Luận văn good morning hanoi! a multimodal analysis of travel blog posts by british travellers

“GOOD MORNING HANOI!”: A MULTIMODAL ANALYSIS OF TRAVEL BLOG POSTS BY BRITISH TRAVELLERS Trần Thị Hiếu Thủy" Abstract: This case study presents @ courageous attempt of the researcher t

“GOOD MORNING HANOI!”:

A MULTIMODAL ANALYSIS OF TRAVEL BLOG POSTS

BY BRITISH TRAVELLERS

Trần Thị Hiếu Thủy"

Abstract: This case study presents @ courageous attempt of the researcher to investigate

into tourism discourse, particularly travel blog posts, from a multimodal approach Analysis

of four blag pasts by British travelers who toured Hanoi seek to find out: (1) What aspects

of Hanal were described by the British travellers; (2) In what ways texts and images in the

blog posts help the travelers expressed their positive appreciation of Hanoi; and (3) Which

sociological perspectivets) of tourism discourse can be found prominent in those travel

blog posts, The researcher hopes that this analysis will present @ source of feedback from

International travelers ta tourism practice in Hanoi, She alsa expects to provide insights

into multimadal analysis of taurism discourse - which remains an under-researched area

in Vietnam,

Kay words: travel blogs, multimodal approach, texts and images, tourism texts

T INTRODUCTION

1.1 Rationale

Numeraus studies have acknowledged the strong impacts of social media on

holidaymakers’ choice of touristic destinations, A study of 123 Romanian young people shows that a hefty 81% of the respondents trust information on the Internet

and about 50% of them rely on reviews on travel blogs for their holiday decisions

(Dina & Sabou, 2012) Resulls of the global benchmarking survey TRAVELSATS conducted with 15,000 visitors worldwide indicate that nearly 25% of respandents

chose their destinations based on “information from the web” as opposed to 5% opting

for “appealing advertising on i?” Potential travellers’ demand for information has shifted from one-way fed information to joining a new platiorm of communication

where tourism information could be more effective, pervasive, and participatory

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"Iravel blogs, as “push-button publishing for people” have gained more and more popularity (Cayzer, 2004) Travel blogs, in Calzati’s way of categorization, often take

the form of “autodiegetic narratives" (Calzati, 2012, p.2) Thanks to the Web 2.0 and Web

3.0 technologies, bloggers now hold a dynamic role in communicating the meanings

they build through an integration of tourist texts, images and videos in their posts The

more embedded medial factors like images and videos in travel blog posts encourage

and ease the sharing of touristic experiences, the more they may affect “the reader's

fravel choice and decision-making process” (Cachiani, 2014, p.196, cited in Denti, 2015,

p49) No wonder why Francesconi (2014, p.8) persists that “all tourism and travel texts are becoming increasingly multimodal’, Analysis of any types of travel writings, hence,

should be done mullimodally rather than in a unimodal fashion

Though travel blogs prove a huge source of tourism information which benefits both

potential customem and destination marketers, “research analyzing the content of online fravel diaries is still in its infancy’ (Banyai & Glover, 2012) As for Vietnam, there have not been any studies to date in either Vietnamese or English on travel blogs in general, and

how the country is presented in the content of posts by international bloggersin particular

A multimodal analysis of such blog posts at two layers: language and visual images may

thus provide insights into tourists’ perceptions on Vietnam and the representations they

offer of themselves as members of the tourism discourse community In her multimodal

research journey of Vietnam, the author deliberately chose Hanoi as her starting point

since she has come intu contact with its people, cultures and places for nearly twenty

years, each of these is very different from those of Britain

1.2, Research aims

‘The paper aims to investigate into British travellers’ experience of touring Hanoi

It seeks answers to the following research questions:

(1) What aspects of Hanoi did the travellers describe? How did the use of adjectives

and still images help the travellers express their pusitive appreciation of such aspects?

(2) Which sociological perspcctive(s) of tourism discourse can be found

prominent in the blog posts?

