From Language to the Semiosphere: A Systematic Review of the Social Semiotic Approach to Multimodal Discourse Analysis

XUAN Junbin, SONG Qijun

Abstract

This systematic review traces the theoretical and methodological trajectory of the social semiotic approach to multimodal discourse analysis. Originating in M.A.K. Halliday's foundational work on language as a social semiotic, the approach has evolved into a comprehensive framework for analysing how meaning is made through the interplay of diverse semiotic resources in social contexts. We chart its development through the critical-ideological turn of Hodge and Kress, the landmark application to visual communication by Kress and van Leeuwen, and its formalisation as Systemic Functional Multimodal Discourse Analysis (SF-MDA). The review synthesises the core principles of the approach—including the motivated sign, the concept of semiotic resource, and the centrality of the metafunctional principle—and examines its extension to non-linguistic modes such as sound, music, and gesture. We survey its application across key contemporary domains, including digital media, advertising, and education, highlighting its analytical power in deconstructing complex multimodal texts. Finally, the paper critically assesses the methodological challenges, scholarly debates, and future directions of the field, considering the impact of interactive digital technologies and the rise of computational semiotics. It is concluded that the social semiotic approach remains an indispensable critical and analytical tool for understanding the complex, multimodal nature of contemporary communication.

Keywords

Social semioticsMultimodal discourse analysisDiscourse studiesSystematic review

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