The aim of yesterdays lesson was to understand the meaning of Semiology and how to apply it to the various different analysis that we should conduct throughout the course.
The definition of semiology is: the study and interpretation of signs and their meanings. In this case, I will be using semiology to carry out textual analysis, which is decipering text to gain meaning from it.
A sign is anything that has meaning and can be broken down into two parts: the signifier and the signified. The signifier is the form that the sign takes, ie. a picture or sound and the signified can be both denotation (the common agreed meaning) and connotation (my individual interpretation).
For example, above is a picture of a lion therefore the signifier is a picture. The signified denotation is the agreed meaning of this sign is an mystical creature called a dragon. The signified connotation is that this sign leads me to think of power and strength.
Semiology is used heavily throughout the publishing industry to visually indicate an idea or theme.
Other vocabulary that is included in this subject are:
- iconic: look like, what they represent, ie. a photograph of you
- symbolic/ arbitrary: meaning must bhe culturally learned, therefore they may not look like waht they are meant to represent, eg. a no entry sign.
- indexical: have a connection to what they represent and are suggestive rather than directly resembling, eg no smoking sign, crucifix.
These words are all used to analyse/ describe signs.
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