Professional Documents
Culture Documents
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Crditos desta disciplina
Coordenao
Coordenador UAB
Prof. Mauro Pequeno
Coordenador Adjunto UAB
Prof. Henrique Pequeno
Coordenador do Curso
Prof. Smia Alves Carvalho
Coordenador de Tutoria
Prof. Joo Tobias Lima Sales
Coordenador da Disciplina
Prof. Ronaldo Lima
Contedo
Autor da Disciplina
Prof. Maria Manolisa Nogueira Vasconcelos
Colaborador
Mcs. Roncalli Silva Maranho
Setor Tecnologias Digitais - STD
Coordenador do Setor
Prof. Henrique Sergio Lima Pequeno
Centro de Produo I - (Material Didtico)
Gerente: Ndia Maria Barone
Subgerente: Paulo Andr Lima / Jos Andr Loureiro
Transio Didtica
Dayse Martins Pereira
Elen Cristina Bezerra
Enoe Cristina
Ftima Silva Souza
Hellen Paula Pereira
Jos Adriano Oliveira
Karla Colares
Viviane S de Lima
Formatao
Camilo Cavalcante
Damis Iuri Garcia
Elilia Rocha
Emerson Mendes Oliveira
Francisco Ribeiro
Givanildo Pereira
Sued de Deus
Publicao
Joo Ciro Saraiva
Gerentes
Audiovisual: Andra Pinheiro
Desenvolvimento: Wellington Wagner Sarmento
Suporte: Paulo de Tarso Cavalcante
Design, Impresso e 3D
Andrei Bosco
Andr Lima Vieira
Eduardo Ferreira
Iranilson Pereira
Luiz Fernando Soares
Marllon Lima
Sumrio
Lesson 01: Text and Discourse................................................................................................................. 01
Topic 01: Text ........................................................................................................................................ 01
Topic 02: Discourse ............................................................................................................................... 05
Topic 03: Coherence .............................................................................................................................. 11
Lesson 02: Cohesion .................................................................................................................................. 17
Topic 01: Reference ............................................................................................................................... 17
Topic 02: Lexical Cohesion ................................................................................................................... 22
Topic 03: Conjunctions .......................................................................................................................... 27
Lesson 03: Intertextuality......................................................................................................................... 36
Topic 01: Defining ................................................................................................................................. 36
Topic 02: Explicit And Implicit Intertextuality...................................................................................... 40
Topic 03: Parody .................................................................................................................................... 44
Lesson 04: Genre and Discourse .............................................................................................................. 49
Topic 01: Defining and Exemplifying Genre ......................................................................................... 49
Topic 02: Genre: Types and Characteristics Part I ............................................................................. 59
Topic 03: Genre: Types and Characteristics Part II ............................................................................ 65
Lesson 05: Implied Meaning .................................................................................................................... 72
Topic 01: Understanding Implied Meaning ........................................................................................... 72
Topic 02: Retrieving Implicit Information Part I ................................................................................ 77
Topic 03: Retrieving Implicit Information Part II ............................................................................... 82
MULTIMDIA
Ligue o som do seu computador!
OBS.: Alguns recursos de multimdia utilizados em nossas aulas,
como vdeos legendados e animaes, requerem a instalao da verso
mais atualizada do programa Adobe Flash Player. Para baixar a verso
mais recente do programa Adobe Flash Player, clique aqui! [1]
REFLEXO
If any sketch of language is a text, are public signs texts too?
So, if the meaningfulness of texts does not depend on their linguistc size,
what does it depende on?
Lets try to figure it out together. Suppose you see the sign below in the
collection of a souvenir-hunter. How do you interpret it?
Maybe you will say it is a traffic sign (that is not serving its purpose
anymore) but you have no clue of its meaning. Because of its dissociation
from its ordinary context, you are not able to make sense out of it - which is
perfectly understandable.
What an alien situational context!!!! How can I relate a traffic sign to the
other items of the souvenir collection?
But suppose you see the same sign when you are driving your car or
riding your motorcycle on your way to work. How should you interpret it?
Its much easier now. You should interpret it as a WARNING. You
understand the message the sign conveys because of its location in a
particular context. You can recognize it as TEXT, not because of its length,
but because of its function in this specific context a context you are familiar
with.
In this case, even if you cant figure out its precise meaning (though, as a
driver or motorcycle rider, you should know it by heart), the situation is selfexplanatory. Thus, as you prepare yourself for some surprising thing on the
way you start to drive slowly, with caution.
Based on all that has been discussed so far, how can we define text then?
A unit of language in use. It is not a grammatical
unit, like a clause or a sentence; and it is not defined
by its size. It is best regarded as a semantic unit: a
unit not of form but of meaning. Thus is related to a
clause or sentence by realization (Halliday and Hasan,
1976, p. 1-2)
anything from a single proverb to a whole play, from a momentary cry for
help to an all-day discussion on a committee. Thus, a text is any instance of
living language that is playing some part or doing some job in a context of
situation, as opposed to isolated words or sentences. What does not fulfill
this basic requirement is a non-text.
PRACTICE
Classify the instances below as text (T) or non-text (NT).
a.
b.
c.
d.
- What do you call a fish with no eye?
- FSH!
Extracted from: Click Here [6]
e.
children live. From one hand its great to be the only child in a family but
in some cases its not. And the family tree has a long history that
sometimes are so ancient that we cannot remember the member of it, the
name and occupation. And you shouldnt break my heart because of that.
Adapted from: Click Here [7]
ANSWERS:
a. ( T ) Click Here [8] - a sexist cartoon showing a dialogue
between two women about a car accident one of them had.
b. ( T ) Click Here [9] - an attempt of dialogue between a wife and
her husband who insists on ignoring her.
c. ( NT ) Click Here [10] This video shows two kids quarreling.
They keep repeating words like "yes", "no", I said yes, I said no, I
said no first, and be quiet, but what we simply cannot understand is
what they are quarreling about. As it is not coherent to us,
viewers/observers, we can say this instance of living language is
doing no job in this context of situation. It sounds as a sequence of
isolated words and sentences. Maybe the kids know what they are
quarreling about and what they say is coherent to them.
d. ( T )
- What do you call a fish with no eye?
- FSH!
3
Extracted from: Click Here [11] - This is joke, in the form of a dialogue,
based on the pronunciation of the letter i, pronounced /ai/.
e. ( NT ) The child without parents cannot enjoy the life other
children live. From one hand its great to be the only child in a family
but in some cases its not. And the family tree has a long history that
sometimes are so ancient that we cannot remember the member of it,
the name and occupation. And you shouldnt break my heart because
of that.
Adapted from: Click Here [12] - This instance of living language
is doing no job in this context of situation. It sounds as a sequence of
isolated words and sentences and serve no purpose. It is not coherent
to the reader and it cannot be coherent to the writer.
FURTHER READING
Click on the links below to learn more about text and discourse.
http://www.slideshare.net/premaster2010/linguagem-discurso-e-texto [13]
http://fdslive.oup.com/www.oup.com/pdf/elt/catalogue/0-19-4372405-a.pdf [14] (Visite a aula online para realizar download deste arquivo.)
Why is it then? Because each text offers a pictorial cue or signal which
helps us reconstruct, in this case, the writers discourse and that certainly
makes a big difference to the understanding of the word ramp.
5
See? Now the text is followed by a picture that indicates we are not
referring to a warning road sign anymore. Just by looking at the picture, we
can infer the meaning of the word ramp [2]. Again, the picture functions as
a signal to help us reconstruct the writers discourse.
