Modality & Composition

Kress and van Leeuwen begin their chapter on modality with a charge to society. They assert, "as members of society, we have to be able to make decisions on the basis of the information we receive, produce, and exchange" (p. 154). In addition, the authors tell us we have to trust some of the information we receive, and do so, to quite some extent, on the basis of modality markers in the message itself, on the basis of textual cues for what can be regarded as credible and what should be treated with circumspection. So who exactly creates these so-called modality markers? Or, in other words, who determines whether or not a message should or should not be trusted? Kress and van Leeuwen argue that modality markers have been "established by the groups within which we interact as relatively reliable guides to the truth or factuality of messages, and they have developed out of the central values, beliefs, and social needs of that group" (p. 154). I think Foucault fits in nicely here and his assertions of discourse community and the rules and expectations set forth by particular discourse communities.

Kress and van Leeuwen provide a definition for modality. They assert, "The term modality comes from linguistics and refers to the truth value or credibility of (linguistically realized) statements about the world" (p. 155). In regards to visual communication, the authors discuss how visuals represent people, places, and things as though they are real, as though they actually exist in this way, or as though they do not--as though they are imaginings, fantasies, caricatures, etc. As with linguistics, modality judgements are social, dependent on what is considered real (or true, or sacred) in the social group for which the representation is primarily intended. An important point they also make is that reality is in the eye of the beholder. Or, what is regarded as real depends on how reality is defined by a particular social group. Once again, Foucault as well as Burke fit in nicely here. Your terministic screen determines how you view and interpret certain images, assertions, etc.

For example, take this image below. As a UNC grad, this strikes a chord with me and really hits home... and perhaps brings tears of joy to my eyes. However, this same image has the potential to mean absolutely nothing to other groups or invoke pure hatred from others.


Composition relates to the representational and interactive meanings of the image to each other through three interrelated systems: information value, salience, and framing. Information value is how the placement of elements endows them with the specific informational values attached to the various 'zones' of the image: left and right, top and bottom, center and margin. Salience deals with elements that are made to attract the viewer's attention to different degrees, as realized by such factors as placement in the foreground or background, relative size, contrasts in tonal value, differences in sharpness, etc. Framing is the presence or absence of framing devices (creating dividing lines or actual frame lines) that disconnect or connect elements of the image, signifying that they belong or do not belong together in some sense.