Dimensions of Materiality
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John A. Bateman
Abstract
The field of multimodality currently faces a double challenge: first, the datasets drawn on for bolstering argumentation need to grow in order to better support empirical investigation; and second, the communicative situations and artifacts addressed by the field are themselves becoming ever more complex. These demands raise a multitude of issues with methodological consequences for the everyday practice of analysing multimodal phenomena. In this chapter, it is argued that a thorough semiotic re-engagement with the nature of materiality and the distinct kinds of traces that materialities can support offers a powerful analytic technique for securing access to data regardless of how multimodally complex such data become. The chapter construes its account of materiality as an ‘external language of description’ in the sense of Legitimation Code Theory, by which analysis of multimodal data can proceed without presupposing the very theoretical categories for which empirical support is being sought. Several examples are discussed and the relevance of a more finely articulated notion of materiality for drawing connections between superficially quite different communicative situations demonstrated.
Abstract
The field of multimodality currently faces a double challenge: first, the datasets drawn on for bolstering argumentation need to grow in order to better support empirical investigation; and second, the communicative situations and artifacts addressed by the field are themselves becoming ever more complex. These demands raise a multitude of issues with methodological consequences for the everyday practice of analysing multimodal phenomena. In this chapter, it is argued that a thorough semiotic re-engagement with the nature of materiality and the distinct kinds of traces that materialities can support offers a powerful analytic technique for securing access to data regardless of how multimodally complex such data become. The chapter construes its account of materiality as an ‘external language of description’ in the sense of Legitimation Code Theory, by which analysis of multimodal data can proceed without presupposing the very theoretical categories for which empirical support is being sought. Several examples are discussed and the relevance of a more finely articulated notion of materiality for drawing connections between superficially quite different communicative situations demonstrated.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Preface and Acknowledgements V
- Contents VII
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Part I: Introduction
- Empirical Multimodality Research: The State of Play 1
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Part II: Charting Paths for Empirical Research: Theoretical and Methodological Reflections
- Dimensions of Materiality 35
- From Data to Patterns 65
- Thinking in Action 91
- Computational Approaches for the Interpretation of Image-Text Relations 109
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Part III: Empirical Inroads: Case Studies and Results
- “I can’t see why you’re laughing”: Multimodal Analysis of Emotionalized Political Debate 141
- A Corpus-Based Approach to Color, Shape, and Typography in Logos 159
- Pixel Surgery and the Doctored Image 187
- Multimodal Discourse Analysis Based on the GeM Model 211
- Conventions in How Korean Films Mean 237
- An Empirical Multimodal Approach to Open-World Video Games 259
- List of Contributors 281
- Index 285
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Preface and Acknowledgements V
- Contents VII
-
Part I: Introduction
- Empirical Multimodality Research: The State of Play 1
-
Part II: Charting Paths for Empirical Research: Theoretical and Methodological Reflections
- Dimensions of Materiality 35
- From Data to Patterns 65
- Thinking in Action 91
- Computational Approaches for the Interpretation of Image-Text Relations 109
-
Part III: Empirical Inroads: Case Studies and Results
- “I can’t see why you’re laughing”: Multimodal Analysis of Emotionalized Political Debate 141
- A Corpus-Based Approach to Color, Shape, and Typography in Logos 159
- Pixel Surgery and the Doctored Image 187
- Multimodal Discourse Analysis Based on the GeM Model 211
- Conventions in How Korean Films Mean 237
- An Empirical Multimodal Approach to Open-World Video Games 259
- List of Contributors 281
- Index 285
