Title Exploring multimodal storytelling in contemporary award-winning picture books: a stylistic study /
Translation of Title Multimodalinis pasakojimas šiuolaikinėse apdovanojimą pelniusiose paveikslėlių knygose vaikams: stilistinis tyrimas.
Authors Marmion, Philomena Ieva
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Pages 75
Keywords [eng] multimodality, picture books, children’s literature, Caldecott Medal, stylistics, systemic functional grammar, visual grammar, multimodalumas, paveikslėlių knygos, vaikų literatūra, Kaldekoto medalis, sisteminė funkcinė gramatika, vizualinė gramatika
Abstract [eng] This study examines the multimodal storytelling techniques in Randolph Caldecott Medal- winning picture books from 2001 to 2025. Children’s picture books, which combine text and image for narrative storytelling, pose unique challenges for stylistic analysis. The multimodality of these books requires consideration of the visual and verbal modes through which the books communicate with readers. This thesis aims to provide a critical overview of the multimodal narrative strategies in Caldecott Medal-winning books and to refine existing methodologies for picture book analysis. Firstly, a dataset of 377 picture book spreads was coded according to a modified taxonomy, which draws on the types of word-image relationships identified by Nikolajeva and Scott (2006). Then, a qualitative analysis of the spreads was carried out to identify multimodal narrative strategies employed in the picture books. This was achieved by applying the theoretical frameworks of systemic functional grammar (Halliday and Matthiessen, 2014) and visual grammar (Kress and van Leeuwen, 2006). A supplementary framework was used to analyse cases of multimodal metaphors (Forceville, 2009; 2016). The study found a prevalence of cooperative visual-verbal interactions, which allow for clear communication of narratives and support the exploration of complex themes featuring in Caldecott titles. Counterpointing and sylleptic narratives were found to be scarce, instead serving marked narrative functions. These findings contribute to picture book scholarship by offering a refined, spread-based analytical approach to multimodal storytelling and by demonstrating how verbal and visual processes work together to construct meaning in contemporary children’s literature.
Dissertation Institution Vilniaus universitetas.
Type Master thesis
Language English
Publication date 2025