A composition course is described in which students are encouraged to explore metaphorical expressions in a variety of media. (JH)

This article describes several types of native American nonspeech communications systems, including the Plains sign language, distance signaling of various kinds, picture writing and whistle speech. See FL 508 188 for availability. (CLK)

The intellectual changes of the 19th century were as dramatic as the economic changes of the Industrial Revolution. U.S. citizens at that time subscribed to the traditional belief that a spiritual self, grafted onto the body, was the source of life and thought. The later belief that human beings possessed complete, experiential knowledge of their…

Music videos from the past few years have become a prominent phenomenon in our culture. They are critically compared by a small or large section of the public with the structures of, and relations within, social reality. These videos are considered to portray real situations that are, according to the standards of western culture, severely…

This monograph posits a rhetorical theory of video-art and presents perspectives on the status of video-art in Latin America. Video-art, which utilizes technology in the field of aesthetics, is perceived as fundamentally rhetorical and stylistic. Conclusions about the form include the comments that the analysis of visual messages is possible…

The article presents an audio-visual teaching method for advanced students of Italian, in which major emphasis is placed on phonostylistic and semiotic factors: intonation and stress, rhythm, and gestures. A sample exercise is included. (CLK)

DEPENDENCE UPON SYMBOLS HAS LONG BEEN THE MARK OF CIVILIZED MAN. ALTHOUGH THE MAJORITY OF US HAVE LITTLE TROUBLE IDENTIFYING AND EVALUATING THE REFERENTS OF PHYSICAL SYMBOLS, WE ARE LESS SURE WHEN DEALING WITH THE MORE SUBTLE TYPE OF SYMBOLS CALLED WORDS. WE KNOW THAT A WORD'S MEANING MAY VARY ACCORDING TO SPEAKER, WRITER, LISTENER, READER, OR…

Symbolic interaction is the foundation for a theory of rhetoric developed in this paper. As manipulators of symbols, humans, unlike all other animals, use abstractions both to indicate (describe things present) and to represent (describe intangible things). Only human beings are capable of the elaborate systems of linguistic reference called…

A survey of Maurice Merleau-Ponty's views on the phenomenology of language yields insight into the basic semiotic nature of language. Merleau-ponty's conceptions stand in opposition to Saussure's linguistic postulations and Korzybski's scientism. That is, if language is studied phenomenologically, the acts of speech and gesture take on greater…

Presentation of a methodology for instruction in reading and interpreting graphs and charts in a foreign language class. Illustrated by several demographic charts, the discussion includes an explanation of graphic semiology, several pedagogical approaches, the relationship between written text and graph and a bibliography. (Text is in French.)…

The English Department at Carnegie Mellon believes they are creating a new-wave curriculum. Theoretical questions are becoming the center of undergraduate study. Scholars want students to think about the political, social, and historical forces that end up shaping a writer's vision, the written work, and the reader's interpretation. (MLW)

Urges the use of new developments in structuralist and poststructuralist theory as the basis for a new practice in the teaching of composition. (CRH)

Discusses semiotics, which, in dealing with how meaning is communicated, views language as only one component of communication activity. Gives special attention to the new perspectives which semiotics has given to the study and teaching of intonation. (FB)

Examines "trends" in English teaching in four categories: interests, trends, movements, and repertoire. (HOD)

Investigates the genres, sign systems, and cueing systems of hypermedia literacy. Contends that increased knowledge of this complex literacy will help educators plan curriculum and evaluate student progress. Explains that the analysis is based on a microethnographic study that investigated hypermedia composition in a seventh-grade language arts…