Theory Drop: Semiotics

 

Theory Drop: Semiotics

Semiotics is the science of signs that allowed the rapid increase of a number of perspectives and paved the way to other cultural phenomena that raised the study of signs through its denotative and connotative meanings. 

When decoding a media text, it is important to remember that they are 'constructs', never 'real'. 

Some media texts have the ability to appear entirely believable and realistic, but they are never the same as 'reality'. This appearance of being believable is called verisimilitude and a realistic media text can be said to possess a ‘high degree of verisimilitude’.



STARTER:

The Treachery of Images is a 1929 painting by Belgian surrealist painter René Magritte. The painting shows an image of a pipe. Below it, he painted, "Ceci n'est pas une pipe", French for "This is not a pipe". Magritte painted it when he was 30 years old. It is on display at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. 


RECALL

What are the impacts of media appearing 'real', and why is it important for us to remember that they are in fact constructed?





Task - Naturalisation and Myth

Have we heard these terms before? What do they mean?



Naturalisation - when things become accepted as normal over time to the extent that we don't question why things are the way they are


An example:

Why is the colour pink associated with being female and the colour blue with being male?


These colours have no inherent connection with a gender or a person, but over time the association between colours and gender has been naturalised; accepted to the extent that we don't think about it





Myth - stories, ideologies, beliefs, that emerge to justify and explain things that have been naturalised.

What is the myth that emerges as a result of colours and gender above?


The myth is that certain colours ARE inherently connected with gender, and that these colours reflect who you are; a boy or a girl. It also creates the belief that everyone should fit into this mould.



Over to you:

Consider each bullet point for the following images:

  • Denotation (signifier)
  • Connotation (signified)
  • Myth (what stories, ideas, beliefs have we formed about this sign)
  • Naturalisation (what has been normalised, what do we no longer question about this sign)


             


                             




                  



Media Magazine - Theory Drop: Semiotics


Let's explore Barthes' signs (adapted from Pierce) and see how they work with the order of signification.

TASK

Barthes' Semiotic Theory - these terms are essential when producing your own analyses of media tests. You must know what they mean and how to apply them.

1. Write the definition

Denotation

Connotation

Myth

Verisimilitude


BARTHES' SIGNS

Iconic

Indexical

Symbolic


BARTHES' CODES

Symbolic

Semantic

Proairetic 

Hermeneutic

Cultural 






HOMEWORK - Application of Terminology

Write these terms into a sentence, using the texts we explored in Media Language: Intro

Here is one for you:


The imagery denoted on the Bring Her Back film poster, such as blood and a possessed child, are indexical signs of the horror genre, and are also semantic codes which connote a sense of terror and fear.



Minimum: 10 sentences

Challenge: 15 sentences



You should incorporate multiple media terms into 1 coherent sentence, and you must use each of the terms listed above at least once to demonstrate your understanding.

I'll be marking these as an assessed piece of work :D Good luck! 




                          



                                                         

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