We've all heard the old adage, "Don't judge a book by its cover". It's a well worn phrase, one whose comfortable perimeters can be extended to any given situation. It's reassuring, and it reminds us to keep our perceptions from fully forming until we know what resides within a person, situation, or work of fiction rather than just what composes the outside or exterior layer. In reality, however, most actual books are judged almost exclusively by the contents of their jackets. The average customer wandering through a bookstore without any particular read in mind is naturally going to gravitate toward books that appeal to them in a visual sense. The aesthetic draw of a cover is the first hook for a reader's interest, and covers are seen even before the reader has a chance to skim the summary on the back. Therefore the cover must be powerful enough to not only catch their eye, but also to direct the extent of their investigation into the book. It is often that the fate of a work of literature is decided by the ability of the content of its cover to attract an audience. Many publishers capitalize on this trend by designing the covers of the books that they publish in the way that they think will best appeal to their chosen demographic. Together the typography, imagery, and overall spacial design of book jackets are carefully arranged to please and intrigue the reader.
Although the effort by publishers to put forth books that are visually appealing to the literate audience is a natural one, it also a way of manipulating consumers by tapping into the way that the subconscious filters images. We respond to visual cues unknowingly, and make our selections with an entire level of consideration left unacknowledged. As Christine Rosen states in 'The Image Culture',
"Images do not necessarily lead to meaning; the information they convey does not always lead to knowledge."
For books, this is true in two different senses. The first is that the images on the cover of a book can sometimes obscure or distill its contents down to the very basic essence of what is has to offer. The second is that if we base the choice of what we read primarily on the that very basic essence, the shape of what we know and learn will remain controlled by first glances and initial impressions. How many books have you overlooked because the front cover just didn't 'speak' to you? As Rosen points out, we have become preoccupied with format rather than content in such a way that the repercussions have had a domino effect on not only how we process information but also what we choose to process in the first place.
