Audiovisual Archives: Digital Text and Discourse Analysis

Chapter 4

Model of Description and Task of Analysis

 

4.1. Introduction

Having discussed a concrete example of a model of content description* applied to a corpus of audiovisual texts* in Chapter 3, in this chapter we shall evoke more general consequences relating, on the one hand, to the hierarchical and syntagmatic structure of any model of description and, on the other hand, to the analytical task devoted to the textual object.

In section 4.2, we shall very briefly discuss the main constituents of a model of description.

In section 4.3, we shall give a general overview of the canonic syntagmatic order of a model of description which, at the same time, determines every concrete analytical scenario. By “syntagmatic order”, we mean the structure of succession of the main sequences according to which the process of analyzing an audiovisual text is carried out.

In section 4.4, we give a more detailed discussion of the distinction – which, to us, appears crucial – between four hierarchical levels for correctly dealing with and modeling the task of analysis. The distinction to which we refer is drawn between:

i) the type of analysis;

ii) the task of analysis making up a type of analysis;

iii) the procedure of description according to which a task of analysis is carried out; and finally,

iv) the concrete activity or activities of description which make up a procedure of description.

Finally, in section 4.5, we shall give a more particular account of the type of analysis called content ...