As a reader or a hearer, you should always search the text for signals
that may help you reconstruct the writer's/speaker's discourse. Your
understanding of a sketch of language is firmly rooted in a specific context of
use.
In other words, we can say it is the meaning the reader constructs from
the text during the reading process [or during a conversation] (WALLACE,
1992, p. 14).
According to Wallace (1992), there is not just a single discourse but a
number of discourses which can be recovered by a reader/hearer from any
text. These discourses are essentially social rather than personal and
individual in that they relate to social practices and beliefs. To her, they are
ways of talking or writing about persons, places, events, or phenomena
which relate to conventional beliefs or ways of doing things which are, in
turn, associated with a societys key institution. For example, there are
conventional ways of talking or writing about phenomena such as dating,
public schools, or family pets related to the social institutions of marriage,
education, and the family.
Wallace also states that discourses typically reflect differences of power
between the members of different social groups, for example, ways of talking
about the roles of men and women in both the family and the workplace
frequently indicate a less powerful position for women. Thus, we tend to talk
of man and wife rather than woman and husband.
PRACTICE
1. Identify the types of discourse below by putting the numbers of the
texts in parentheses. Not all the numbers are to be used. Also indicate if
the instance is an excerpt of oral or written discourse.
Nature of discourse
Number
of
the
text
Discourse
oral
Written
media discourse
legal discourse
the discourse
lawyer and a client
between
academic discourse/lecture
the discourse
husband and a wife
the discourse
lawyers
the
between
between
discourse
between
two
TEXT #1
defendant produced a knife, held it to her throat, and forced her into the
alley. ()
TEXT #2
- Well, I've been suffering from fever for the past two days.
- Did you take any medicine?
- No, I didn't. I've got a cold too.
- Your body temperature is 102F. You must take medicines for at least 3
days and must take rest.
- What about the diet?
- You should be on liquid diet. If the fever persists for more than three
days, come and see me. Here is your prescription.
TEXT #3
PETER: Mrs. Johnson spent nearly two months looking for just the
right attorney; but then, she would never really be satisfied with
anything less than the total invalidation of her husband Eric as a human
being. She complained I charged her too much, but I got her what she
paid for.
DANIEL: I think that a high hourly rate reflects a high skill level. And a
high skill level may actually save you a lot of money over a less
8
FORUM
1950S EDUCATION ON WOMEN
http://www.youtube.com/embed/j8ADfS8WQmw
A. Is it possible to identify discourses in the text related to typical
ways of describing male and female roles or social class roles? If possible,
identify, at least, one instance.
B. Would these discourses be similarly presented in comparable texts
in other cultural contexts with which you are familiar with? Explain, at
least, one of them.
C. Do you see instances of sexist discourse? Supply examples.
D. Would these instances be used nowadays in similar situational
contexts? Explain your point of view.
PORTFOLIO ACTIVITY
WOMEN, KNOW YOUR LIMITS
http://www.youtube.com/embed/XQzf8lHuYPo
1. Why is this topic being written about?
2. How is the topic being written about?
3. What other ways of writing about the topic are there?
4. What difference would it have made if the topic had been written
differently? Explain.
10
The text supplied by the teacher has elements that link its parts
together, but does not allow it to be meaningful. If you ask yourself: What is
the main idea of this text? or What message does it convey?. The answer
will be, None. Coherent texts do make sense to the reader, but this one
makes no sense at all. It is senseless or incoherent. However, we can say that
each sentence is notionally linked to the one that precedes it, using both
lexical and grammatical means, which makes the text cohesive. Thus, we
agree that the text is cohesive (i.e. linked together) but not coherent (i.e.
meaningful). What is coherence then?
In very simple terms, we can define COHERENCE as the quality that
something has when it makes sense or is pleasing because all of its parts fit
together well and logically.
11
To access the meaning of this text, you certainly tried to use the same
techniques you use when reading in your mother tongue. You must have
tried to make connections across the first few sentences and firmly believed
that the next sentence would provide the element(s) which would allow a
coherent interpretation of the whole text. However, you were not successful
in your attempt. Why was it then? Despite the Ford-car, black-Black,
President Wilson-the presidents, discussed-discussions, week-week, daysdays, my cat-cats-The cat, mat-Mat types of connections, which accounts
for cohesion (to be discussed in our next lesson), the text fails to deliver any
message to the reader. Being so, its impossible for any reader, even very
much experienced ones, to get any meaning from it for just one reason: it is
meaningless or the text is NOT COHERENT.
PRACTICE I
Read the text below to identify, at least, three (03) incoherent pieces
of information.
A BRITISH MAN HAS SHOT HIS OWN FINGER OFF IN AN
EFFORT TO GET RID OF A PAINFUL WART.
June 16 2011
DRIVEN mad by a small wart, a thirty-eight lady decided
01
02 to cut his finger off himself. Sean Murphy had a huge wart and
03 for 5 years had tried several creams but nothing could get rid of
04 it. So he decided to remove it with a hammer after drinking
several pints of beer.
05
06
Sean Murphy said: The worst thing is that the wart has
08 gone. It was giving me a lot of joys. It was as big as my
09 thumbnail. Id tried all sorts of things and it was almost
becoming imperceptible. I didnt expect to lose my finger
there was nothing left of it. But Im happy because I didnt like
my big toe very much.
EXTRACTED
AND
ADAPTED
FROM:
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/weird-news/2011/06/16/manshoots-off-his-own-finger-to-get-rid-of-growth-wart-an-idiot-8690823205185/ [2]
12
1. The title of the text informs us that a British MAN, not a woman,
shot HIS own finger off trying to get rid of an unwanted painful wart.
In its first paragraph, we find the reflexive pronoun HIMSELF (line
02), the characters name, SEAN MURPHY (line 02), and the subject
pronoun HE (line 03), all indicatives that the character is a man, not a
woman. However, in lines 01 and 02, we come across the following
piece of incoherent information: "a thirty-eight LADY decided to cut
his finger off himself". As the whole story revolves around Sean
Murphy, the word LADY has no reason to be included here making
reference to him.
2. According to the text, Sean Murphy spent 5 years trying TO GET
RID OF HIS PAINFUL WART (title), which, in fact, he did. AFTER
HAVING TRIED SEVERAL CREAMS WITHOUT ANY SUCCESS (lines 02
and 03), he chose TO SHOOT HIS WART OFF (title). However, his plan
backfired and NOTHING WAS LEFT OF HIS FINGER (lines 08 and 09).
Thus, we can conclude that, despite the tragedy of losing his finger,
THE BEST THING, and not the worst, was to find out that the wart was
gone too. Therefore, the sentences the worst thing is that the wart has
gone (line 05) and It was giving me a lot of joys (lines 05 and 06)
only contribute to make the text incoherent.
3. The title informs us that a British man SHOT HIS OWN FINGER
(title). TO SHOOT, in this case, means TO REMOVE OR DESTROY
THE WART BY FIRING A WEAPON. The verb to shoot requires the use
of a firing weapon, a revolver, for example. However, throughout the
OFF
13
PRACTICE II
Do you still remember the definition of COHERENCE?
With the definition above in mind, read the text A TELEGRAM (a
message that is sent by telegraph and then printed and delivered to
someones home or office.) and say whether it is coherent or not. Explain
how you got to this conclusion.
