A MULTIMODAL ANALYSIS OF THE USE OF ENGLISH, THAI AND IMAGES IN MEANING MAKING ON THAI MAGAZINE COVERS

Abstract

This research work studied the use of English, Thai and images on Thai magazine covers in meaning making on 24 Thai magazine covers (Praew) by analyzing language use with Systemic Functional Linguistics and Multimodal Analysis, examining the pattern of language mixing and tracing how image and language worked together to make meaning through the lens of Multimodal Analysis. It was found that Praew magazine covers made meanings in three layers including discourse semantics, lexico-grammar and display. Each of these layers saw language, language mixing and image-language intersemiosis as sources of meanings.The discourse semantics level saw the use of elaboration and extension for textual meaning, and synomyny and repetition for experiential meaning most. These were also where language mixing occurred most. Lexico-image cross referencing appeared 25 times mostly between the cover figure and the main cover-figure-explanation sub-headline. On the lexico-grammar level, language was manifested mostly in the forms of complement (mood structure), goal (transitivity structure) and rheme (theme structure). Again, these were also where language mixing occurred. Semiotic metaphor was used 26 times, majorly between the cover figure and part of the main headline. On the display level, the typographic features of typeface and color were mostly chosen to create unity (textual meaning), while font size was the main choice for salience (interpersonal meaning). The experiential meaning was based on denotation and connotation. Denotation has been identified to tell the story, advertise and set the theme of the cover and magazine. Connotation mainly involved the choice of language use, where Thai connoted national unity and respect and English the international flair and sense of quality. Language mixing was in the form of language-script combination in each micro text (headline). The most frequently occurring pattern of mix was ER, ET, TT (English in Roman script, English in Thai script, Thai in Thai script) Homospatiality showed up 4 times between graphics and part of main cover-figure-explanation headline, graphics and main cover-figure-explanation headline and graphics (encasement) and advertisements.The patterns in the three layers above implied that the magazine aimed at communicating while saving space, maximizing understanding, looking cosmopolitan, retaining Thainess and being informal.