From actantial model to conceptual graph: Thematized action in John Cage's 0′00′(4′33′′No. 2)

Abstract

In this article, I build an actantial model, , of John Cage's 1962 indeterminate work (4 33 No. 2). To further investigate Greimas' actantial axes of desire, knowledge and power, I generate an ontology, , that records the facts of the model through hierarchies of relations and concepts. This allows for a conceptual graph (CG), , that describes the score's instructions and its actants. Extracting subgraphs of then allows for reasoned arguments about the implications of Cage's instructions in the score, and in particular, the composer's reference to “an obligation to others.” Through a conceptual graph rule , I offer a framework for generating the structure of a score-informed interpretation of (4 33 No. 2) that is based on a number of key conditionals that map the actants of the piece and their relation to the unfolding of the work's narrative.