COHERENT, though its ideas are not linked together. The text
conveys a message that can be understood by a reader:
What does it mean? It means that if the reader is not, for example,
linguistically prepared to interact with the text s/he will not understand it. In
this case, knowing the meaning of the word telegram is really important to
the understanding of the text. Those who are old enough to have experienced
wording a telegram to somebody will remember that it was a synonym of
catastrophe, calamity, or tragedy. Hardly ever, somebody would send a
telegram with a joyful or happy message. Telegrams should always be written
in a very economical way, being so, linking elements were the most sacrificed
14
ones. Perhaps, for these reasons, it was not so simple for you to classify the
text A TELEGRAM as COHERENT. In fact, it is coherent but its ideas are not
linked together (not cohesive).
If you read the telegram with attention, you will perceive that you can
tell the facts IN DETAILS though the text is not written in a cohesive way.
Lets try together.
See? All this is understood from the very brief message Susan sent to
Mary; the telegram that lacked cohesion and that maybe sounded incoherent
to you.
REFERENCES
Beaugrande, R. de & W. U.
Dressler. Introductionto text
Linguistics. London:Longman,
1981.
Brow, G. and G. Yule. Discourse
Analysis.Cambridge: CUP, 1983.
HALLIDAY, M.A.K. & HASAN,
Ruqaiya. Cohesion in English.
London: Longman, 1976.
KRESS, G. Linguistic Processes in
Sociocultural Practice.
Oxford: Oxford University Press,
1985.
LARSON, R. L. Structure and Form in
Non-Narrative Prose. In: TATE, Gary.
(Ed.). Teaching Composition: 12
Bibliographical Essays. Texas
Christian University Press, 1987.
VERDONK, Peter. Stylistics. Oxford:
Oxford University Press, 2002,
Chapter 3, PP. 17-27.
15
16
17
DEMONSTRATIVE REFERENCE
18
Source[2]
In the paragraph above there are four instances of reference (2 5)
with the use of the same item, the pronoun his repeated four times. All the
instances of reference have the same referent, that is, they all refer to
Timothy Brueggeman, identified in the very beginning of the text. Let's
take a close look at one of these instances:
This is an example of anaphora because the referent his (2) points back
to Timothy Brueeggeman (1), the reference item previously introduced.
The items (3 5) in the paragraph above also point back to (1) Timothy
Brueggeman, establishing with it anaphoric relations (anaphora).
The relation established among referent and reference item constitutes a
semantic tie. Without these semantic ties, the above paragraph would sound
much more as a sequence of isolated sentences than as part of a text.
But textual relations may also go in the opposite direction. In this
case, we say the relations are cataphoric (cataphora). (click here for
examples of cataphora).
As a general rule, cataphora is much less frequent than anaphora.
PRACTICE I
Below you will find the last paragraph of The sleepwalker who froze to
death. Can you identify other existing relations anaphoric and/or
cataphoric? What are they?
19
PRACTICE II
Read the first and last paragraphs of the text The sleepwalker who
froze to death to identify the referent of the word in red, this.
VERSO TEXTUAL DO FLASH
This one is different from all the others, right? Yes, because this
time we have a case of demonstrative reference. THIS refers to the
2009 incident (i.e. Brueggeman took Ambien/sleeping pill,
sleepwalked wearing only his underwear and a fleece shirt, froze to
death) that caused his death. We believe that you had to read the
text one more time and draw conclusions about it. Almost playing
detective.
FURTHER READING
Click on the link http://www.oddee.com/item_96680.aspx[3] if you
want to know what really happened to Timothy Brueggeman and/or read
other texts about SLEEPWALKING.
20
2.http://www.oddee.com/item_96680.aspx
3.http://www.oddee.com/item_96680.aspx
Responsvel: Prof. Ronaldo Lima
Universidade Federal do Cear - Instituto UFC Virtual
21
LEXICAL COHESION
Definition:
Lexical cohesion is the cohesive effect achieved by selection of items
that are related in some way to those previously introduced. This may
take the form of word repetition or of synonymy, for example.
(HALLIDAY, 1985 , p. 310;
H&H,1976, p.274).
Source [1]
The words in blue are all reference items, that is, they all refer to
some other item already introduced in the text, the referent (in red). As we
have already discussed, the seven reference items (2 8) are contributing to
the establishment of cohesion and coherence by pointing back to (1)
Timothy Brueggeman. Being so, they have a lot in common with the personal
and demonstrative references we studied before.
Now let`s take a look at two types of LEXICAL COHESION to better
understand what happens in the text above.
22
(3),
(6),
as
items, antonyms, for example. This concept is also known
superordinate-subordinate concept, whereas that which is at a higher level
of generality is known as superordinate and that which is at a lower level is
known as a subordinate.
Source
[2]
THEY
is
superordinate to
23
white/tall and
PRACTICE I
Can you find other existing relations, including reference
anaphoric and/or cataphoric - within this same text: The sleepwalker who
froze to death? We are going to give you two referents and you prompt the
reference items. Ok?
,
(b)
Ed
Lesniak
(lines
.
24
10
11)
Good!!! You seem to have understood the concept. If you want to read
more about the items in PRACTICE I, click here (Visite a aula online para
realizar download deste arquivo.).
PRACTICE II
What would you say about the noun SLEEPWALKER in the title of the
text? What is its referent? Is this a case of anaphoric or cataphoric
relation? What do you think?
Great job!!! Readers can only identify who the sleepwalker is after they
read the first sentence of the text and connect the words SLEEPWALKER (a
person who sleepwalks), TIMOTHY BRUEGGEMAN and SLEEPWALKED.
This is another case of cataphora. The sleepwalker who froze to death, dying
of hypothermia, was (1) Timothy Brueggeman.
FURTHER READING
Click on the link http://www.oddee.com/item_96680.aspx [3] if you
want to read more about sleepwalking and on the link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRSTp3BJT3c [4] if you want to read
more about cohesion.
FORUM
"THE GIRL WHO SILENCED THE WORLD FOR 6 MINUTES
http://www.oddee.com/item_96680.aspx
http://courses.nus.edu.sg/course/ellibst/lsl18d.html
http://www.oddee.com/item_96680.aspx
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRSTp3BJT3c
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ohjSVKXMu4
26
To better understand how this concept works, lets take a look at the oral
piece of discourse below:
Source[1]
As you can see, FIRST, SOON AFTER, and THEN indicate relationships in
time (time sequencing). They chronologically organize the events being
reported.
Words and expressions of connection can be organized into four broad
categories, according to the relationship they express: addition, contrast,
cause and consequence and time sequencing.
WORDS AND EXPRESSIONS OF CONNECTION
ADDITION
27
CONTRAST
CAUSE
28
TIME SEQUENCING
Source[2]
The concept of words and expressions of connection can be resultant of
explicitly or implicitly related ideas conveyed by sentences of a paragraph or
of part(s) of a text. Lets see how it works. In order to make things easier, we
are going to start our analysis with something that is already familiar to you;
the text entitled The sleepwalker who froze to death . This time we are going
to concentrate on the second paragraph.
CLICK HERE
30
Source
Lets analyze the following sentences from the second paragraph.
a) Ambien is the most-prescribed sleeping pill in the country and has
been linked to hundreds of cases of sleepwalking.
In this case, we have an additive type of relation. We are informed, by
the author, that Ambien is the most-prescribed sleeping pill in the United
States and, to this piece of information s/he adds another one, that Ambien
has been linked to hundreds of cases of sleepwalking.
