Understanding Context of Reception

Context of Reception

• Refers to the circumstances influencing how a text is received, affecting reading or listening experiences.

Core Vocabulary

• Everyday words forming a significant part of our vocabulary.

Couplet

• A pair of rhymed lines in poetry, created in any specific meter.

Crowdsourcing

• Defined by Jeff Howe in 2006 as outsourcing tasks to a large, undefined group of people through an open call.
• An example is estimating the number of marbles in a vase by collecting guesses from many individuals.
• Wikipedia exemplifies crowdsourcing, with numerous anonymous contributors editing content collaboratively.
• "The medium is the message," emphasizes the relation between text form and content.

Deictic

• Words such as "this," "that," "now," and "then" which direct attention within or beyond a text.

Denotation

• The literal or factual meaning of a word, as defined in a dictionary.

Denouement

• The final unfolding of plot in literature, providing resolution to characters' arcs.

Dialect

• A distinctive form of language combining unique vocabulary, pronunciation, and syntax.
• The distinction lies in that a language is usually standardized, whereas a dialect is not.

Diatribe

• A strongly critical discourse often associated with anger towards a subject.

Direct Narration

• The narrator explicitly conveys thoughts and interpretations to the reader, as seen in Jane Austen's "Emma."
• Opposed to indirect narration where readers interpret events independently without guidance.

Metonymy

• Refers to concepts by associating them with intimately related symbols, such as "Washington's response" for the U.S. political response.
• Should not be confused with synecdoche, where a part refers to a whole.

Modality

• Reflects the attitudes of writers towards subject matter and audience.
• Encompasses truth, likelihood, desirability, and permission, often expressing authority.

Multivocal

• Suggests that texts hold multiple meanings based on readers' contexts and ideologies, highlighting variable interpretations.

Newsworthiness

• Determined by factors such as negativity or sensationalism, leading to stories that capture public interest.

Pay-per-click

• An advertising model where revenue is generated from users clicking on ads, significantly influencing web content.
• Google AdWords auctions words, leading to variable pricing based on keyword popularity and relevance.

Phrase

• A unit of language smaller than a sentence that consists of one or several words, identified by its head word.

Problem/Solution Technique

• A persuasive advertising method convincing audiences of a problem to sell them a solution.

Pun

• A clever play on words exploiting multiple meanings or similar sounds, often for humorous effect.

Reported Speech

• The practice of summarizing what characters say rather than quoting them directly.