Lesson 1 Role of language in media

Written codes

Communication through both written and spoken language (including dialogue and song lyrics).
When analysing written codes, you could consider:

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  Vocabulary use (choice of words)
  
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  Font (size, style, etc.)
  
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  Punctuation
  
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  Grammar
  
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  Paralinguistic features (e.g. accent, pitch, volume, tone of voice)
  

Conventions

Conventions are the expected ways in which codes are used in certain situations. When looking at different conventions, there is a focus on genre, narrative and form.

Genre

Genre refers to a particular category or style of media text. Different types of media adhere to different genre conventions. This means they each have certain purposes and target audiences.
A horror film's purpose is to create fear and suspense. For this reason, it is aimed at teenagers and adults, not young children.
Each genre contains sub-genres. For example:

Genre	Sub-genre examples
Literature	Fiction, non-fiction, poetry, fantasy, sci-fi, thriller
Film/TV	Horror, comedy, romance, drama, documentary
Art	Portraits, landscapes, still life, historical
Music	Pop, rock, folk, R&B, hip hop, musical theatre

Narrative

Narrative refers to the ways a media text tells a story. Each media text has a different narrative. When analysing a narrative, consider whether it is linear or non-linear:

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