31
Source[3]
After reading a text, we unconsciously make a mental summary of it
establishing all the connections possible if we really understood the text, of
course. It is exactly this mental summary that allows us to answer a varied
number of questions about implicitly conveyed information, such as
Source[4]
CLICK HERE TO CHECK THE ANSWERS
In (A), the conjunction BEFORE indicates that the fact to take the drug
- happened at/during a time earlier than going to bed, time sequencing. In
(B), CONSEQUENTLY/FOR THIS REASON/ON ACCOUNT OF THIS indicates
the reason why the drug is considered number one factor of Brueggemans
death causal relation. And in (C), the idea conveyed by BECAUSE OF THIS
is also a causal relation - the reasons for Timothy Brueggemans death.
Lets check if everything is understood by doing the exercises below.
32
PRACTICE
Click on the link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ohjSVKXMu4
[5] to watch the video "The Girl Who Silenced the World for 6 Minutes
one more time. Then read the sentences extracted from Severn CullisSuzukis speech and finally match them according to their meaning.
SENTENCES
1. Losing my future is not like losing an election or a few points on the
stock market.
2. I am afraid to breathe the air because I don't know what chemicals
are in it.
3. In my life, I have dreamt of seeing the great herds of wild animals,
jungles and rainforests full of birds and butterflies, but now I wonder if
they will even exist for my children to see.
4. Here, you may be delegates of your governments, business people,
organisers, reporters or politicians - but really you are mothers and
fathers, brothers and sister, aunts and uncles - and all of you are
somebody's child.
5. I'm only a child yet I know we are all in this together and should act
as one single world towards one single goal.
6. In my anger, I am not blind, and in my fear, I am not afraid to tell
the world how I feel.
7. In my country, we make so much waste, we buy and throw away,
buy and throw away, and yet northern countries will not share with the
needy. Even when we have more than enough, we are afraid to lose some
of our wealth, afraid to share.
MEANING
to indicate a condition
to link a number of alternatives
to indicate a relationship in time
to indicate addition of more information
to indicate that what follows is a result of what precedes
to introduce a comment which is rather surprising after the
previous one made
to introduce a statement that contradicts or makes a contrast with
what has just been said
CLICK HERE TO CHECK THE ANSWER
MEANING
33
( 3 ) to indicate a condition
( 1 ) to link a number of alternatives
( 7 ) to indicate a relationship in time
( 6 ) to indicate addition of more information
( 2 ) to indicate that what follows is the cause or reason of what
precedes
( 5 ) to introduce a comment which is rather surprising after the
previous one made
( 4 ) to introduce a statement that contradicts or makes a contrast
with what has just been said
FURTHER READING
Click
on
the
links
http://www.sk.com.br/sk-conn.html[6]
andhttp://www.myenglishteacher.net/connectorsandotheraddinfowords.html
[7] to learn more about words and expressions of connection.
Click
here
http://www.sfsf.com.au/econews/econews_story_severin_suziki.htm[8]
if you want to have access to the transcription of Severn Cullis-Suzukis
speech.
PORTFOLIO ACTIVITY
SEVERN CULLIS-SUZUKI
Source[9]
Click on the link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Severn_Cullis-Suzuki
[10] to get to know a little about Cullis-Suzuki now. Then write a two- to
three-paragraph composition on her current life and activities. Make use
of, at least, 05 different words and expressions of connection. Care for
coherence and cohesion. Save it in your portfolio.
34
REFERENCES
1. http://t2.ftcdn.net/jpg/00/02/03/37/400_F_2033799_e7CEkcU9OPvnJLqj6yMMtGQ
Lqj6yMMtGQRxKrEFl.jpg
2.http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ZFxDj0Mv0mE/SwzoAsOTJI/AAAAAAAAAPk/UfJg6dzltFo/s320/blogger+6.gif
3.http://rlv.zcache.com/notebook_page_business_cardp240065583513043253yt1p_400.jpg
4.http://www.dicasdiarias.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/portaretrato-digital-preco-comprar-porta-retrato-digital.jpg
5.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ohjSVKXMu4
6.http://www.sk.com.br/sk-conn.html
7.http://www.myenglishteacher.net/connectorsandotheraddinfowords.html
8.http://www.sfsf.com.au/econews/econews_story_severin_suziki.htm
9.http://rio.goodplanet.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/severnsuzuki.jpg
10.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Severn_Cullis-Suzuki
Responsvel: Prof. Ronaldo Lima
Universidade Federal do Cear - Instituto UFC Virtual
35
MULTIMEDIA
Click here: [1] and watch Madonna performing the ballad Live To
Tell during her 2006 Confession Tour.
Now read the following texts:
TEXT A
[2]
TEXT B
[3]
Source
[4]
PRACTICE
COMPARING TEXTS AND VIDEO
36
THE BIBLE
Matthew 27:32-56 - the crucifixion of Jesus Christ
Matthew 25: 35 - Whatever you did for one of the least of my brothers
you did it to me
THE CONCERT
Madonnas LIVE TO TELL number
You may be asking yourself why Madonna chose to use Christian icons
in her performance of Live to Tell during her 2006 tour. But before reading
about her reasons, lets take a look at the description of her number.
Live to tell
Description
Madonna occupies the position of Christ on her theatrical cross. In the
background there are pictures of African children, victims of AIDS.
Toward the end of her "Live to Tell" number, Madonna steps down from
the cross and assumes a position of prayer, on her knees. She removes the
crown of thorns and at this point on the screen above, these words appear:
"Whatever you did to one of the least of my brothers, you did for me."
Adapted from: http://www.godweb.org/madonnacruci.htm [5]
But what were Madonnas reasons?
The singer said the crucifixion scene was meant to send a message of
unity that Jesus would appreciate.
"It is my plea to the audience to encourage mankind to help one
another and to see the world as a unified whole. I believe in my heart that
if Jesus were alive today he would be doing the same thing."
"I wanted to bring attention to the millions of children in Africa who
are dying every day or are living without care, without medicine and
without hope. I am asking people to open their hearts and minds to get
involved in whatever way they can."
(adapted
from
http://www.aceshowbiz.com/news/view/00005351.html [6]
Analyzing the text above, you can see it makes reference to other texts.
Its title, Madonna Defends Her Stage Show's Mock Crucifixion Scene, evokes
previous texts, oral and written, which criticized her concert accusing it of
blasphemy and/or heresy. Here we can cite The Church of England has
criticised Madonna's appearance on a cross to kick off her latest
tour in Los Angeles. and NBC: Debating Madonna Crucifix Scene.
In the first paragraph of the text, the author makes reference to the
crucifixion scene one more time, not the one performed by Jesus, but the one
performed by Madonna which evokes the religious one.
From all that was said above, we can conclude that Madonnas number
and the crucifixion of Jesus are intertextual. In her concert, Madonna makes
38
reference to the religious scene because she wants to convey a very clear
message: if we ignore our brothers in need, if we dont reach out to help the
millions of children in Africa, for example, who are dying without care,
medicine and hope, we are going to be repeating the crucifixion of Jesus.
As you can see, each text exists in relation to others. They are
constructed more by their intertextuality than by their authors. Being so, we
can say that any text is a new issue of past citations.
Its important to mention here that texts that are alluded to
by other texts are referred to as intertexts (Koch, 2004:145).
MULTIMEDIA
If you want to know more about intertextuality.
39
MULTIMEDIA
Click here[1]: to have access to examples of intertextuality in painting,
music, and film.
