Multimodality and Systemic Functional Analysis

Abstract

Multimodality is the study of how multiple communication modes (e.g., language, gesture, and proxemics; language, image, and layout) combine to make meaning. Multimodality transcends and draws on a variety of disciplines and theories. One approach to theorizing multimodality builds upon the principles of systemic functional (SF) theory. One key aspect of SF theory, which has been widely applied in studies of multimodality, is the observation that there are three broad kinds of meaning (called metafunctions) in language. The three metafunctions of systemic functional multimodal discourse analysis (SF‐MDA) appear as representational, interactional, and compositional meanings in multimodal discourse. Researchers have used SF‐MDA to examine meaning in two dimensions (on page and screen), three dimensions (in physical space), and across time (in music and film).

The Representation of Counterproductive Religious Values in a Selected Chapter of an Indonesian ELT Textbook: Systemic Functional Multimodal Discourse Analysis

“…It draws upon Halliday's (Halliday, M. A.K., and Mattissen, 2014) socio-semiotic theory, also known as the systemic functional (SF) theory (Knox & Hao, 2022;Martin & White, 2005;O'Halloran, 2008b) in which he posits that language is a social semiotic resource for "meaning-making" (Ballard, 1980) and that it is functional, semantic, contextual and semiotic. Though the theory primarily focuses on language or text as an object of analysis (Knox & Hao, 2022), it applies to non-linguistic resources, as 'text' is a metafunctional construct comprised of ideational, interpersonal, and textual meanings (Halliday & Matthiessen, 2014;T.…”

Topical Theme Depicted in the Speech of Indonesian Minister of the State Secretariat

“…The language used for specific purposes, such as political communication, may vary from the language used in other fields, such as education. Using purpose as a comparison criterion reveals the that language of political communication is not only complex in its construction but also multidimensional in its pragmatic meanings (Castro Seixas, 2021;Davis, 2019;Drămnescu, 2016;Knox & Hao, 2022;D. Zhang, 2021).…”