A Multimodal Discourse Analysis Of Title Sequences In Television Documentaries

With the development of science and technology, a variety of semiotic modes, such as images, colors, sounds and gestures are involved in information transfer, which breaks the traditional pattern that language is the unique means of communication. Therefore, the object of discourse analysis is no longer restricted to language texts in the field of linguistics. Roles of multimodality in meaning construction receive extensive attentions from scholars, among whom Kress, G. and van Leeuwen, T. put forward Visual Grammar that provides theoretical guidance for multimodal discourse analysis. In addition, it is a trend for multimodal discourse analysis that the research objects change from static discourses to dynamic discourses.As dynamic multimodal discourses, title sequences regroup the visual and auditory elements of feature film in a planned way, making a first impression on the audience. The television documentary Wild China is the first program broadcast in CCTV documentary channel, getting increasing popularity worldwide. Its title sequences can reflect the theme of the whole documentary and exchange sentiments with viewers, making viewers have expectations and interests in this documentary within a relatively short time. Most scholars have respectively probed into title sequences and documentaries from the aspect of esthetics and communication science. In this study, a multimodal discourse analysis of title sequences of Wild China is conducted in a linguistic way, which attempts to explore how multiple modes of title sequences work for meaning construction and attractive effects.Based on Kress and van Leeuwen’s Visual Grammar and Zhang Delu’s complementary relationship of modes, this study analyzes twenty-eight shots in title sequences of Wild China from the perspective of multimodal discourse analysis and makes further exploration of modal integration by adopting qualitative methods.Through comprehensive analysis, the results are concluded as the following:Firstly, title sequences of Wild China can realize representational meaning, interpersonal meaning and compositional meaning by applying multiple modes for the sake of meaning construction. To be specific, the adoption of multimodality is conducive to representing ecological regime and national customs, reflecting the theme of ecological protection and cultural transmission, constructing complete discourses as well as enhancing viewers’ participation. Secondly, different modes, for instance, images, colors, texts and sound in title sequences of Wild China complement each other, facilitating a more complete expression of meaning. Thirdly, by means of realizing three meanings and complementarity, multiple modes in title sequences of television documentary can reflect themes, establish interaction, set up suspense and highlight key points so as to appeal to the audience within a short time.This study verifies the feasibility of Visual Grammar and complementary relationship theory in analyzing dynamic discourses. It not only broadens the scope of multimodal discourse analysis but also helps improve the audience’ multiliteracy. In the meantime, this study provides a reference for the production of title sequences of documentary so as to increase audience rating and enhance the competitiveness of Chinese television documentary.