What's All The Buzz About Semiotics

Semiotics is an interesting, confusing, multifaceted field that encompasses many concepts of signs, symbols, language, communication, and the relationships between them and other concepts. Chandler explains that the broadest definition of semiotics is “the study of signs”. He states, however, that this definition really does not provide a useful means by which people can understand what is meant by the term and what is actually being studied. In reality, semiotics is the study of signs as symbols and language in a society. In addition, he goes on to explain further that signs can be influenced by the media on which they are presented, and that their meaning and interpretation within a society can change over time. It is for all of these reasons that semiotics is not a single discipline in the academic community. Instead, people from a variety of disciplines, including art, literature, sociology, and mass media study the nature of signs and how they are presented and interpreted.

Perhaps the most important part of the information presented by Chandler regarding semiotics is the notion that the interpretation of signs and symbols over time does indeed change. In any culture, the meanings that are attributed to certain things change as people’s ideas about themselves and the world around them changes and evolves. Because signs and symbols are part of social life and social interaction, it only makes sense that the way that these signs and symbols are interpreted will change.

Gorny points out that signs and symbols are part of a larger expression of people and their state of mind. There is a deeper meaning behind the signs and symbols that are displayed within a culture. One only has to look to the signs and symbols that represent religious ideals, such as Christian signs related to the cross or to Jesus, to recognize that they have changed over time. The meaning that was attributed to these symbols two hundred years ago were certainly different than the meanings attributed to them today. Even more, not all people agree about the meaning of these symbols today. There is room for interpretation among people about what these symbols represent and what they mean for the larger society.

An example of this change might be the importance or lack thereof attributed to images of Jesus. For some people, this symbol represents something sacred that should be respected at all times. Others, however, see the symbol as a representation of myths or even oppression over others in terms of trying to dictate how people should live their lives and what they should believe about life. Some may even view the symbol of Jesus as a representation of the waning importance of the Christian religion in some larger countries around the world.

In order to relate this idea of changing ideas in a changing society, the article by Petrilli and Ponzio note that there is an expanding interest in global semiotics that is developing in the academic community. This area of the field is interested in a broad view of language and symbols as the world becomes more global and cultures become more closely connected through commerce and travel. This idea is important and related to the example of changes in opinions about religion, culture, and their symbols because a single group of people no longer influence the meaning of a symbol. The swastika is the best example of this because it is used widely across cultures and represents a multitude of ideas; in Buddhism it represents universal harmony, in Hinduism it is related to the creator god, Brahma, in Baltic culture it is related to the fire/thunder god and the sun god, in Nazi Germany Hitler wanted it to symbolize "… the creating, acting life", and now in western cultures post WWII it has a negative, racial, evil connotation. It also carries a host of other meanings in different cultures worldwide. http://www.flickr.com/photos/evissa/2187175515/ (This is a swastika from ancient Asian culture) http://www.flickr.com/photos/robinthom/2307117324/ (This is a swastika from western culture post WWII) It is unique that the two symbols are exactly the same shape but come off different in the light of their background, color scheme, and all around feel. `Ideas are more easily transmitted around the world between groups of people and come to influence what the larger global community thinks about specific signs and symbols, as well as the relative importance that they are given. It certainly seems likely that global semiotics will become even more important in the future as technology allows for signs and symbols to be transmitted easily around the world and quickly across different cultures, to be discussed and interpreted.


Works Cited
Chandler, Daniel. 3 April 2005. Semiotics for Beginners. 2 Feb. 2009
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Gorny, Eugene. 2004. What is Semiotics? 2 Feb. 2009

Petrilli, Susan and Augusto Ponzio. 3 Nov. 2007. What is Semiotics? 2 Feb. 2009
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Images: Evissa/ Flicker
Robin Thom/ Flicker