Vernacular Meaning Making

Abstract

The outcome of an audience study supports theories stating that stories are a primary means by which we make sense of our experiences over time. Empirical examples of narrative impact are presented in which specific fiction film scenes condense spectators' lives, identities, and beliefs. One conclusion is that spectators test the emotional realism of the narrative for greater significance, connecting diegetic fiction experiences with their extra-diegetic world in their quest for meaning, self and identity. The 'banal' notion of the mediatization of religion theory is questioned as unsatisfactory in the theoretical context of individualized meaning-making processes. As a semantically negatively charged concept, it is problematic when analyzing empirical examples of spectators' use of fictional narratives, especially when trying to characterize the idiosyncratic and complex interplay between spectators' fiction emotions and their testing of mediated narratives in an exercise to find moral significance in extra-filmic life. Instead, vernacular meaning-making is proposed.

Robot Death and Human Grief in Films: Qualitative Study

“…We then looked to films to provide examples and evidence in support of our hypotheses. This methodology was selected based on our understanding that a film's success in the eyes of its audience typically requires a significant degree of “emotional realism” (Alhayek, 2017; Axelson, 2015; Pouliot & Cowen, 2007). Consequently, if we accept that the relevant film scenes—in order to evoke an emotional response from the viewer—must reflect a realistic development of character and plot, it then becomes possible to infer from these scenes how a human might someday respond to a robot in a similar, real-life scenario.…”

“…attachment theory, Freudian theory, etc.) (Alhayek, 2017; Axelson, 2015; Pouliot & Cowen, 2007). Filmmakers aim to produce an emotional effect on their audience—and this is especially true when it comes to tragic scenes, such as those discussed in this study.…”

“…The viewer's ability to engage with a film on this level is often dependent upon the film's emotional realism (or psychological realism ). This concept refers to a representational quality in a film that is felt to be “true-to-life” by viewers in terms of: (1) the enactment of subjective experiences and (2) the development of social relationship (or identification) with film characters (Alhayek, 2017; Axelson, 2015; “Emotional Realism,” 2011). Thus, it is possible to extrapolate from a filmic depiction to a real-life situation, in that the way a film's character reacts to a robot's loss may act as a visual/auditory trigger which evokes a similar emotional reaction in the viewer (Pouliot & Cowen, 2007).…”