The second scheme we owe to Roman Jakobson. Jakobson distinguishes more elements in the communicative situation.

Figure 2

Context (or referent)

Addresser .............. Message ................ Addressee

Contact

Code

An addresser delivers a message to an addressee. This always occurs in a context, to which the message refers. The message is a complex of signs which can be understood in relationship to a code (for instance, English). The contact includes the elements specific to this act of communication, such as the channel of transmission and the signs which ensure that communication is effectively taking place (e. g. the initial "hello" in a telephone conversation). As in Bühler's scheme, each element is related to a function of language (in italics):

Figure 3:

Context (or referent): referential

Addresser: ............ Message: poetic ........... Addressee: Conative

Emotive

or Expressive Contact: Phatic

Code: Metalingual

Jakobson's scheme derives from Bühler's, just as Bühler's derives from earlier ones. Bühler's scheme is less complete than Jakobson's, but they can be superposed with little contradiction. The relationship of these elements to the literary communicative situation can readily be seen:

World

Author........................Work.....................Reader

Media (book, drama, film...)

Linguistic and literary codes and conventions

We will try to keep these schemes in mind when dealing with literature and the kind of attention literary theory devotes to literature.

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