Exploring the multimodal argument: the interplay of multimodality and attention economy

This paper explores how a multimodal argument might take shape. Looking specifically at how students might conceive of a multimodal argument through their own digital literacy practices in design, I combine the theories of Richard Lanham’s rules of attention economy with Kress and van Leeuwen’svisual grammar to investigate the rhetorical possibilities of persuasive multimodal composition. Using a case study of a multimodal argument in the form of a video featuring images accompanied by rapped lyrics, the findings suggest possibilities for orchestrating semiotic resources to infuse the argumentative with aesthetics.