multimodality, multisemiotics and multiliteracies

The terms multimodality, multisemiotics and multiliteracies are defined by Williamson as "the many ways and contexts in which people experience communication and come to develop understandings".   Multimodality particularly describes the multiple ways we experience everyday life through the senses.  Multisemiotics is a term used to define the many meanings that are suggested by these modes, and the different connotations we assign to them.  Multiliteracies refers to the ability to understand media and also to produce through it.  While these theories may be new, they do not describe new ideas.

Whay everyday situations might one encounter multimodality and multiliteracies?  It's hard not to!  Everything from film, to comics, to the internet, to video games, to music offer literature in its various forms and is understood according to one's own culture, personal experiences and histories.

McCloud's text does an excellent job of combining linguistic, visual, spatial, gestural and audio modes of communication.  The linguistic and visual modes  are obvious components of a cartoon (words and pictures).  Spatial qualities are evident in how the cartoon is laid out on the page, how the illustrator balances words with pictures, and even by the area between frames.  Gestural characteristics are displayed by the way ideas or sentiments are emphasized, either by words or through the drawings.  The audio mode would refer to the running voice in one's head from reading or simply analyzing the cartoon.

While these ideas are not necessarily new, it's interesting to study them as it pertains to our texts.