Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Semiotics and Discourse > Intro > Flashcards

Intro Flashcards

1
Q

how does the media construct our reality for us

A

uses certain language

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

why do we need semiotics

A

useful as it can help us make a sense of visual and media contexts

  • advertising
  • news and current affairs
  • fashion
  • music
  • politics
  • celebrities
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

what is the difference between semiotics and discourse

A
  • semiotics teaches us the way to identify signs and to deconstruct codes to reveal meaning in the deeper structure of text
  • discourse examines the power relations at work in seemingly innocent media texts and enables us to identify the ideology at work.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

what is semiotics

A

the general science of signs: the production of meaning

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

what is semiosis

A

the study of the human activity and the production and interpretation of signs by human beings

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

what is semiotics closely tied to

A

linguistics: the study of language as a formal system: semantics (how words have meaning) and syntax (grammar): how units of meaning arranged in the bigger structures (Eg a sentence)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

what does semiotics include

A

verbal language as well as other patterned human communication (e.g. images, clothes, cultural artefacts.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

what can texts be

A

anything that conveys meaning

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

what is a sign

A

any word, symbol, visual imagine, bodily movement, gesture, facial expression which can be used to indicate and convey thoughts, information, ideas, commands etc.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

give example of a literal sign

A

shop sign indicating ‘open’

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

give example of a word sign

A

some words may refer to things eg ‘tree’, ‘river’; ideas - ‘justice’, ‘fairness’.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

give example of a visual sign

A

persons, bodies, shapes, colours

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

give example of bodily sign

A

gestures, facial expressions: smiles, tears, handshakes, bows

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

what are the pan-cultural basic emotions

A
  1. anger
  2. fear
  3. happiness
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

definition of signs

A

union of something which signifies, the signifier and n idea/thing which it signifies the signified

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

when thinking about the sign

A

the signifier and the signified do not separate. word and concept are inseparable

17
Q

what is the signified

A

mental concept of something - concept

18
Q

what is the signifier

A

ability to communicate - sound image

19
Q

how do signs get their meaning

A

must look at linguistic theory. two main linguistic traditions

  • saussure
  • pierce
20
Q

what did saussure propose

A

that general science of signs, ‘semiology’ of which linguistics was to be one special branch.

21
Q

what are the two different ways of looking at language

A
  1. how it is used (in practice - sociolinguistics) eg. regional variations
  2. how it has developed (history)
22
Q

when is a system of language shaped by a community

A

in structuralism

23
Q

saussures theory of language

A

langue and parole

24
Q

what is langue

A

langue is the system of language, the system of forms an individual assimilates where he/she learns a language.
-langue is the structure used to create meaning

25
Q

what is parole

A

parole is the actual speech acts made possible by the structure of language (micro structure) how it is used by individuals.
-parole is language practice

26
Q

what is the point of saussures division of language into langue and parole

A

we are separating what is social from what is individual and what is essential from what is ancillary or accidental (saussure)

creates meaning by distinguishing one sign from another

27
Q

what is the relationship between the signifier and the signified dependent on

A

facts related to the linguistic system, not facts about reality itself

28
Q

what are the five basic principles of semiotics

A
  1. we make meaning through our shared use of signs, including language as a sign system.
  2. what signs mean is not inevitable. it is based on socio-political and cultural agreement and conventions
  3. meaning cannot be divorced from (social/cultural) context.
  4. meaning is relational. we make sense of signs in relation to other signs (difference)
  5. we engage in the processes of meaning making and decoding meaning largely subconsciously.

Semiotics and Discourse (2 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions