it must be concrete. The less it shows, the clearer its message. Pictograms are a good example of this. Pictograms are simple and clear pictorial symbols. They replace verbal language, and as such are a form of visual communication. Everyone knows the pictogram for ‘no smoking’ for example. It shows a cigarette with a line through it. Images are becoming even more important due to globalization. But you also have to study the language of images. It is not understandable worldwide, even though many think so. Because our culture influences our understanding of images. What we see is dependent on many different factors. So some people don't see cigarettes, but only dark lines.