SEMIOTICS

SemioticsSemiotics is the study of codes or

languages and the signs from which they are made, such as words in a spoken or written language.

It looks how signs and symbols are used to communicate and develop interpretations.

There is a range of other languages or codes that we have learnt to read. For example, nodding or shaking your head means yes or no in body language.

The word Semiotics is derived from the Greek word, Semeiotikos which means an abservant of signs.

Signs and Symbols

Sign: is a symbol which is understood to refer to something other than itself.

Symbol: is an object that represents, stands for or suggest an idea or visual images.

Major work on semiotics is done by the following theorists:

> Ferdinand Da Saussure> Charles peirce> Roland Barthes

Ferdinand Da SaussureHe was a Swiss linguistic who cfeated the

term semiotics.Saussure (1983) suggested that there are

three levels on which we read media texts:Syntactic level: identifies the basic

denotations in the text,for example the colour or overalleffect.Representational level: looks at the representation conveyed in the text.Symbolic level: involves the hidden cultural or symbolic meanings thatthe text conveys.

He distinguished between Signifier and Signified

Sign is made up of a:

The image or sound that gives a meaning e.g. red colour.

SIGNIFIER

SIGNIFIEDThe concept or meaning that the sign refers to e.g. red colour is often associated with danger or blood.

Therefore for a sign to be considered a sign it must have a signifier and the signified.

Saussure argues that words are verbal signifiers that are personal to whoever is interpreting them.

A signifier can have many different representations which can turn into a different sign

Roland Barthes

• Barthes (1967) developed Saussure’s ideas to analyze media texts in relation to culture.

• He suggested that our understanding of many media texts rests not merely upon what the texts portray but on the texts’ relationship to frequently told stories or myths in our culture.

• Many media texts convey or tap into popular myths. For example, the romantic comedy genre of films often draws on the Cinderella myth.

His semiotic theory focuses on how signs and photographs represent different cultures and ideologies in different ways.

These messages are established in two ways through:

Denotation: The literal meaning of the sign. It occurs immediately to the audience.

Connotation: The suggested meaning of the sign and the cultural conventions associated with the sign. They rely on the representational and symbolic levels of meaning that can be associated with or suggested by a sign. These meanings often depend on the culture and background of the ‘reader’.

Charles Pierce He was a logician and had a career in Philosophy and Math. Peirce´s sign definition “ Something which stands to somebody for something in respect or capacity” Explored the sign within the broader

context of: Ontology – study of pure being and the essence of things

Phenomenology – study of experiencing phenomena in the world.

Peirce´s sign definition : > Represent amen – form which

the sign takes (not necessarily material)

> Object – to which the sign refers Interpret ant – idea, interpretation in mind

Pierce ArgumentEvery thought is a sign and every act or

reasoning of the interpretation of signs Signs function as mediators between the

external world of objects and the internal world or ideas.

Semiotics is the process of co-operation between signs, their objects and their interpretants.

20. Forms of sign • He introduced Icon The signifier is perceived as resembling the signified. A pictorial representation , a photograph, an architect’s model of a building are all icons because they imitate or copy aspects of their subjects

21. Index • An index has a factual or casual connection that points towards a subject. • Example • A nest image is an icon but also an index of a bird.

22. Symbol • A symbol has an arbitrary relationship between the signifier and the signified. • The interpreter understands the symbol through previous knowledge and experience. • Spoken or written words are symbols. • For example flags.

Forms of Sign He introduced an Icon.

The signifier is perceived as resembling the signified. A pictorial representation , a photograph, an architect’s model of a building are all icons because they imitate or copy aspects of their subjects

An Index has a factual or casual connection that points towards a subject.

For example : A nest image is an icon but also an index of a bird.

Symbol: A symbol has an arbitrary relationship between the signifier and the signified.

The interpreter understands the symbol through previous knowledge and experience. Spoken or written words are symbols. For example flags.