A Comparative Study Of Multimodal Discourse In The Promos For Hosting Olympics By Beijing And London

With the rapid development of multimedia technologies, the dominantposition of language in communication declines gradually. Non-verbal modes havebeen widely adopted in discourses. As a result, multimodal discourse analysis isput forward by scholars at home and abroad as a method to study discoursesinvolving more than one mode. This thesis, based on the theory of visual grammar,conducts multimodal discourse analysis of two promo videos for hosting Olympics,one by Beijing and the other by London. Through a combination of qualitativeanalysis and quantitative analysis, two promos are studied comparatively in threeaspects: representational meanings, interactive meanings and compositionalmeanings. Results are concluded in seven aspects as follows:In terms of representational meanings, results are concluded in two aspects:narrative process and conceptual process.(1) Both promos involve athletes inaction processes and the respected in reaction processes. However, Beijing promoalso takes children in action processes while London promo takes disabled andblack people in such processes.(2) Both promos adopt historical buildings andleading industries to form symbolic processes. However, only Beijing promoadopts traditional elements and doves to indicate symbolic meaning.In terms of interactive meaning, results are concluded in four aspects: contact,social distance, perspective and modality.(3) Both promos shoot facialexpressions in demand acts and from frontal angles. However, Beijing promo takescommon people in offer acts but London promo takes celebrities in such acts.(4)Both promos adopt changing shots to take pictures of sports scenes. However,Beijing promo takes traditional elements in close shot while London promo takesthem in long shot; sceneries are often taken from high angle in Beijing promo, but mainly shot from eye-level angle in London promo; Beijing promo evenexclusively shoots athletes winning Olympic gold medals closely with switchingcolor saturation.(5) In both promos, high daily life is shot with high colorsaturation; while London promo exclusively adopts de-contextualization to depicteye contacts.In terms of composition meaning, results are concluded in three aspects:information value, salience and framing.(6) Both promos place their historicalbuildings in center-margin direction and highlight facial expressions. However,Beijing promo shows the Dancing Beijing seal at the top while London promodemonstrates subscripts at the bottom. Besides, Beijing promo highlights commonpeople while London promo the celebrities.(7) Few framing devices are includedin London promo but none in Beijing promo.Above all, similarities between the two promos result from common pursuitof Olympic spirits and common willingness to demonstrate their historicalachievements as well as social improvements. While distinctions are rooted indifferent ways of expressing feelings, different historical courses as well asdifferent social values and ideologies.The research of this thesis serves great significance in studying multimodaldiscourse analysis and Olympic promos. It offers people a new view to interpretOlympic promos, as well as the culture, society and ideology unveiled by thevideos. The new view also contributes to the further production of promo videos.