Multimodality

of perfume advertisements
Multimodal aka creolized text
combines two or more semiotic systems:

• Linguistic:  vocabulary, structure, grammar of oral/written

language
• Visual: colour, vectors and viewpoint in still and moving images
• Audio: volume, pitch and rhythm of music and sound effects
• Gestural: movement, facial expression and body language
• Spatial: proximity, direction, position of layout, organisation of
objects in space.
Examples of types of multimodal text are:
 Verbal
component

Logical and
comprehensive
image

Nonverbal
component
Visual

and

verbal component
VISUAL
 Why?
1) scents are difficult to describe and verbalize
2) Brands have an internationally-oriented standardized campaign
The new fragrance for…..
Flowery images
Sea landscapes
Urban settings sports activities
Glamour Fashion
‘agent provocateur’

FEMALE
 Then: feminine and elegant, whose main objective in wearing a
perfume is to please men and attract their attention;
Now: self-fulfillment through the use of a fragrance.
FEMALE
 MALE
‘lifestyle’
 Then: masculine
Now: effeminate (womanlike)
MALE
So, closer look at advertisements for perfumes will reveal that there are few
references to smell, which is, after all the sense directly affected by these products.
These adverts try to create a mood rather than provide information about the
tangible properties of the product.
 u !
yo
nk
h a
T