Hermeneuti.ca – The Rhetoric of Text Analysis

Mandala is a visualization tool that imports “textual” files to perform analysis on the frequency and linkage of words. For example, you may import a play and find the linkage and frequency between a word and its speaker.

Getting Started Advanced Features

Getting Started 

Once you’ve launched Mandala, the interface should be blank. On the top left corner of Mandala, you have a few options for how to proceed with loading a file. You may click Open File to proceed to open a file of your choosing (preferably .xmlXML, or Extensible Markup Language, is a language used in web development to make a text readable by web browsers and/or store data. Like HTML, XML is primarily formed of paired elements. Unlike HTML, the elements are defined by the user, rather than predefined. For example, both < book >< /book > and < murfle >< /murfle > are valid element pairs. These elements apply characteristics and metadata to the text within them. One pair of elements may be nested inside another: < book >< title >< /title >< /book > Elements may also be modified by attributes and attribute values: < book format="hardcover" > In this case, the book element has the attribute 'format' and the attribute value 'hardcover'. In addition to storing metadata about the text, attribute/attribute value pairs are frequently used in combination with CSS to apply formatting to the text within the element. Return to Glossary. , .txt, or .zip), or you may choose any file listed in the dropdown menu. Dots Represent allows you to choose which tags in your file you would like to visualize. More often than not, Mandala will choose the option that will produce the most useful visualization. Finally, once you’ve made your selection, click Load to load the file into view. Additionally, you may load a new file into the current visualization with Merge.

If you’ve loaded RomeoJuliet.xmlXML, or Extensible Markup Language, is a language used in web development to make a text readable by web browsers and/or store data. Like HTML, XML is primarily formed of paired elements. Unlike HTML, the elements are defined by the user, rather than predefined. For example, both < book >< /book > and < murfle >< /murfle > are valid element pairs. These elements apply characteristics and metadata to the text within them. One pair of elements may be nested inside another: < book >< title >< /title >< /book > Elements may also be modified by attributes and attribute values: < book format="hardcover" > In this case, the book element has the attribute 'format' and the attribute value 'hardcover'. In addition to storing metadata about the text, attribute/attribute value pairs are frequently used in combination with CSS to apply formatting to the text within the element. Return to Glossary. , Mandala should look similar to this:

For this example, Mandala automatically visualizes the most frequent elementAn element, also called a tag, is characteristically used within HTML and XML to apply characteristics (such as headings, paragraphs or user-defined categories) or metadata to a document, usually a text. Elements generally appear in matching pairs of an opening element and a closing element, with text in between. All text within an element pair is modified by that element, and one element pair may be nested inside another. In the case of HTML, elements are used to format a text directly, or as a delimiter for CSS formatting to the text within that element. An HTML paragraph element: < p >< /p > In the case of XML, elements may be also be used as a delimiter for CSS formatting to the text within that element, but its primary purpose is to apply metadata to that text. Ex: < book format="hardcover" >< /book > Both HTML and XML elements may be modified with attribute/value pairs. In the above example, format="hardcover" is the attribute/value pair modifying the element < book >. Return to Glossary. in the represented tagA tag, also called an element, is characteristically used within HTML and XML to apply characteristics (such as headings, paragraphs or user-defined categories) or metadata to a document, usually a text. HTML and XML tags generally appear in matching pairs of an opening and a closing tag, with text in between. All text within a tag pair is modified by that tag, and one tag pair may be nested inside another. In the case of HTML, tags are used to format a text directly, or as a delimiter for CSS formatting to the text within that tag. An HTML paragraph tag: < p >< /p > In the case of XML, tags may be also be used as a delimiter for CSS formatting to the text within that tag, but its primary purpose is to apply metadata to that text. Ex: < book format="hardcover" >< /book > Both HTML and XML tags may be modified with attribute/value pairs. In the above example, format="hardcover" is the attribute/value pair modifying the tag < book >. Return to Glossary. (in this case, the most frequent speaker of a speech is Romeo.) It will then visualize one of the most frequent words within all of the speeches, and also visualize the matches between the speaker and the word. In this case, love is visualized and we see the matches between love and Romeo visualized with a blue/green magnet. Magnets are Mandala’s method of grouping differing elements on screen. If we click on any of the dots surrounding a magnet, we will see a speech displayed in the right-hand display called the reader panelWeb frameworks like the TAPoR Portal organize information into panels (sometimes called portlets or coplets.) These can me minimized, maximized and closed using the three buttons in the upper left-hand corner of the panel. With Voyant you can export panels of results and place them into other web sites. Return to Glossary.. We can also double-click on a magnet for all of its speeches, or even click-and-hold to lasso dots and display their speeches.

If you’d like to add a new search term, navigate to the Search palette and click Add New Magnet. Then, type in your new search criteria in the text box. Then click Go to add this new search term to our visualization:

If we click on the dance magnet, we can see that we are unable to see who is actually speaking. If we’d like to see whose speaking, we need to click on the Display palette and on the Fields always displayed dropdown, click speech—speaker. If you return to the dance magnet, we will now be able to see who is speaking. 

