This article examines,from a social semiotic perspective,how multimodal resources in China’s EFL pedagogic context are deployed to construe attitudinal meanings,with special reference to the language-image relations.It is found that cartoons in primary textbooks are often indicative of positive affectual meanings and bear much of the attitudinal stance,with the language-image relation being complementary.The trend for explicit visual affectual inscriptions gradually declines in secondary textbooks.The serious portraits and photographs with implicit judgement or appreciation invocations work together with the verbal attitudinal inscriptions and invocations in secondary education,with the language-image being co-instantiation.It is hoped that the findings will shed light on the understanding of multimodal construction of emotion and attitude goals in the given pedagogic context. This article examines, from a social semiotic perspective, how multimodal resources in China’s EFL pedagogic context are deployed to construe attitudinal meanings, with special reference to the language-image relations.It is found that cartoons in primary textbooks are often indicative of positive affectual meanings and bear much of the attitudinal stance, with the language-image relation for complementary.The trend for explicit visual affectual inscriptions gradually declines in secondary textbooks.The serious portraits and photographs with implicit judgment or appreciation invocations work together with the verbal attitudinal inscriptions and invocations in secondary education, with the language-image being co-instantiation.It is hoped that the findings will shed light on the understanding of multimodal construction of emotion and attitude goals in the given pedagogic context.