Narrating the doctoral journey on Chinese social media: chronotopes and scales in user interaction on Xiaohongshu

Abstract In this study, I apply the notions of chronotope and scale in social semiotic multimodal discourse analysis to investigate user interaction on a specific social media platform in China: Xiaohongshu. More specifically, I analyze semiotic resource deployment, chronotope mixing, and scaling strategies in home pages, posts, and discussions created by users who label themselves and are labeled by the platform as doctoral students. This article showcases how interpersonal connections of distance and intimacy are established among bloggers, followers, and discussants, as well as how these individuals represent and negotiate characteristics and statuses concerning the doctoral community. Chronotopes, as time-space-identity configurations, are invoked and deployed as communication resources for interactants to self-present and position themselves in contrast to or aligned with certain memberships and communities. It is within and through accumulated community discourse as such that social meanings, values, and identity performance are constantly (re)constructed. This article contributes both to the application of chronotopes and scales in multimodal discourse analysis and to the multimodal analysis of social media communication with a focus on nuanced semiotic interactions in deference to the doctoral community.