Texts do not appear in isolation but in relation to another and/or others
that precede them. The explicit or implicit mention of another's words
determines the existing type of intertextuality.
Explicit intertextuality is observed when, in a text, oral or written, its
author makes reference to the source of the intertext (the text alluded to by
other texts. Explicit intertextuality is very commonly perceptible in
citations, summaries, translations, lists of references of an academic
article, etc.
It is also observ in oral interactions when, for example, one speaker
repeats or paraphrases what the other has just said in order to continue a
dialogue or to contradict an idea presented to him.
Lets take a look at some examples of explicit intertextuality. Maybe we
should start with our lessons in this course. You may have probably noted
that all the texts we have studied so far can only gain meaning through their
references to the texts written by Catherine Wallace, Ingedore Kock, M.A.K.
Halliday, Ruqaiya Hasan, Henry G. Widdowson and others. Every time we
quote these authors, we give them credit for their words. Being so, explicit
reference to them is made.
Source[2]
40
CURIOSITY
Now click here[3]: You will be surprised to discover that Abaporu has
an intertext, that is, a text produced before 1928. To be more specific, a
text produced in 1906 by Auguste Rodin.
VERSO TEXTUAL DO FLASH
How about the following picture? Can you identify the source of
the intertext?
If you have ever been introduced to Leonardo da Vinci and his
Gioconda, you will certainly say the source of the intertext of the
picture is the Mona Lisa. There are explicit and obvious evidences that
lead us to this conclusion.
All texts contain traces of preceding texts, and frequently they cannot be
readily interpreted or at least fully appreciated without reference to
them. It is helpful to know something about the circumstances in which a
text was produced and how it relates to other texts.
Now lets concentrate on implicit intertextuality. How can it be defined?
41
FORUM
ABAPORU AND THE THINKER
Click here[4]: to watch the video about Abaporu and its intertext,
The Thinker.
1. How does Abaporu, by Tarsila do Amaral relate to The Thinker, by
Rodin?
2.What message does each one of them convey?
3.What do they have in common?
4.How do they differ?
PORTFOLIO ACTIVITY
MOUSE TRAP SURVIVOR
42
You will watch a Nolan cheddar cheese commercial. Dont panic. You
will be surprised at its outcome. Watch it until the end.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OXONZyAgXA&feature=related
[5]
Then check the other sites below. How do they relate to the first one?
Identify common elements and make comments.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HP7EGyMLy8[6]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvm2bpFQMsg[7]
Write your answers in the form of a paragraph (5 7 sentences). Save
it in your portfolio.
MULTIMEDIA
If you want to see Nat King Cole singing Mona Lisa, click here[8].
If you want to see Britney Spear singing Mona Lisa, click here[9].
43
Source [2]
The advertisement imitates the style of Absolut Vodka ads for comic
effects, but some people would say it, in fact, explicitly ridicules the product
advertised. But before moving ahead, lets take a look at one of the original
ads by Absolut Vodka.
44
MULTIMEDIA
Click on the links below to see examples of parody related to the world
of arts.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-KOloPHkDY [3]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHZy8y-3Kmc&feature=related
[4]
You certainly observed that without the help of the original pieces of
art, you wouldnt have understood the comic effect of the parodies above.
That is why a parody works only on people who know the original, and
they have to know it intimately enough to appreciate the imitation. Part of
the enjoyment people take in parody is the enjoyment of feeling
intelligent. Not everyone gets the joke and if they don't get the joke, its
neither fun nor funny.
Some of the most famous parodies that are easily recognizable come
from the contemporary film genre.
PRACTICE
Have you ever seen Vampires Suck (2010)? Watch its trailer and try
to identify as many instances of intertextuality as possible.
MULTIMEDIA
Click on the link below to see one of his parodies.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcJjMnHoIBI [7]
Click here to compare to the source intertext.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRdxUFDoQe0 [8]
Now lets take a quick look at a parody of a real commercial. You have to
agree that sometimes, a parody of an ad is more interesting and more
successful than the source intertext that gave origin to it.
On the site http://www.businesspundit.com/10-best-parodies-of-realcommercials/ [9], you will have access to 10 Best Parodies of Real
Commercials. We chose only one parody and its source intertext to focus on,
but you can check all the other nine if you want to.
REAL COMMERCIAL - DOVE EVOLUTION
46
You have probably observed that the original makes it clear how much
makeup and Photoshop goes into making a model look beautiful while the
parody explores how to turn a guy into a massive slob. ((= a lazy, untidy and
often rude person))
Well, do you still remember a parody is an example of a text that
intentionally imitates or copies the characteristic style of an author or a work
for comic effect? Ok. But it doesnt always have to aim at ridiculing the
source intertext. It may aim at making the features or qualities of the original
more noticeable in a way that is humorous. In this case, it is a form of praise.
To better understand what we are referring to, click here [10] to have access
to some oil paintings by Mauricio de Souza that parody well-known works of
the great masters with the Monicas Gang characters as the subjects.
REFERENCES
http://www.adobe.com/go/getflashplayer
http://www.adbusters.org/content/absolut-impotence
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-KOloPHkDY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHZy8y-3Kmc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGLZqDXau98
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKqV7DB8Iwg
47
7. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcJjMnHoIBI
8. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRdxUFDoQe0
9. http://www.businesspundit.com/10-best-parodies-of-real-commercials/
10. http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=BQIYmU7rclA&feature=player_embedded
Responsvel: Prof. Ronaldo Lima
Universidade Federal do Cear - Instituto UFC Virtual
48
This Unit deals with the concept of GENRE and some of its various
forms of manifestations.
Have you ever heard about GENRE? What do you know about it? Do
you know how to define it? Lets take a look at some concepts related to this
subject matter.
49
As you have probably noticed, all the words typed in bold make
reference to a certain type of genre. We bet you have used some or all of the
above quotations many times.
Lets check your ability to informally identify genres. You will get
surprised with the results.
PRACTICE 1
Identify the genre for each of the following text. Match the text (1 6)
with its genre type. Not all boxes are to be filled.
TEXT 1
TEXT 2
TEXT 3
50
TEXT 4
TEXT 5
TEXT 6
51
advertisement
joke
blog
letter
cartoon
shopping list
resum
ANSWERS
GENRE
SOURCES
(
)
advertisement
----------------------------
( 4 ) blog
Extracted
http://kwout.com/cutout/x/qn/8p/mv7_bor_sha.jpg
( 2 ) cartoon
Extracted
http://www.crazylaughs.com/jkcartoons/602.jpg[2]
( 3 ) e-mail
( 6 ) joke
Extracted
http://www.thejokeyard.com/one_line_jokes/joke_04041.html
[4]
( 5 ) letter
Extracted
and
adapted
from:
http://www.letterwritingguide.com/samplefriendlyletter.htm
[5]
( 1 ) shopping
list
Extracted
from:
http://cdn.simplyshredded.com/wp
content/uploads/2010/06/shopping_list.jpg[6]
( ) resum
----------------------------
Any group of people asked to assign a genre lable to each of the above
text would come up with the same set of answers. There is no doubt Text 1 is
a shopping list. It is unquestionable Text 2 is a cartoon. We would
certainly agree Text 3 is an e-mail, Text 4 is a blog, Text 5 is a friendly
letter, and Text 6 is a joke. But why would we all agree on this issue? How
can we explain this consensus?
To Wallace (1992, p. 31), we are able to assign a genre label to a text because we
are aided by our experience of ways in which overall communicative function is
conventionally conveyed through the use of formal and semantic features in
different kinds of texts.