2 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1, Tourism discourse

Tourism discourse has been a topic of growing interest in recent years Dann (1996, 2007a, 2007b) looks al the language of tourism froma sociolinguistic perspective

as an extension of Cohen's ‘towards Sociology of International tourism (1972, cited

in Dann, 1996, 2007a, 2007b), On the same line, Urry (2002) explores how tourists

express their expectations about the local Most research to date has been conducted

in the form of content analysis of promotion media such as brochures, magazines, pamphlets, booklets, and guidebooks, Itis worth noting that the majority of these are case studies, using multimodal analysis framework

The tourism discourse community can be recognized as an ample community

representing the reality via a communicative loop The producer's verbal

representation of the offered destinalions and services respects the expectations of

the receiver, and the expectations are often created by the offer itself, Thus, tourism discourse is conditioned to reflection and self-reflection of its participants, whose

verbal behavior mirrors and influences their social behavior, It is characterized by

four major sociological perspectives:

* The authenticity perspective is cormected with the work of MacCannel (1989), who claims that the main tourists’ motivation is the search of authenticity (cited in Dann, 1996, pp 7-11) although, for the sake of tourism, the real life of the others has been largely manipulated and commercialized

* The strangehood perspective emphasizes that a driving motivation for travelling is the search for strangeness and new experiences (Dann, 1996)

+ The play perspective treats tourism as a game and provides tourists with special experiences, which da not often match cultural and natural conditions of the visited destinations (Dann, 1996)

* The conflict perspective concerns differences between the provided thrilling experience and the real past and present of the visited areas and their inhabitants (Iollinshead, 1993a, cited in Dann, 1996)

Travel writing is “a genre of writing in which the author describes places they

have visited and their experiences while traveling” (Oxford dictionary) Blog posts

about travel experience by both professional travel bloggers and the amateur ones belong to this genre of writing since they recount real journeys Travel blog is also

a genre with distinctive linguistic features which can be further described in terms

of its thematic profile, with posts facusing on a number of topics such as history,

nature, entertainment, food and drink, and so on As D’kgidio (2014) summarizes, linguistically, narration on travel blog posts is in the first person, consisting a lot of

positive and negative expressions, and conveying the writer’s subjectivity regarding

the various aspects of the destination and holiday in general, and the traveller's

cultural needs and expectations Another characteristic of travel blogs is the inclusion

of both verbal and multimedia materials, such as photos, videos, and hyperlinks

The fact that more and more people are writing, tesponding to and sharing travel-related contents online indicates that travel blogs can provide a rich source of

data for linguistic study However, to date, few research works have focused their objectives on linguistic analysis of this corpus (Orlando, 2009; Fina, 2011; Cappelli, 2012) This may be a gap to fill in by this current research

2.2, Theoretical frameworks

‘The study bases itself on the following frameworks:

The Appraisal Framework (Martin & White, 2005) provides for analyses of those

meanings by which texts convey positive or negative assessments, by which “the

intensity or directness of such attitudinal utterances is strengthened or weakened and by which speakers/writers engage dialogistically with prior spcakers or with

potential respondents to the current proposition” (White, 2015, p.1) It follows the systemic-functional linguistics theory of Halliday (1978) which proposes that the

semiotic resources of language are shaped by how people use them to make meaning, emphasizing the social functions they are put to, Halliday (1978) holds that every sign serves three metafunctiona simultaneously:

+ ideational metafunction: the sign expresses something about the world,

+ tnterpersonal metafunction: the sign positions people in relation to each other, and

Hextusl metafunction: the sign forms connections with other signs to produce

coherent texts

(Halliday, 1978, cited in Kress & van Leuween, 1996) The Appraisal Framework deals with interpersonal metafunction in thatit describes

evaluative meanings Appraisal involves three interacting domains “attitude”,

“engagement, and “graduation” Within allilude, there are three regions of feeling -

“affect” (construing a person’s emotional reactions), “judgement” (assessing people's behavior) and “appreciation” (construing the value of things) This study looks at

how British travelers evaluate different aspects of Hanoi that they have come into

contact with, so it falls in the final category of appreciation

reactonimpact escion ut sovrecnion-|sempcsfon bance

itlon: complexity,

[exiginal, derivative, warthiass|

Figure 1: Sub-categories of Appreciation, with examples (Martin & White 2005: 56, cited in Goddah etal, pre-printed document}

