Text A is an extract from ‘The Times’ newspaper written in 1912. The subject matter contains the story of the Titanic disaster, in which America’s multi million dollar indestructible boat sank on it’s first ever outing.
It is evident from the graphology that the text derives from a journalism genre, as there are headlines, dates and times, and the lexis itself suggests a journalistic nature,
“going to press”
The writers attitudes towards this particular incident surface very early on in the text. From the passage, “The Titanic sank at 2.20 this morning. No lives were lost”, we see an attitude appear in the text as the writer immediately dismisses the idea that there was any deceased. This attitude, appearing so early on in the text, gives the reader an indication that the rest of the text will express a similar approach, in which the writer will dismiss any negativity that might create speculation of a disaster.
The opening paragraph of the article tells the event which has taken place, including what happened, where it happened, and when it happened. This informative style is common amongst most journalism, as the main objective of writing a news report is to include all the information concerning the event in the opening paragraph.
It is clear from the opening paragraphs that the reporters did not want to believe what had happened, as the lexis suggests a protective tone. The article tends to concern itself more on upholding a patriotic reputation for America, as this is made evident in the opening lines of the second paragraph,
“ New York was preparing to give the Titanic a big welcome” .
Also, individual lexis suggests the proud nature of the Newspaper, as the passengers aboard the Titanic are referred to as “distinguished Americ