52
from:
In other words, we have schemas for all the genres and typical
discourses we have already interacted with. But what are schemas, or
schemata as they are sometimes called?
Widdowson (1983, p.34) defines schemas as cognitive constructs which
allow for the organization of information in long-term memory. Cook (1989,
p. 69) explains that the mind, stimulated by key words or phrases in the text
or by context, activates a knowledge schema. And it is this activation that
allows us to relate incoming information (i.e. information from the outside
world) to already known information (i.e. information already stored in
memory).
Thus, schemas allow us to organize knowledge economically and to
predict the continuation of both spoken and written discourse. Being so, as
Mehler, Sharoff & Santini (2011) say genres reduce the cognitive load by
triggering (causing to happen or exist) expectations through a number of
[regularities or] conventions. These conventions engage predictions and
predictions help us identify the communicative purpose and the context
implied in a text. In this respect, according to these authors, genre can be
defined as
53
TEXT 2
54
With the classified ads the beggar can look for a job and then solve all
his problems, including hunger.
PRACTICE 2
How readily can you identify a genre? Using the words from the list,
fill in the boxes below.
telemarketing call game rules news report graduation speech
math problem
TEXT EXTRACT 1
Shortly after 5 p.m. Friday, a mans desperate cries rang out down
the halls of the Scarborough highrise where Jake Terveld has lived for
the past five years.
He was screaming and yelling and crying. He was banging on the
doors and banging on the walls, Terveld said. He was yelling, My
daughter.
Terveld called 911, then followed the distraught man into the
apartment beside his own on the sixth floor.
He saw a woman lying on the bed, like a statue. He didnt see any
blood, but it was clear she was dead. ()
TEXT EXTRACT 2
55
correctly.
7. Continue play until one team reaches the final square, in which
the question asked is an all-play. If the team in the final space answers it
correctly, they win! If another team answers correctly, they keep the
game alive and are allowed to answer another question from the space
they're on.
TEXT EXTRACT 4
Class of 2009! First Id like you to get up, wave and cheer your
supportive family and friends! Show your love!
It is a great honor for me to be here today.
Now wait a second. I know: thats such a clich. Youre thinking:
every graduation speaker says that Its a great honor. But, in my case,
it really is so deeply true being here is more special and more personal
for me than most of you know. Id like to tell you why.
()
TEXT EXTRACT 5
56
TEXT EXTRACT 1
http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1029511--woman-found-deadhusband-charged[8]
GENRE NEWS REPORT
Comments: Characteristically of this genre, an indefinite article
introduces new information with the opening noun phrase a mans
desperate cries.
Shortly after 5 p.m. Friday, A MANS DESPERATE CRIES rang out
down the halls of the Scarborough highrise where Jake Terveld has
lived for the past five years.
TEXT EXTRACT 2
https://www.msu.edu/~crespo/ESMPosing.pdf?q=good-problemsteaching-mathematical-writing
GENRE MATH PROBLEM
Comments: The excerpt describes a situation, introduces a problem,
and then requires a solution to the problem by asking a question. In
addition, numbers are used.
TEXT EXTRACT 3
http://www.ehow.com/how_2042391_play-cranium.html[9]
GENRE GAME RULES: HOW TO PLAY CRANIUM
Comments: The excerpt presents the description of the game,
number of players organized in teams, degree of difficulty, and then
the instructions to the game: seven steps.
TEXT EXTRACT 4
http://celestinechua.com/blog/graduation-speeches/[10],
http://www.google.com/intl/en/press/annc/20090502-pagecommencement.html[11]
GENRE GRADUATION SPEECH
Comments: Characteristically of this genre, a salutation to the class
followed by the year: Class of 2009! Use of clichs, It is a great
honor for me to be here today. Also the mentioning of a graduation
speaker.
TEXT EXTRACT 5
http://www.top-telemarketing-tips.com/telemarketing-scriptsample/[12]
GENRE TELEMARKETING CALL
Comments: The excerpt brings part of a transcript used by a
telemarketer to involve and convince his client to accept his services.
It has an opening statement with the customers name (JENNY),
name
(CATHY),
the
business
name
telemarketers
(TECHNOGLOBICS) and what the telemarketer does (COMPUTER
REPAIR BUSINESS),
57
58
Do you know what FILM GENRES are? They are categories or types of
film. Films are routinely classified, in television listing magazines, for
example, as suspense, epic, drama, romance, action, sci-fi (science-fiction),
family, adventure, dance, comedy, horror, musical, war, thriller,
documentary, historical, fantasy, supernatural, western, gangster, etc.
MULTIMEDIA
Click here to access film genre introduction:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=r620iOdP3pA&feature=player_embedded [1]
http://youtu.be/r620iOdP3pA
What makes critics label a film under the heading of western, for
example? Answer: The film's characteristics. Let's take a look at three of
these characteristics. Click the buttons below.
CASTING
Rastros de dio[2]
We will see that actors, for example, will play very similar characters
from film to film within the same genre category. They may have different
names, different mannerisms, but they are relatively similar to each other.
In westerns, we will see that we are always going to have the same sort
of bartender, the same sort of sheriff, the same sort of bad guy, the same
sort of good guy in these films.
THEMES
Themes are basically the same in films that belong to the same genre
category. As to westerns, we are always going to find the following themes:
the conquest of the wilderness and the subordination of nature in the name
of civilization, the confiscation of the territorial rights of the original
inhabitants of the frontier, conflict between natives and settlers/U.S.
Cavalry or between cattle ranchers and farmers, etc.
CODES
Westerns usually have certain codes: for example, a hero wears a white
59
hat, while the villain wears a black hat; when more than one cowboy
faces the other with no one in between them, there will be a shootout;
ranchers and mountain men don't talk to people and live alone, etc.
The western genre itself has subgenres, such as classical westerns (The
Great Train Robbery), Science fiction Western (Cowboys & Aliens), Space
Western (Bravestarr).
The Great Train Robbery[3]
Science fiction Western[4]
Cowboys & Aliens[5]
Space Western[6]
Bravestarr[7]
Lets talk a little bit about the film CONAN, THE BARBARIAN. Have
you ever seen the film? How did you like it? How did you like Momoas
performance as Conan? Click here[8] to see the movie trailer.
60
Source[9]
Lets take a look at two film reviews. What do the film critics think about
CONAN, THE BARBARIAN?
CRITIC 1
e-mail tburr@globe.com
Phone 617-929-3034
More
biography [11]
Archive
@tyburr [13],
Blog
@globemovies [14]
CRITIC 2
Now lets discover what Roger Ebert, from The Chicago Sun-Times,
thinks about the same film.
August 17, 2011
61
Roger Ebert
Source [16]
PRACTICE
How do Ty Burr and Roger Ebert react to Conan, the Barbarian? Mark
(X) the correct answers.
a.
movie.
b.
Both critics left the movie theater with the feeling that the
movie industry had discovered another Arnold Schwarzenegger.
c.
d.
Ty Burr was very much economical in his comments about
the movie as it seems there was nothing to say.
e.
PORTFOLIO ACTIVITY
FILM REVIEW
FORUM
ABOUT GENRE
62
Genres and the relationship between them change over time. The
conventions of each genre shift, new genres and subgenres emerge and
others are discontinued though certain genres seem particularly longlasting.
Can you give another example or other examples of
a. genre transmutation?
b. discontinued genre?
c. long-lasting genre?
