Analyzing multimodal texts

Though the preceding sections each focused on a single mode, many of the examples in those sections were actually multimodal texts—texts that communicate with some combination of written words, static images, moving images, and sound. Look again at the brochure (part c of the figure). The discussion in the text focuses on how words are arranged in different types of documents, but the brochure includes images as well.

This section addresses analyzing different modes together in a multimodal composition, a task that is not as daunting as it may seem. On some level, you think about multimodal texts every day, simply because most texts are multimodal. Recipes and food packaging often include words and images. Television commercials usually include words, sound, and moving images. Even children’s books, with words and illustrations, are multimodal.

The questions in the chart can help you look critically at multimodal texts.

Analyzing multimodal texts

Related topics:

Genre: What kind of multimodal text is it?

Features: Which modes are represented? How do they function?

Purpose and audience: Why and for whom is the multimodal text created?

Meaning: What effect does the composition have on the viewer?