Martin and White (2005, p.57) also suggest a metafunctional interpretation of the

appreciation framework, in which reaction is oriented to interpersonal significance,

composition to textual organization, and valuation ta ideational worth

Since this study attempts to figure out what the travelers liked about Llanoi, the focus would be placed on valuation and reaction properties, more specifically, the positive evaluations that can be found on these properties, The following extract from the table by Martin and White (2005, p.56) proved to shape the frame for the research

Table 2.8 Types of appreciation

Punitive Rseetion antesting, capsvacing, cogaping impact “did it fascinating exciting, Moving gabe? lively, anuatie, imvense

remarkable, nersble, senseadonal

Reaction: ‘okay, fine, good qualty ‘did 1Hike st?” lovely, beautiful, splendid

appealing, enchanting, welcome

‘Compositica: balaaced, harmonious, unllied, balarve ‘did ithang — semmecrical, proportioned

together?” consistent, consiilered,‘egical „7

shapely, curvaceous, willowly

‘Composition: simple, pure, elegant

Counplexity lad, clea, precise

“way it hard to follow?’ Intricate, rich, decafled, precise Yatuation Penetrating profound, de

mo,

Figure 2: Types of positive appreciations, with positive adjectives

[adapted from Martin and White, 2005, p.56)

Kress and Van Leewwen's Grammar of Visual Design (1996/ 2006) is a socially- based theory of visual representation Kress and Van Leeuwen utilize Llalliday's SFI theory to provide an analogy for the development of a visual grammar and to

outline the kinds of categories which they regard as essential to the analysis of the visual semiotics They adopt the theoretical notion of “metafunction” as posited in

the work of Halliday (1978) and coin corresponding terminologies to describe three elements of a visual image:

+ Ideational > Representational meaning: A range of ways of semantically relating represented participants;

+ Interpersonal interactive meaning: A cange of ways of semantically relating

interactive participants; and

+ Textual >Compositional mearing: A range of ways of semantically relating the elements on a page to each other,

In this study, anly still images and their interactive meanings are concerned This category of visual meaning was analysed in the [ollowing aspects

~ bana

se ————L

ote

= matey Sora dane suis

— mm

xterm

ei aren

keuvAdieelesiaso

Figure 3: Interactive meanings (Kress & van Leuween, 2006, p 149)

3 METHODOLOGY

Data for the study are taken from the following blog posts:

hittps://thetravelista net/2018/02/22/3-week-vietnam-travel-itinerary/ by Jess hitps://cestinatote.com/vietnam-2-weeks-itinerary/ - by Swheta

hitps://www.ourbigfattraveladventure.com/2014/03/18/heart-hanoi/ - by Amy

http://whereisnikki.co.uk/2015/01/01/adventures-in-vietnam-hanoi/ - by Nikki

Asummary of word counts and photo counts for each post is presented below

Jess Swheta | Amy Nikki

These posts are all written by British travelers who are in the age group of 25-40

A number of reasons account for this choice British travelers are one representative

of Wester culture Therefore, using Grammar of Visual Design as the framework for studying photos in this data corpus would work well since Kress and van Leuwen have made clear that their theory applies to all forms of visual communication within Western visual designs (Kress & van Leuwen, 2006, p.20) Besides, the 2017 — 2018

tourism statistics show that compared to other countiies in kurope, Liritain holds the sccond largest number of arrivals to Victnam, only after Russia Age is taken into consideration as well so that it may not present counter effects on the travellers’ viewpoints The selected posts all dated from 2014 to now; therefore, they remain fresh and provide up-to-date information about Vietnam and Hanoi