63
5.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cowboys_%26_Aliens_(film)
6.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Western
7.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bravestarr
8.http://www.moviefone.com/movie/conan-the-barbarian/1385021/main
9.http://www.moviefone.com/movie/conan-the-barbarian/1385021/main
10.http://www.metacritic.com/movie/conan-the-barbarian-2011/criticreviews
11.http://www.boston.com/ae/movies/burr/burrbio/
12.http://search.boston.com/local/Search.do?
s.sm.query=&s.author=ty+burr&s.si%28simplesearchinput%29.sortBy=articleprintpublicationdate&docType=&s.collections=bostonGlobe%
3A&date=&s.dateRange=&s.startDate=&s.endDate=&s.si%
28simplesearchinput%29.hitsPerPage=10&x=139&y=11
13.http://twitter.com/#!/tyburr
14.http://twitter.com/#!/GlobeMovies
15.http://www.boston.com/ae/movies/blog/
16.http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?
AID=/20110817/REVIEWS/110819987/0/RSS
17.http://www.rosemarylake.com/ft-queenbee.html
Responsvel: Prof. Ronaldo Lima
Universidade Federal do Cear - Instituto UFC Virtual
64
Here we are still working on the genres you are familiar with and
studying some of their most common characteristics.
Source[2]
In November 2008, Florida voters banned same-sex marriage and civil
unions in an open demonstration they did not accept gay marriage. However,
their convention and visitors bureau began advertising for newly married gay
and lesbian couples to honeymoon in South Florida.
The editorial cartoon above deals with this real and up-to-date event,
showing that Florida is unsympathetic with gay couples but it has no
scruples about welcoming their money into the state economy. We dont
recognize your wedding, but we DO recognize your Amex,
Mastercard and Visa means the same as we dont recognize your
wedding, but we DO recognize your money.
WE
Access
http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2011/07/florida_doesnt_want_gay_marria.
[3] to read the article entitled Florida doesnt want gay marriage, but it
65
Adapted from: DIAS, Reinildes; JUC, Leina & FARIA, Raquel. Prime
2: Ingls para o Ensino Mdio: Lngua Estrangeira Moderna. 2.
Edio, SP:MacMillan, 2010, p. 132.
PRACTICE 1
COMIC STRIP A
66
Source[4]
Read the statements below about the comic strip above. Are they true
(T) or false (F)?
All the young lady wanted was to be Rodneys first priority.
The young lady didnt want Rodney to always stay by her side.
By crying, Rodney showed he was not ready for a committed
relationship.
CLICK HERE TO CHECK THE ANSWERS
PRACTICE 2
COMIC STRIP B
Source[5]
Read the statements below about the comic strip above. Are they true
(T) or false (F)?
Garfield and his owner are leaving a furniture store.
Garfields owner is happy because Garfield is a very good cat.
67
Garfield did the same thing the cat in the picture below is doing.
Source[6]
CLICK HERE TO CHECK THE ANSWERS
Adapted from: DIAS, Reinildes; JUC, Leina & FARIA, Raquel. Prime
1: Ingls para o Ensino Mdio: Lngua Estrangeira Moderna 2.
Edio, SP: MacMillan, 2010, p. 146.
PRACTICE 3
Now lets work on another genre. A genre you are very familiar with.
Genre: List
Read the definition below extracted from the Cambridge Advanced
Learners Dictionary, 2008, p. 836.
Definition: a record of short pieces of information, such as
peoples names, usually written or printed with a single thing on
each line and often ordered in a way that makes a particular thing
easy to find: a shopping list.
As you already know there are other types of list such as a wedding to
68
1. The items of the list are displayed one below the other,
2. Each new item is introduced by means of a marker an
arrow or a hyphen, for example,
3. Discourse markers (besides, in addition to, furthermore) are
not used.
PRACTICE 4
Genre: Headline
Read the definition below extracted from [7]
Definition: a heading at the top of an article or page in a
newspaper or magazine
Study the following examples of headlines and then identify the
characteristics they have in common.
69
REFERENCES
Introduo
Lingstica
70
1992.
WIDDOWSON, H.G. LEARNING PURPOSE AND LANGUAGE USE.
Oxford:Oxford University Press, 1983.
71
As you can see, the meaning the sentence Barry Bang-Bang didnt
manage to rob the bank conveys with words, the cartoon conveys
visually. Together, the image, the verb to manage, and the negative adverb
not lead us to conclude that Barry Bang-Bang failed in his attempt to rob
the bank. Still, the illustration above adds new pieces of information to the
ones already implied by the sentence the police arrived, the police
prevented the robbery from happening, the police caught the robber. From
these, we can conclude that Barry Bang-Bang tried to rob the bank but
failed in his attempt because the police arrived to prevent the robbery from
happening and to take him to prison.
72
Suppose you hear the question Where's the cheese sandwich? It's
obvious the image that is activated by your brain is the one below.
Source [3]
Consequently, the answer may be something like "It's on the kitchen
table.", "It's in the fridge.", or still "I haven't made it yet." But if, instead, you
hear the dialogue below?
EXAMPLE
A: Where's the cheese sandwich?
B: He is sitting over there by the window.
(Adapted from YULE, 1996, p. 20; apud GABRIELATOS, 1999)
73
It is very likely that, at first, you find this excerpt of discourse incoherent
because you simply cant understand the meaning conveyed by it. You will
ask questions such as, How can a cheese sandwich be sitting by the
window?. Then, you will manage to find a context in which the dialogue
above can make sense. This time you will ask questions like In which
situation, would such a dialogue be appropriate?, Is there an appropriate
context for it?, What does A want to know exactly?, How can he be
anaphoric to the cheese sandwich?". Then, you come to the conclusion
that the conventional meaning of words is not always a clear indicator of the
intended message of speakers/writers. In this specific case, you may need
something more to help you retrieve implied meaning: the context of
situation. Lets contextualize the dialogue and see if you can infer what the
cheese sandwich refers to.
VERSO TEXTUAL DO FLASH
As can you see, this is an exchange between two waiters. In this case,
between a waitress and a waiter. By asking the question, "Where's the cheese
sandwich?", the waitress is referring to the customer by his order (the cheese
sandwich = the customer who ordered the cheese sandwich). Referring to
customers by their order is quite common in such contexts. But you may ask,
"Why did she ask this question?". Now that the dialogue is contextualized,
we can infer she did so in order to serve the right customer. With this
example, it is proven that the conventional meaning of words is not always a
clear indicator of the implied message.
We can infer about (= retrieve implied meaning from) all sorts of things.
We can make inferences, for example, about the meaning of a word or
expression (as in the first example of this lesson), a writer's feelings or
intentions, the development of a text, who a text is aimed at (= target
audience), the setting/characters/themes in literary texts, etc.
PRACTICE
Read Text 1 and Text 2, both excerpts from a holiday brochure. Then
do the exercises.
Text 1:
The hotel is very lively, and is especially suitable for young
single people and young couples looking for a fun-filled break.
It is close to the main resort with its nightclubs and music
venues. The beach is about a 10-minute drive away.
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What implied meaning(s) can you retrieve from Text 1? Identify the
clues that helped you retrieve it (them).
CLICK HERE TO CHECK THE ANSWERS
Text 2:
Guided tours of ancient Byzantine churches, and visits to
the magnificent monasteries are all included in the cost, as are
two evenings of wine-tasting and a talk by a local historian on
the island's past.
