Abstract
“We set boundaries, we live with boundaries, we push boundaries, and we challenge and break boundaries” (Neumann et al., 2017: 9). Linguistics is no exception, with the book reviewed here being a good example of what makes Neumann et al.’s argument so convincing. This volume is also a welcome addition to recent publications on the application of systemic functional linguistics (SFL) as an “appliable linguistics” (Halliday, 2008: 7). Taken together, Patrick Kiernan’s book covers wide-ranging case studies by bringing together disciplinary perspectives and various approaches like narratology, positioning theory, sociolinguistics, and SFL. Experienced researchers working on functional linguistics, semiotics, multimodality, applied linguistics, discourse analysis (DA), and media studies would find it a valuable reference.
This 12-chapter book is more of a DA nature, where Kiernan meticulously walks readers through the relationship between language, identity, and the media. It is worthy of note that the book is characterized by several distinctive features as follows. First, major theories within the school of SFL are taken in Kiernan’s analyses; for example, Halliday’s three metafunctions (i.e. ideational, interpersonal, and textual), Martin’s appraisal theory, and Mattheissen’s registerial cartography. Chapter 5 concerns interpersonal identities in a cycling forum, through an exploration of linguistic resources such as pronoun use, noun phrase, and narrative evocations. This is a significant study in that Kiernan gives readers, particularly novice researchers, a heads up to ethnical concerns in data collection. Chapter 6 examines how forum posts achieve textual cohesion, by researching one of the communicative resources—hyperlinks. More specifically, in addition to images/photographs, four more links are identified along with examples: quotation, smiley icons, URL links, and “incidental links.” Chapter 2 applies Martinian model of evaluation and Labovian model of narrative to analyze a cyclist Mark Cavendish’s identity as a sporting celebrity, with examples from his autobiography. In this chapter, more striking is Cavendish’s reluctance to expose his experience of failure. An example of employing the model of registerial categories comes from Chapter 11, in which Kiernan helps readers understand how interpersonal relationships between the presenters and viewers vary across different videos on the GCN Show.
Second, the multimodal-semiotic approach to media discourse is highlighted in several chapters. Specifically, Chapter 3 gives an account of Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong’s apology and contrition on the Oprah Winfrey show, where he publicly admitted his use of banned PEDs. Readers are shown how Armstrong failed to win back his public’s approval through Kiernan’s multimodal analysis (including gesture, facial expression, body language, music, voiceovers, and video montage). A comparative multisemiotic study of two corporate websites—Shimano and Surly—is carried out in Chapter 8, aimed at figuring out their different brand identities. This is achieved by particularly exploring user manuals, macrostructures of homepage design, and the semiotic interrelations among text, image, and video resources. Chapter 10 fascinatingly looks at the ways in which the slogan marginal gains “can be picked up and interpreted semiotically as a resource for evoking corporate identity” (p. 254), in the context of several branding videos related to the Team Sky.
Third, this volume broadens the traditional text-oriented view of genre, by considering diverse media genres and visual forms. For instance, interviews, manga, forum posts, homepages, videos, and online reviews. Chapter 4 first stands out from this perspective, as it reminds readers of a less researched genre in multimodal studies. Kiernan, by interacting the visual and verbal resources, probes fictional identities in the Japanese manga series Yowamushi Pedal. Set in Japan, this manga depicts that Onoda Sakamichi, together with his friends and rivals, engaged in an inter-high-school road race competition. In Chapter 7, Kiernan, referring to five features derived from Bakhtin’s notion of carnival, presents a study on trolling, a faked identity Franz, in the online cycling forum. Those unfamiliar with trolling can refer to Christine, Juliette and Marjolijn (2018), which provides extensive coverage of this phenomenon.
Personally, I think Kiernan’s discussion in these two chapters adds significance to the volume by calling attention to a less-explored topic in DA, namely, the fictional identity. Chapter 9 switches to consumers’ positive/negative reviews collected from the Brooks and Wiggle websites of Brooks saddles. Kiernan approaches this in terms of his three-dimension model aligned with the meta-functional principle: (1) ideational meaning focusing on attributes, longevity, appearance, and esthetics of saddles, (2) interpersonal positioning, characterized by rhetorical questions, the use of you, and negative evaluations, and (3) textual narrative structure including saddle search and saddle story. What makes this chapter as well as Chapters 5 and 6 illuminating, to my mind, is that Kiernan nicely supplements SFL theories of Halliday and Martin, rather than directly referencing their theoretical modeling.
Fourth, further directions related to this ongoing project are provided. For instance, Kiernan in Chapter 12 reminds the reader of several fascinating topics. Particularly, I appreciate the attention given to other new media like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Blog in future research.
In addition to the features aforementioned, there is also much to be praised about this volume. First, a number of terminologies with full explanation are offered for newcomers’ better understandings. Chapter 1 is such a good case in point. Second, although Kiernan has made it clear that his “methodology is unapologetically qualitative” (p. 299), he adds value to his analysis, notably in Chapter 7, by considering the corpus-linguistic approach such as keyword search. Overall, Kiernan’s book with engaging style and significant insights deserves our time.