Chapter 3: The Mechanics of Communication
What is Communication?
“A process whereby a communicator or sender directs a message through a medium/channel with some effect.”
Or
“A social activity, where people in a given culture create and exchange meanings in response to the reality they experience.”
Process School vs. Semiotic School
The Communication Process
1. You; The Communicator (origin of message)
2. The Message (code and encoded thought)
3. The Channel/Medium (carrier, means and media)
4. The Destination (intended destination and decoding)
The Identity of the Illustrator:
§ Age
§ Place
§ Time
§ Habitat
§ Social Context
§ Interests
§ Dominant Culture
§ Family Group
§ Education
§ Personality
Sign = Signifier + Signified
Langue: a system of differences between signs
Parole: individual acts of speech
Peirce Model
o Representamen (the sign)
o Object (that which the sign represents)
o Interpretant (the “proper significate effect”)
Types of Signs
Ø Icon (resembles object)
Ø Symbol (culturally agreed upon meaning, arbitrary connection to object)
Ø Index (physical connection to object)
Elements in Visual Systems
vSetting
vCostume
vCharacter
vComposition
vColor
vProperties
vBody Language
vDrama
vSequential Narratives
vMetaphor
vAllegory
vHumor
Types of Media
ü Presentational (face, voice, body)
ü Representational (writing, drawing, painting)
ü Mechanical (press, radio, television)
