It seems as though much of Roland Barthe's work, in Semiotics, was a result of his obsession with analyzing cultural material, and the contradictions that are represented in terms of ideal perception and actual reality. He found that the manipulation and hidden agendas behind messages, especially in media, are part of a process by which signs (comprised of a signifier and signified) are changing to become the signifier of a secondary (connotative) meaning. In essence, the material being interpreted loses its original roots to a new connotation. Barthe's work is very much concerned with this relationship between the signifier and the signified, which every sign is made up of. Often the connotative signs that make up media messages such as advertising reflect and uphold the status quo (which may or may not be truthful, moral/ethical). Although they convey a particular message, connotative signs are mythical and have lost their historical referent because the denotative sign has now become the signifier of an entirely new sign.
While it is a fairly obvious example, of the transformation of meaning within signs, the video below depicts how the connotation behind the swastika has transformed. The women in the video explains the widespread use of the symbol and its meaning to some of those people. It is apparent that, for centuries, the swastika has represented a positive message to many different cultures around the world. Some of these messages include life, sun, power, strength and good luck. When Hitler and the Nazis of World War II adopted this symbol as their own, they took the symbol and the sign it represented, and transferred it to become the signifier of a secondary system. As the symbol became the a representation of the Nazi regime, it also represented everything the group stood for and the horrible acts they committed. Thus the symbol is now part of a sign system in which it represents the horrific agendas and ideals of Nazi Germany to which most people are still sensitive. It is extremely interesting to look at how dramatically the meaning of signs can be transformed. The fact that a symbol, which was once distinctly positive, can be so severely tainted is remarkable. More reflection on this topic, I'm sure, will lead to the realization or discovery of many other examples of this transformation of meaning and the breaking down of already developed sign systems. Are there any other examples that you can think of?
The beginning of this next video depicts the ways in which the Nazis used the swastika but If you fast forward to about 0:35 you will see its depiction from other cultural backgrounds.
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I think that the swastika is a great example of a sign which supports Barthes' theory of Semiotics. The fact that the swastika was originally intended by Buddhists to be a symbol for "the benefit of all people" (which is stated in the first video) and then was used to portray that same message in such a horrible way and for a horrid cause shows that Barthes' theory of Semiotics is credible. I believe that the swastika now still in today's society represents the Nazis and racism against anyone who was not of the "Aryan" race. In the Griffin chapter on Semiotics, the text states that "Barthes was interested din signs that are seemingly straightforward but that subtly communicate ideological or connotative meaning and perpetuate the dominant values of society." In the case of the Nazis and the rise of Nazi-Germany, this statement was true.
ReplyDeleteWords can be twisted as well as symbols. Symbols that mean good can be twisted and distorted to be something evil, peace symbols can be changed to war symbols. It all depends on how there are perceived by the majority of people. I believe the swastika in America culture and Jewish culture will always represent the Nazi symbol, but around the world I think other people don’t always recognize it as being a symbol use for hatred and persecution. There are so many symbols in the world which are misrepresented because; people in power used them to signify other things. Anything can be manipulated or misrepresented into meaning something it doesn’t.
ReplyDeleteI agree with George that the swastika does support Barthes' theory of semiotics. It is a great example of how a symbol representing "benefit of all" can be turned into something that represents hate and ignorance. I wonder though how this sign has turned from a denotative sign to a connotative sign. "According to Barthes, this lateral shift, or connotative sidestep, is the key to transforming a neutral sign into an ideological tool." I wonder how this shift happened in the instance of the swastika.
ReplyDeleteWhen I finished the chapter the first symbol I thought of as far as semiotics was the swastika.It's interesting too, though that the Nazi symbol is a reverse swastika, which to me, means there was some forethought put into using the reverse symbol to mean the exact opposite of it's origin.I'm assuming this was deliberate, but as Paul said I wonder when the shift in meaning was made. Along the same lines of nationalism, and patriotism, I have always been fascinated by the flag pin which came to be after 9/11, an accessory of freedom. i'd love to hear anyone's thoughts on that symbol.
ReplyDeleteIt's really interesting how after the use of the swastika by the Nazis, the history of the true meaning was not really known. As we noticed in class on Tues, we looked at the symbol and many of the students thought of words such as "evil, Nazi" and we can think of many more words that come along with those. As we see the myth of the symbol has disappeared in a way through the use of the Nazis. This sign is a very clear example for this chapter. And the fact that the meaning change when the symbol goes in reverse. I've heard the same thing with the fish sign for Christians. I've heard that if it goes in one direction, the meaning roots into the Christian meaning and the opposite direction, the meaning roots into the devil. I don't know how accurate this idea is but I remember hearing several times and thought it was interesting how the direction of the symbol, also going for the swastika as well changes the meaning behind it.
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