Media Language Theorists Flashcards
What is Roland Barthes Symbolic Code?
an image which represents something else
ex, bats symbolise vampires
What is Roland Bathes Semantic Code?
It is an additional meaning, it is a connotations we understand as an audience.
ex, what colours represent or what facial expression mean
What is Roland Barthes Action Code?
Signifying something that is going to happen as a result of something
ex, a gun being pulled out of a pocket my suggest that someone is going to get shot
What is Roland Barthes Cultural Code?
You’re only going to understand a reference if you come from that culture. Gender, Ethnicity, etc
What are Roland Barthe’s 3 levels of signification?
Denotation: straight forward meaning (rose = flower)
Connotation: Meaning associated with something (rose = love)
Myth: A socially agreed meaning of something (thin = beauty)
What is Tzenetan Todorov’s theory?
Narratology:
a narrative is a 3 part structure
1) equilibrium (everything is balanced and normal)
2) Disruption (something which needs to be solved)
3) New Equilibrium (everything returns to normal)
What is Steve Neale’s theory?
Genre Theory:
Genre is made up of…
1) Repetition: conventional elements are repeated until we are familiar with what genre they belong to.
2) Difference: Things out of the ordinary for that genre, which may or may not be adopted into the genre full time.
Overall we enjoy the repetitiveness elements however we like difference because it keeps us engaged with the genre
What is Claude Levi-Strauss’s theory?
Binary opposition theory
Two things which have been represented as completely different to one another
men v women, good vs bad, tide v other products
What is Jean Baudrillard’s theory?
Postmodernism
1) Simulacra: we are surrounded by simulations of reality because the boundaries between the real world have collapsed, ex Disney World
2) Implosion: when our reality doesn’t live up to our expectations
3) Hyperreality: media images have become more ‘real’ than the reality they supposedly represent. Some people even prefer this version, ex oranges, berries chocolate orange
We prioritise the simulacra to that it becomes are reality = therefore hyperreality