We can also add new magnets representing speakers. Click Add New Magnet and under Field, select speech—speaker. You may type in Juliet’s name, or whichever character you would like to visualize. Click Go. We now can see the subsets of where Juliet says the words love and dance: 

If you would like to see the finer details of your Mandala visualization, you may zoom in / out and adjust the screen with the Display palette. Click on the Display palette and you may zoom in / out with the ‘+’ and ‘-‘ signs. Another way to zoom is with a mousewheel / two-finger scroll. You may also navigate the screen with the ←, →, ↓, ↑ arrows. If you’d like more control, you can click on the hand tool to drag the screen around. We may also export our Mandala visualization by clicking Export on the bottom-right side of the window. If you choose Text, you can save a copy of the text displayed in the reader panelWeb frameworks like the TAPoR Portal organize information into panels (sometimes called portlets or coplets.) These can me minimized, maximized and closed using the three buttons in the upper left-hand corner of the panel. With Voyant you can export panels of results and place them into other web sites. Return to Glossary.. If you choose Screenshot, you can save a visual copy of the Mandala visualization.

Advanced Features

Mandala allows you to perform specific queries pertaining to certain dots. You may, as mentioned earlier click-and-drag to select many dots, or you can use custom lasso tools that may assist you in highlighting certain dots:

To reset any selected dots, just choose Reset selection state from the Tools palette. Mandala also includes something called the Microtext PanelWeb frameworks like the TAPoR Portal organize information into panels (sometimes called portlets or coplets.) These can me minimized, maximized and closed using the three buttons in the upper left-hand corner of the panel. With Voyant you can export panels of results and place them into other web sites. Return to Glossary. which allows you to walk sequentially through the magnets. If you click on any of the gray bars, you will see the specified dots displayed in the right-hand panelWeb frameworks like the TAPoR Portal organize information into panels (sometimes called portlets or coplets.) These can me minimized, maximized and closed using the three buttons in the upper left-hand corner of the panel. With Voyant you can export panels of results and place them into other web sites. Return to Glossary.. The Microtext PanelWeb frameworks like the TAPoR Portal organize information into panels (sometimes called portlets or coplets.) These can me minimized, maximized and closed using the three buttons in the upper left-hand corner of the panel. With Voyant you can export panels of results and place them into other web sites. Return to Glossary. divides the number of dots evenly. You may also navigate this panelWeb frameworks like the TAPoR Portal organize information into panels (sometimes called portlets or coplets.) These can me minimized, maximized and closed using the three buttons in the upper left-hand corner of the panel. With Voyant you can export panels of results and place them into other web sites. Return to Glossary. by clicking Prev Page or Next Page on the bottom-right of the screen.

If you would like to establish your Mandala window with every speaker in RomeoJuliet.xmlXML, or Extensible Markup Language, is a language used in web development to make a text readable by web browsers and/or store data. Like HTML, XML is primarily formed of paired elements. Unlike HTML, the elements are defined by the user, rather than predefined. For example, both < book >< /book > and < murfle >< /murfle > are valid element pairs. These elements apply characteristics and metadata to the text within them. One pair of elements may be nested inside another: < book >< title >< /title >< /book > Elements may also be modified by attributes and attribute values: < book format="hardcover" > In this case, the book element has the attribute 'format' and the attribute value 'hardcover'. In addition to storing metadata about the text, attribute/attribute value pairs are frequently used in combination with CSS to apply formatting to the text within the element. Return to Glossary. , under Search set Field to speech-speaker, then click on the text field and choose [All terms] from the top of the dropdown. This will then warn you about creating a multitude of magnets, click Yes to continue. You will then see a bunch of new magnets representing speakers in the play. You may double-click on them to preview their speeches.

It should also be noted that clicking Randomize in the Display palette will generate random magnets. This could potentially reveal some interesting trends within the text.

In addition to the sample files, you may load your own XMLXML, or Extensible Markup Language, is a language used in web development to make a text readable by web browsers and/or store data. Like HTML, XML is primarily formed of paired elements. Unlike HTML, the elements are defined by the user, rather than predefined. For example, both < book >< /book > and < murfle >< /murfle > are valid element pairs. These elements apply characteristics and metadata to the text within them. One pair of elements may be nested inside another: < book >< title >< /title >< /book > Elements may also be modified by attributes and attribute values: < book format="hardcover" > In this case, the book element has the attribute 'format' and the attribute value 'hardcover'. In addition to storing metadata about the text, attribute/attribute value pairs are frequently used in combination with CSS to apply formatting to the text within the element. Return to Glossary. / text files as well. Again, Mandala will choose the most suitable tags to use as fields, but you may specify your own when you are loading the file. (This can be done by either clicking on the Dots represent field or you may choose Custom and define your own XPath.) If you choose to load a text file, sections will be divided by paragraph. Also, if you have multiple files with similar structures that you’d like to analyse, you may import them all as a .zip file.

When you import your own files to be analyzed, Mandala may not automatically display magnets. In the Search palette click Add new magnet and you may customize what kind of Field and Match type that the magnet should represent.