The how of communication by way of speech acts and genre. Not a focus on representation or meaning but ACT. We're looking at genre as a resource for doing things w semiotic material. The genre is a resource. A template for doing communicative things.
- Discourse is resource for structuring content - Genre is a resource for structuring interaction through which content is communicated - Style is a resource of manner. More in chap 7
## speech acts
Performatives and constatives
Every speech act combines - locutionary act - illocutionary act - perloctionary act - effect on receiver
### Speech acts are dialogic - Halliday
This revisits the exercise in reading images
Four basic interactions - Offering info - demanding info - offering goods and services - demanding ditto
But many different kinds of statements w/o linguistic categories. Realized by features - linguistic and other. 119.
> Recall that semiotic work includes cataloging these kinds of things.
Summary p 119
## Multimodal communicative acts 120
Focus at this point is on image/text hybrids to DO things rather than just represent or mean. - explain - instruct - warn - persuade - call - summon - promise - reject - demand - ...
hybrid speech acts such as poster etc. We look at these as ONE ACT. We don't divide acts into image and language in everyday action. So, use the same idea here: see them as multimodal communicative acts. A combination of features. Ex p 121
## Genre and discourse
We have a genre when a text has characteristics we can ID in other similar texts. Review p 123..
In semiotics, content is dealt w/ in Discourse. Genre looks at texts in terms of what they typically DO. Functions. Selling, providing info, but also combined w medium: mag ad, TV news. Look at - The actions - agents - situation - where - when - ...
## Genre as staged process
Method p 127. Analysis involves creating a kind of map, as demonstrated. p 127ff.
Applicability 128ff
genre is not neutral but culturally specific forms/types that realize specific power relations. 128. As such, they linger, are hard to displace.
## Genre and globalization
Cosmo has not only a look that identifies it as a kind of mag, but a genre that identifies and preserve - enact and perpetrate - the power relationships. Providing advice about beauty et al, by advertising and providing products.
A genre provides a template that legitimates the interests and purposes of the user, the user who is by using the template engaged in those purposes and interests. Using a genre, then, imbues user in predefined functions and interactions. Not neutral. Comes with semiotic strings.
## and so - implications from this chapter
It is not the specifics of the interaction but the commonalities of the practices, as seen in genres, that enact and maintain power structures. 137. This makes genres artifacts that articulate power. Their use can be seen to enforce by-in to the standing power relations. So, a memo places the sender in functional relation to the target. It's within this framework that persuasion is going to be enacted.
Persuasion is placed as one function that is seen to occur in certain genres. Some genres, that is, are allow it, others may not. Doesn't mean it doesn't go on. Rather that it isn't seen in that genre. Eg: telephone book, perhaps.
## exercise
Choose a FAQ - try to find a real one rather than a bogus one. Create an analysis map by mapping the stages. Then interpret the analysis to consider the genre for patterns and power.
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/
Exercise 5, p 138. Discuss power relations enacted by questionnaires.