Representing the Past through Narratives: A Systemic Functional Multimodal Analysis of D-Day Commemoration in Military Times
Journal: Region - Educational Research and Reviews DOI: 10.32629/rerr.v7i6.4180
Abstract
This study applies Systemic Functional Multimodal Discourse Analysis (SF-MDA) to explore how Military Times, a U.S. military-affiliated publication, constructs historical memory through its reporting on D-Day commemorations. Through the examination of 15 news reports (2019-2024) that incorporate both textual and visual elements, this research interrogates the interplay of linguistic and visual semiotics in reinterpreting collective memory. The analysis reveals how multimodal synergy elevates wartime sacrifice to a moral duty, embeds Cold War paradigms into modern geopolitical contexts, and strengthens military identity via ritualized remembrance[1]. This ideological framing not only legitimizes U.S. defense policies but also fosters transgenerational ethical empathy and sustains alliance solidarity. The study highlights the pivotal role of military media as institutional agents in leveraging historical narratives to consolidate ideological positions.
Keywords
Systemic Functional Multimodal Discourse Analysis (SF-MDA), D-Day commemoration, collective memory construction, military media narratives
Full Text
PDF - Viewed/Downloaded: 0 TimesReferences
[1] Fillmore C J. Frame Semantics. In Linguistics in the Morning Calm. Seoul: Hanshin, 1982. 111-137
[2] Smith D. Language and War Memory Semantic Structures in Military Media Narratives. Journal of Historical Pragmatics, 2018, 19(1): 102-121
[3] Lee H, Zhang Y. Semantic Framing in Chinese Anti-Japanese War Discourse Lexical Patterns and Intertextual Symbolism. Discourse & Society, 2020, 31(4): 401-419
[4] Hall S. Representation Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices. Sage Publications, 1997
[5] Chen X. War Memory and Ethnicity The Role of Nontraditional Symbols in Southwest China. Memory Studies, 2021, 14(3): 567-584
[6] Assmann A. Transformations between History and Memory. Poetics Today, 2008, 29(2): 489-506
[7] Connerton P. How Societies Remember. Cambridge University Press, 1989
[8] Butler J. Gender Trouble Feminism and the Subversion of Identity. Routledge, 1990
[9] Wertsch J V. Voices of Collective Remembering. Cambridge University Press, 2002
[10] Liu Y. Narrative Structures in Chinese War Commemoration Reports: A CorpusBased Study. Discourse Context & Media, 2019, 28: 100267
[11] Olick J K. Collective Memory The Two Cultures. Sociological Theory, 1999, 17(3): 333-348
[12] Caruth C. Unclaimed Experience Trauma Narrative and History. Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996
[13] Halbwachs M. On Collective Memory. University of Chicago Press, 1992
[14] Zhang Y. Media Narratives of War Survivors Trauma Sublimation and National Identity Construction. Chinese Journal of Communication, 2022, 15(1): 45-61
[15] Jones R, Smith T. Private Narratives and Public Histories Revisiting the Risks of Memory Reconstruction. Memory Studies, 2021, 14(5): 789-805
[16] Halliday M A K. An Introduction to Functional Grammar 2nd ed. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching & Research Press, 2000. 107+143 (in Chinese)
[17] Kress G, Leeuwen T V. Reading Images The Grammar of Visual Design 2nd ed. London: Routledge, 2006. 41
[18] Harrison C. Visual social semiotics Understanding how still images make meaning. Technical Communication, 2003, 5(1): 46-60
[19] Zhang D. An exploration of a synthetic theoretical framework for multimodal discourse analysis. Foreign Languages in China, 2009, (6): 24-30 (in Chinese)
[20] Royce T D. Intermodal Complementarity and Multimodal Meaning Towards a Model of Representational Relationships between Language and Visual Images in Authentic Texts. In Royce T D, Bowcher W L eds. New Directions in the Analysis of Multimodal Discourse. London: Routledge, 2007. 63-104
[21] Nørgaard N. Teaching Multimodal Stylistics. In Jeffries L, McIntyre D eds. Teaching Stylistics. United Kingdom: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011. 221-238
[2] Smith D. Language and War Memory Semantic Structures in Military Media Narratives. Journal of Historical Pragmatics, 2018, 19(1): 102-121
[3] Lee H, Zhang Y. Semantic Framing in Chinese Anti-Japanese War Discourse Lexical Patterns and Intertextual Symbolism. Discourse & Society, 2020, 31(4): 401-419
[4] Hall S. Representation Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices. Sage Publications, 1997
[5] Chen X. War Memory and Ethnicity The Role of Nontraditional Symbols in Southwest China. Memory Studies, 2021, 14(3): 567-584
[6] Assmann A. Transformations between History and Memory. Poetics Today, 2008, 29(2): 489-506
[7] Connerton P. How Societies Remember. Cambridge University Press, 1989
[8] Butler J. Gender Trouble Feminism and the Subversion of Identity. Routledge, 1990
[9] Wertsch J V. Voices of Collective Remembering. Cambridge University Press, 2002
[10] Liu Y. Narrative Structures in Chinese War Commemoration Reports: A CorpusBased Study. Discourse Context & Media, 2019, 28: 100267
[11] Olick J K. Collective Memory The Two Cultures. Sociological Theory, 1999, 17(3): 333-348
[12] Caruth C. Unclaimed Experience Trauma Narrative and History. Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996
[13] Halbwachs M. On Collective Memory. University of Chicago Press, 1992
[14] Zhang Y. Media Narratives of War Survivors Trauma Sublimation and National Identity Construction. Chinese Journal of Communication, 2022, 15(1): 45-61
[15] Jones R, Smith T. Private Narratives and Public Histories Revisiting the Risks of Memory Reconstruction. Memory Studies, 2021, 14(5): 789-805
[16] Halliday M A K. An Introduction to Functional Grammar 2nd ed. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching & Research Press, 2000. 107+143 (in Chinese)
[17] Kress G, Leeuwen T V. Reading Images The Grammar of Visual Design 2nd ed. London: Routledge, 2006. 41
[18] Harrison C. Visual social semiotics Understanding how still images make meaning. Technical Communication, 2003, 5(1): 46-60
[19] Zhang D. An exploration of a synthetic theoretical framework for multimodal discourse analysis. Foreign Languages in China, 2009, (6): 24-30 (in Chinese)
[20] Royce T D. Intermodal Complementarity and Multimodal Meaning Towards a Model of Representational Relationships between Language and Visual Images in Authentic Texts. In Royce T D, Bowcher W L eds. New Directions in the Analysis of Multimodal Discourse. London: Routledge, 2007. 63-104
[21] Nørgaard N. Teaching Multimodal Stylistics. In Jeffries L, McIntyre D eds. Teaching Stylistics. United Kingdom: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011. 221-238
Copyright © 2025 Feiyu Jiang
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License