Tuesday, 8 March 2016

Semiotics

Semiotics is mainly defined as ‘the study of signs or symbols' (Chandler, 2007, pg. 2) the basic principle of semiotics is that many things can be seen as signs and this is what is most commonly used in advertising. 
There are many theorists on semiotics, the most known being Saussure and Pierce who ‘are widely regarded as the co-founders of what is now more generally known as semiotics’ (Chandler, 2007, Pg. 3) Saussure arguing that there were two parts to a sign, one being ‘the signified’ and the other being ‘the signifier’ The signifier being the form which the sign takes and the signified being the concept it represents. 


Pierce argues that there are three kinds of signs:

  • Symbol/symbolic - purely conventional sign and the relationship must be learnt
  • Icon/iconic - relationship of resemblance 
  • Index/indexical - relationship of casualty

Semiotics is used heavily in advertising in the modern day to show signs to the viewer and express hidden meaning, for example, this lynx adverts uses the slogan “the cleaner you are, the dirtier you get” playing on obvious sexual innuendo and implying to men and women that if they buy their product they will either look like the model or women will start taking their clothes off for you. Now that was one obvious sign that was used, which actually got banned because of it’s use of partial nudity and sexual objectification. 


However some signs in advertising can be more subtle. This advert for example has the image of a women just after cleaning as advertisement for a swiffer, seems innocent enough, however it took me an extra look to actually see that the woman was actually the famous Rosie The Riveter, who has been a symbol for women empowerment since 1942. This advert was again another one pulled for having sexist connotations and giving the sign that the powerful feminist icon who encouraged women in the 1940’s to work while the men were at war would be in charge of the cleaning.













In these adverts there are obvious meanings and connotations, in semiotics it is widely known that there are two types of signified: denotation and connotation. Denotation being the literal meaning and connotation being something that is implied or associated, for example in the Lynx advert there are sexual connotations. A good example of this would be, 

Denotation: a cigarette
Connotation: Death, cancer, tar



Signs however only make sense as part of codes ‘Since the meaning of a sign depends on the code within which it is situated, codes provide a framework within which signs make sense. Indeed, we cannot grant something the status of a sign if it does not function within a code… Codes transcend single texts, linking them together in an interpretative framework’ (Chandler 2015).

Not just anything can be a sign, it has to have a meaning to someone, one thing to remember is that signs only make sense in reference to what they are not. 
References
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