Betsy’s Blog

Kress Overview

Music, the visual and other modes have shifted increasingly from forms of communication to means of expression, taking them out of the realm of theory in school curricula to special activity

The landscape of semiotics is changing–language must be re-thought as multi-modal

Mode, Materiality, and Medium:

–”literate” Western societies have placed a great deal of emphasis on a combination of visual and auditory semiotics in engaging with the world

On Materiality:

–What is the material “stuff” we use to represent our semiotic world? How do societies develop that “stuff” to articulate representations? What are alternatives to the dominant visual/auditory forms of semiotics? ex. Braille

–Language represents a non-physical type of “materiality”

On Mode:

–”mode” represents the full range of representation and communication; ex. Graphology is a type of mode because not only does it use a physical surface that is marked (by etching, scratching, etc) by a physical substance, the material itself represents a representational system; thus, it has “meaning-making potential” (186)

–We are taught to think that language is a single, homogenous mode, but it is actually a “multi-modal system” (comprised of intonation, tone-of-voice, etc.)–a good example that demonstrates the multimodality of language is sign language

On Medium: (Transmission and Dissemination)

–ex. in the case of speech, the medium is the air, then the electric current, then radio waves, then back to the air

Multimodality:

1) No text exists in a single mode

2) Some texts and objects live in a mode other than language

–2 examples of multimodality–a bottle of mineral water and an 18th century Sevres china spoon-tray

Potentials and limitations of semiotic modes:

principle of effibility–a natural language can express anything that can be thought

Different cultures use different materials and may have different modes

Language is not the only fully articulate mode of communication–ex. drawing of an elephant by a six-year-old girl–connects language and visual modes–there are intervisual link, there is a mode of communication and representation within the visual mode that does not depend on the mode of language

specialiasation–one representational mode used for a pedagogic purpose, to direct, remind, organize

Grammar and Multiliteracies:

semiotics of the visual space–ex. the way in which “read” a “page”, left-right, right-left, top-bottom, etc.

semiotics of states of affairs–interaction, focal elements, classification

semiotics of social relations of viewer and image–levels between the two represent power dynamics–hyperreal vs. surreal factuality

Commentary

Modes of communication and representation are born out of available “material” and the most effective and allowable means of transmitting that “material” based on social necessity. No mode is singular. The way we receive information is inextricably linked to different modes of transmission happening simultaneously. Technology is advancing at a rapid pace, and it is becoming harder for societies to readjust to these rapid changes. It is important for us to be aware of multimodal systems in order to become effectively “literate” to keep up with the pace of change. Awareness is key. We can “know” basically how a computer works, for instance, but if are not aware of the modal nuances of this technology and the importance of contributing to a larger, “collective knowledge,” we may be left further and further behind. In reading about multimodality, I couldn’t help but think about Stephen Hawking. There has been such an emphasis in the West (according to Kress) on monomodality, that someone like Hawking represents the human potential for multimodality.