The study was conducted qualitatively, First, the author looked for key words

in the posts to identity the aspects of touring Hanoi that the bioggers narrated, and also to establish which aspect(s) were of their preference This was done with

free tools on the Lextutor website (hitps://www.lextutor.ca/cgi-bin/key/word

pl) and the author’s manual work on the list of adjectives extracted from the

collection of data At the same time, she analyzed the interactive meaning ot still

images presented in the posts, using the suggestive list by Kress and van Leeuwen (2006, p.148-149) The author invited the use of tools of multimodal analysis for

the investigation of authentic domain-specific instances so as to figure out which

sociological perspective(s) was/were most prominent in these blog posts From times to times, comparisons between the travellers’ views and advertisements of

travel agencies about Hanoi were made

4 RESULT AND DISCUSSION

4.1 Research question 1: What aspects of Hanol did the travellers describe? Haw did the use of

adjectives and still Images help the travellers express their positive appredation of such aspects?

4.1.1 Text analysis - aspects of Hanoi being described

Jess, Swheta, Amy and Nikki all arrived on direct flight J lanoi was the starting

point of their journey in Vietnam, and they used this place as a hub lo explore other

areas in the North of Vietnam like Ha Long Bay, Sapa or Ninh Binh The time they

spent discovering the city varied from one day (Swheta) to two weeks (Nikki)

Swhela, however, suggested spending such a short lime in Vietnam's capital “is

4 shame” because “this city demands « couple of days tu be explored at leisure” Nikki

based in Hanoi the longest due to food poisoning; still, she found time had not

been wasted staying there Apart from Jess who suggested spending two ar three

nights in Hanoi al most, other Lravelers recommended a longer time to explore the

city to ity fullest

Initial extraction of key words using Keyword tool on Lextutor returns the following result:

(18) 67.15 architecture (1) 8819.00 mausoleum

(2) 5879.33 pagada bạ) + t take

(3) 3858.25 hostel (21) 61.03 france (4) 812.42 motorbike (22) 56.77 communist (6) 593.68 puppet (23) 56.05 beef

(6) 489.94 temple (24) 55.28 transport ()489.83 stroll (25) 50.87 quarter (8) 372.81 vietnam (28) 47.07 palace

(8) 322.65 posh (27) 43.23 hotel

(10) 238.35 cafe (11) 234.13 turle (12) 146.41 museum (13) 118.11 emperor

(17) 67.15 lagand

(29) 33.66 translate

(30} 33.56 explore

(31) 32.87 recommend (14) 83.72 fame

{18) 76.91 delicious bi ? $8 locate

(18) 74.42 sword ¢ (34) 25.33 street .33 giant

The extraction suggests that to these travelers, topics in discussion range from

places to visit (c.g mausoleum, pagoda, puppet [theatre], temple, sword [lake]), food

to vat (café, beef [pho]}, to traffic (motorbike, street) There are hints of the travelers’ evaluation of aspects of the city (delicious [food], unique [architecture, way of lifel, crazy [trafficl), However, due to the limited size of data corpus, few interesting

outcomes have been detected quantitatively

Ascan of adjeclives used in the blog posts shows thal all four ‘ravelers remarked

Hanoi as a vibrant place which provides a strong identity

Chaotic, Fascinating, Exotic (Jess)

the evolving art scene, the stately buildings in the French Quarter and the wild and wonderful craziness (Swheta)

a continuous churning river of activity and life hes both the generic features

of a big city as well as its own unique personality (Amy)

wonderfully chaotic city brimming with history and character (Nikki)

The two most common activities of the travelers were sightseeing and sampling

local foods They also fell for the Hanoian way of life and were taken back by its narrow streets and crazy traffic None of them recommended shopping, amusement

park, and such

Places to see

Top key words for places include The Old Quarters and Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum Other places of interest were Hoan Kiem Lake (Jess), The Opera House (Swheta),

‘Temple of Literature (Swheta, Amy and Nikki), Water Puppet Thoatre (Jess, Amy,

and Nikki), and St Joseph’s Cathedral (Nikki) ‘Ihe travelers all featured Hanoi as

a place of historical buildings, museums and temples where they could observe French-influenced architecture Adjectives used in this theme express valuation and reaction variables “Beautiful” and “unique”, for example, are confirmation of quality (the answer to the question “did 1 like it?”) and value (the answer to the question “was it worthwhile?”)

