2016 | 23
Recent Submissions
- ArticleRoman Jakobson Revisited. The Multimodal Trailer EventKrebs, Heike (2016) , S. 17-29Taking Roman Jakobson’s functions of language as a starting point, this pa-per develops a multimodal application of Jakobson’s linguistic theory in or-der to describe the communicative functions of the trailer for the first James Bond film, DR. NO (1962). The trailer as the main advertising instrument within film marketing seems especially apt for this aim, given both its modal com-plexity and clear functional purpose of selling the film. Yet, contrary to the assumption of the conative function being most central in a trailer, a closer analysis on the micro level of the different visual, auditory and filmic modes a trailer offers shows that the expressive and ref-erential functions are more elaborate and, thus, predominant. Other functions, such as the phatic, poetic and metalingual/metamodal functions stay in the background, still being central in that they provide the viewer an aesthetic and exciting viewing event and therefore a possible reason for wanting to watch the advertised film itself.
- ArticleEditorialSachs-Hombach, Klaus (2016) , S. 3-4
- Article»Come, Stanley, let’s find the story!« On the Ludic and the Narrative Mode of Computer Games in THE STANLEY PARABLEHerte, Michelle (2016) , S. 30-42The concept of multimodality, originating from social semiotics, appears to be a very promising one for computer game research, as the relatively new medium employs many different modes on many different levels. This quality of computer games may even be a main reason for the difficulties of digital game studies to properly define their object, prominently exemplified by the notorious dispute between ludologists and narratologists. By now there is the consensus that the terms narrative and ludic do not define computer games as such, but rather describe two of many modes which coexist in most games and are generally of equal importance (cf. NEITZEL/NOHR 2010: 419), just as the modes of human communication are described as coexisting and equal by social semiotics (cf. KRESS 2010). While the respective forms and functions of the ludic as well as the narrative mode have already been discussed elsewhere (cf. THON 2007), this paper focuses on the self-reflexive potential of their specific combination and conflation as it is applied in THE STANLEY PARABLE (Galactic Café, 2013). This game is implicitly built upon the aforementioned consensus and the conflict that preceded it, as it exposes the problematic combination of coherent narra-tion with a player’s freedom of choice. It takes advantage of the different lev-els of representation and interpretation involved in playing computer games (cf. SCHRÖTER/THON 2014) to put common ludic and narrative game conventions into the guise of the respective other mode, thus undermining player expectations as well as challenging player behavior. I discuss those self-reflexive operations using two prominent examples from the game that pre-sent, firstly, a narrative ending sequence in disguise of an (insoluble) ludic challenge in the game’s countdown room, and, secondly, a parody of the often used promise of narratively relevant player choice in the player-avatar’s presumed quest for the game’s story. Both sequences highlight different functions of the narrative and the ludic mode, while making them blur into one another on the edges between the game’s representation and the play-er’s interpretation.
- ArticleDas Unrecht der Bildnutzung. Eine neue Form der Zensur? Bemerkungen aus der Peripherie des wissenschaftlichen Publizierens über das Spannungsfeld von Staats- und Gemeinbesitz und die Kapitalisierung von öffentlichem Kulturgut zu Lasten der AutorenReitinger, Franz (2016) , S. 43-54Frei nach dem Motto, man ist, was man tut, sei mir erlaubt, mich vorzustellen: ich gehe in Bibliotheken, lese Bücher, suche Archive auf, sehe Akten ein, sitze am Computer, tippe unvollständige Sätze in sogenannte ›Dokumente‹ und korrespondiere. Wenn alles gut geht, wird daraus am Ende ein Buch. Man könnte an Bücher gewiss auch anders herangehen: denken Sie nur an Krimis, Reiseführer oder Kochbücher. Nun habe ich mich aber einer ganz speziellen Aufgabe verschrieben: der Erforschung von Bildern. In meinem nächsten Buch, so es ein nächstes geben wird, werde ich auf die Veräußerung eines heute verschollenen Porträtbestandes aus einem niederösterreichischen Landschloss zu sprechen kommen. Erstmals kann ich einige dieser Gemälde präsentieren und diese ihrem eigentlichen Herkunftsort zuordnen: einem Schloss in der Steiermark. Dass diese Bilder dort fehlen, ist bis heute nie-mandem aufgefallen. Damit wäre ich auch schon bei meinem Thema.
- ArticleDIE DA!?! Potentials of Pointing in Multimodal ContextsIhde, Tim (2016) , S. 5-16The following article focuses on complex pointing structures in multimodal contexts in the German music video DIE DA!?! by Die Fantastischen Vier. De-parting from the two-field-theory of Karl Bühler and the concept of multimodality by Ellen Fricke, these structures are described. ›Pointing words‹ (deictics) and nonverbal pointing structures in combination change the qualities of their references. The potentials and problems of multimodal pointing complexes, which emerge through the interaction of the visual level, sounds, and editing, are different from these of their elements. This article describes how these complexes work and that they are more than just the sum of their parts.
- ArticleDas bildphilosophische Stichwort. Vorbemerkungohne Autor (2016) , S. 55-55
- ArticleDas bildphilosophische Stichwort 7: ÄsthesiologieLessing, Hans-Ulrich (2016) , S. 56-59
- ArticleDas bildphilosophische Stichwort 8: BildhermeneutikSachsse, Rolf (2016) , S. 60-64
- ArticleDas bildphilosophische Stichwort 9: Bild in der WissenschaftMößner, Nicola (2016) , S. 65-86
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