CLUES:
guided tour
ancient Byzantine churches
magnificent monasteries
wine-tasting
local historian's talk
island's past
IMPORTANT
It is important to remind you that we can infer about (= retrieve
implied meaning from) all sorts of things. In the excerpts above (Text 1
and Text 2), the inferences made are related to whom the text was aimed
at (= the target audience).
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Introduction
You are already aware of the fact that we can retrieve implied meaning
from all sorts of things. Here, we are going to see how implied meanings
can be retrieved and get to know the generating sources of inferences
involved in this process.
Inferences can be cognitively produced from three generating sources:
prior knowledge, textual elements and also contextual elements. Alone or
together, these sources can help us identify and retrieve implicit meaning so
that inferential understanding can happen. In this lesson, we are going to
deal with prior knowledge only. Let's start defining it before we can
understand the role it plays in the process of retrieving implied information.
Prior knowledge has to do with the knowledge the listener/reader
already has in his mind, being resultant from his personal experiences
(KOCH & ELIAS, 2006, p. 42). This type of knowledge is fundamentally
necessary for a given text to be understood as it enables the listener/reader
to construct meaning - especially the implied one.
Let's take a look at the example below.
The first, making an allusion to tales for kids and the second, to Princess
Dianas death. Lets take a close look at the cartoons caption to better
understand what this is all about.
THE ROYAL WEDDING IS JUST LIKE A FAIRY TALE.
EXCEPT, INSTEAD OF LIVING HAPPILY EVER AFTER, THE
PRINCESS IS STALKED BY THE PAPARAZZI FOR THE NEXT
60 YEARS.
As to fairy tales, we have two forms of allusion:
FAIRY TALES
VERBAL ALLUSION
evidenced by the pictorial text. In it, we can see a little girl sitting
on her daddy's knees and listening to him while he reads not about a
fairy story, but about the royal wedding.
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If you click here [5], you will have the chance to get more knowledge
about Princess Diana's life and death, which will enable you to make more
elaborate inferences about the editorial cartoon above.
PORTFOLIO ACTIVITY
SUPERMAN VS. TITANO
Below, you will find a comics magazine cover where you can see
Superman in one of his adventures. Study it with attention to retrieve as
many instances of implied meaning as possible. Also, look for clues that
can work as evidences of implied meaning. Explain each and every piece of
implicit information retrieved with reference to this context of situation.
Make comments as to prior knowledge, intertext(uality), verbal and nonverbal allusions. Write your considerations in the form of a composition.
Save it in your portfolio.
CLICK HERE
Source [6]
FORUM
STRATOS CHOCOLATE BAR SMART KIDS COMMERCIAL
Now watch the video below searching for implied meanings. Then
discuss the questions that follow it.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6GeEifhyg0&feature=youtu.be
[7]
Questions:
1. How smart do you think the boy is? Supply evidences to your
answer.
2. Is the baby born in the end of the video male or female? How do
you think the boy feels? Supply evidences to your answers.
3. Listen to the song played during the commercial. How does it
connect to the video? Don't forget to supply evidences to your answer.
You and Me Song - The Wannadies - w/ Lyrics
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOSYBNhjCVQ [8]
4. What role did your prior knowledge play in helping understand
the TV commercial? Explain.
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TEXTUAL ELEMENTS
Source[1]
Let's consider the text entitled Jealousy drove lover to kill, extracted
from the BBC Homepage, to see how textual elements can help the reader
retrieve implicit meaning.
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01
02
03
04
05
from:
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1331605.stm[2]
With your prior knowledge of the English language and of coherence
(Unit 1 Topic 3) and cohesion (Unit 2 Topic 1), you can infer that the
highlighted words and expressions allude to Tom Cressman and Jane
Andrews. In this case, nobody had to make any kind of explicit explanation to
help you make such inference. You did it all by yourself. We believe it was a
somewhat automatic process as you are accustomed to doing that during
your oral and written interactions. Being so identifying the reference item of
a referent (Unit 2 Topic 1) is something you do all the time without effort.
You certainly know that all the words in blue and all the ones in pink
are semantically related to Tom Cressman and Jane Andrews
respectively. What do we mean by "semantically related"? We mean that the
interpretation of one is dependent on that of another (Unit 2 Topic 1). Let's
see how the understanding of semantically related items can help us retrieve
implied meaning. Consider the following excerpts from the text.
EXCERPT 1
(ls. 1 - 3)
As you have probably noticed, the first three paragraphs of the text do
not identify Tom Cressmans killer. Before discovering her name, we are
given some useful clues about her. These clues help us retrieve implied
meaning. Click here
Textual elements
(clues) related to
Implied meanings
Jane Andrews
an insecure and
possessive person
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cricket bat
feelings.
Jane must be a strong woman.
EXCERPT 2
Implied meanings
Jane Andrews
According to his
mother, Barbara
Cressman, " Jane
Andrews was very
jealous about Tom."
EXCERPT 3
While
Jane and Tom were on holiday in the South of France,
>
she asked him a direct question about marriage," said Lucinda EllerySharp, a close friend of the couple. "And Tom gave >
her a direct
answer. He didn't want a family with
Jane because he thought
>
she was unstable. Ultimately I think >
she felt so let down that
>
she went into a blinding rage."
(ls. 14 18)
The clues listed below, all identified from Excerpt 3, help us
retrieve important pieces of implicit information that contribute to the
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Implied meanings
Andrews
Ultimately I think
she
As you might have perceived, all the meanings made explicit above are
conveyed by the text Jealousy drove lover to kill even though its
author and the characters involved in the story didn't literally say them. All
these meanings were, as you know, only implied by means of the clues we
identified.
PRACTICE 1
Consider the title of the article, its illustration and caption. What kind
of implicit meaning can you retrieve from them? Do you think with only
the meanings implied from what is supplied below you can write a brief
summary of the story?
86
If you want to practice a little bit more, you can go ahead and try to
retrieve implied meaning from the textual elements related to Tom
Cressman all in blue.
CONTEXTUAL ELEMENTS
One more time, let's consider the text entitled Jealousy drove lover
to kill, extracted from the BBC Homepage, to see how contextual elements
can help the reader retrieve implicit meaning.
The understanding of a single sentence or part of it may depend on its
context of production. Being so, in order to understand a text, oral or
written, in its totality, it is necessary to have access to the socio-historical
context in which it was produced. That's why it is important to know under
which circumstances a written text, for instance, was produced or to know
who wrote it, during which period of time the author lived, if he was driven
by certain intentions when he wrote it, etc. In other words, to be understood,
a text may be totally or partly dependent on its socio-historical context. The
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Well, you are right. They are all contextual elements and they are really
important to the complete understanding of the text we have discussed so
far. Without recognizing them, you may miss many relevant pieces of
information. Lets see.
BBC
Stands for the United Kingdom [3], the country of Great Britain
(England, Wales, Scotland) and Northern Ireland.
CRICKET
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2011
Presente days.
PRATICE 2
Now that you have all this knowledge about the contextual elements
identified in the text Jealousy drove lover to kill, do you think you can
retrieve any implicit meaning using them as clues?
CLICK HERE TO CHECK THE ANSWERS
REFERENCES
Costas. INFERENCE:
IMPLICATIONS FOR ELT. 2002.
PROCEDURES
AND
GOULD,
Mike.
FOCUS
ON
COMPREHENSION
Singapore:Learners Publishing, 2006.
2.
GREEN,
Mary.
FOCUS
ON
COMPREHENSION
Singapore:Learners Publishing, 2006.
3.
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