the bustling Old Quarter the Lotus Water Puppet Show, a strangely unique experience that is synonymous to Vienum and more specifically, Hunvi (Jess)

ee strolled around in the shaded bylanes in the Old Quarter (Swheta}

ode experienced our first taste of Vietnantese culture in water puppet shows, museums and historical buildings ! think visiting the Mausoleum is a must (Amy)

The city is filled with history museums, monuments and beautiful temples (Nikki)

Food ta eat

All travelers recommended Hanoi as a great place for sampling local cuisine In their memory, local fuods were easy to find and delicious to try There were small restaurants and café all along Hanoi streets and Iho Bo (Beef Noodles) and Vienam- style coffee were among must-try foods and drinks Adjectives of valuation and

impact reaction (the answer to the question “did it grab me?”) are found

Delicious street food slurped on hearty beef Pho many street cafés on

Pho Bat Dan My first Vietnamese iced coffee (super strong, so delicious!) (Jess)

Tried the egg coffee — thick, creauty, intense, and a complete delight, (Shweta)

the inviting orange glow of the cafes streets full of restaurants street food eaten

on clusters of tiny stools (Anty)

Surrounding area is packed with cafes eating Vietnam's renowned street food My personal favourite had to be Pho Bo (a noodle-based soup with beef) (Nikki)

The Hanoian way of life

‘The travelers described Hanoi as a place of pronounced contrast Onone extreme,

what lhey could sce on the first sight were “ihe wild and wonderfiul craziness”, “crazy

motorbikes”, “crazy street maze", “busy street” On the other extreme, they appreciated

“the atmospheric Hoan Kiem Lake”, “beautiful temples”, or the scene of “ien either playing chess or doing « spot of fishing” in tranquil spaces Amy depicted the contrast of Hanoi with the images of “the towering skyscrapers and colonial houses” going by, and

“leafy streets stuffed with people” In this theme, adjectives of valuation and impact reaction (the answer to the question “did it grab me?”) are found.

It is worth noting that except Jess who commented that ”Hanot isn’t the most

friendly or relaxing place to start your travels” , other travelers highlighted the friendliness

and helpfulness of the locals The people they came into contact with were vulunteer

tour guides, hotel staffs, and local people in the street

T can't recommend them [Hanwi kids] enough! (Swheta)

[Hotel staffs] were keen to help, giving us extensive directions, tips and recommendations

(Any)

Luckily the locals were friendly enough to put us out of cur misery and point us in the right direction| IT met many friendly university students eager to practice their English with me (NHÀ)

Traffic

According tothe travelers, Hanoi was characterized by narrow streets and crazy traffic with vehicles coming in all directions, In this theme, adjectives of impact reaction (the answer to the question “did it grab me?”) are found

the narrow streets of the bustling Old Quarter (Jess)

the wild and wonderful craziness of the Old Quarter (Swheta)

leafy streets stuffed with people the snaking laneways asea of motorbikes (Amy) motorbikes coming at you from all angles a steady stream of motorbikes,

rickshaws and cars, driving in all directions nothing compared to actually having to

cross the roads yourself while walking the busy streels (Nikki)

ILis worth noting that though traffic chaos posed diificullies to them, none of the travelers got angry withit Instead, they viewed this erratic traffic flow as an exciting and exotic challenge during their Hanoi visit, just like Nikki wrote "It really is mental

fo watch from the side of the road, but you soon learn fo appreciate the beauty of the chaos!

4.1.2 Still image analysis:

The table below summarizes the use of still images in cxamined blog posts

Number of images Source Whal they described Jess 4 photos/ 305 words taken by the traveler |Food (2 photos) é& leople (1 photo)

& Places (1 phato) Swheta [2 photos/303 words taken bythe blogger | Coffee (1) & Building (1)

Amy | I2pholos/ 1297 words taken by the blogger | Tralfic (2) & Places of interests (10) Nikki |6 photos/ 1340 words taken by the blogger |Local people in the street (3) &

Places of interests (3)