T-Shirts: Urban Language of Remembrance
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approach of reader appeal seems to be true in the case of how composers of the
message of T-shirts use language and imagery to obtain that objective.
Part of the lore of T-shirts, as an expression of remembrance, is the
language that is found on these garments. The language is direct and conveys
sentiments from the addresser to the addressee. Notice the brevity of these
initials R.I P. on a T-shirt. They say a lot without using any words. In several
instances, imagery and metaphor are salient features of the language of
remembrance. Although elements of color, size, and texture have some
significance on the final appearance of the message of T-shirts, what the
message conveys is a critical element of these forms of clothing. Take, for
instance, the message that reads: Gone But Never Forgotten. It is here that a
sender of the message and the audience come together in a symbiotic
relationship. There is a sense of agreement on the part of the sender that the
reader would share the view that the departed individual would always be
remembered.
If the message is to have its greatest effect, the messenger must take into
account a number of factors that influence the power of the message. First, the
audience is a central feature in communication. Not to know one’s audience
creates problems for the messenger. Notice the use of commercials in modem
life as companies that sell beverages, primarily various brands of beer and
athletic footwear, take into account a certain audience, primarily middle-age and
urban youth. Based on the language and the accompanying visual elements (e.g.,
beach setting, game watching) that co-occur with commercials, the composers of
these messages must take the typical viewing audience of a particular program
into account if the message is to have its greatest effect.
Furthermore, adequate communication gets us into the area of language
processing. Effective communication is determined by the way in which
individuals process language. In this case, since the language of remembrance is
done primarily with words and with phrases, as opposed to complete sentences,
the lexicon is a good place to begin a brief analysis of language processing.
Language Processing
In lexical processing, R. Reed Hunt and Henry Ellis advanced the notion of
ordered search theory in that individuals select words based on the relative
frequency of a word’s meaning (321). In the event that the most frequent use of
the word does not meet the reader’s expectation, the next most frequent use of
the word is activated. Another perspective on lexical processing, reordered
access theory, is proposed by Susan Duffy et al (qtd. in Hunt and Ellis 323). The
central aim of this theory is that all meanings of a word are initially activated,
but non-lexical sources of information can influence the speed or strength with
which the various meanings are activated (323). As is the case with ordered
search theory, frequency of meaning will be activated quickly or strongly.
When readers process the message of remembrance, they may use one or
both of these systems of lexical language processes noted above. The language
written on T-shirts has no value unless readers can process it in a manner that is