Semiotics Test 3

Question 1

Objects

Answer 1

Objects: what is found in the environment

Question 2

Artefacts

Answer 2

Artefacts: what is human-made

Through artefacts archeologists can reconstruct a society’s traditions even though the society may have gone extinct.

Artefacts in general are also seen as the extension of the body: automobile

Question 3

Use of Objects and Artefacts

Answer 3

Use of objects and artefacts are a mirror of the society which charged them with meaning.

Question 4

Function of Objects and Artefacts

Answer 4

The functions of objects and artefacts can be beyond the physical: fetishism.

Question 5

Fetish

Answer 5

A fetish is an object which is believed to have supernatural attributes.

A fetish is often a modelled artefact made of clay, wood, stone or some other material.

Conviction that some inanimate objects/artefacts have supernatural powers

Animism

Question 6

Animism

Answer 6

Animism: the view that spirits inhabit the world communicate with humans through material objects and artefacts and influence “reality”.

This practice is very common in contemporary societies

Ex: pet rocks, lucky penny, good luck charms etc..

Question 7

Technology & Discoveries

Answer 7

Subsequent applications of inventions change the manner in which perceive themselves and the universe:

Using object as tools (a rock as a hammer)

Control of fire.

Invention of the wheel.

Invention of the windmill.

Invention of the mobile printing press. (Gutenberg 15th century)
- Invention of the printing press allowed for a much greater distribution and circulation of books (culture) and eliminated the “middleman” (usually catholic monks which would copy manuscripts deciding what to copy and what to omit).

Copernicus discovers that the earth is not at the centre of the universe undermining the idea of the centrality of humans and the privileged positions humans held in respect to God.

Invention of electricity. (Volta very end of 18th cent)
- Application of electricity brought about inventions that undermined millennia old concepts of time and space.
No longer cyclical time (night/day; fall/winter/spring summer etc.. Because with electricity we can control light and temperature.

Time and Space
Presence of a voice which is not present. TV presence of acts that are not present. Real time.
- Control over live TV 5 second delay.
- Jackson wardrobe malfunction.

Computer/internet virtual realities. Holograms- three- dimensional images.

Question 8

Spacial Codes

Answer 8

Interpersonal space

Study of zones and interpersonal behavior: proxemics

Question 9

Four Zones

Answer 9

Intimate 0-18 inches - All senses activated

Personal 1.5 ft-4 ft.- Minimum comfortable distance between non-touching individuals

Social distance (4ft. -12 ft.)

Public distance 12ft. And beyond

One can easily take evasive or defensive action if physically threatened. Distance highly structured.
Also orientation – standing sitting; orientation etc..

Question 10

Social Code: Intimate

Answer 10

0-18 inches

All senses activated

0-6 inches emotionally charged

7-18 distance where family members/close friends interact. Touch is frequent in both.

Question 11

Social Code: Personal

Answer 11

1.5 ft-4 ft

Minimum comfortable distance between non-touching individuals

1. 5 ft. - 2.5ft Close phase one can touch the other by extending the arms.
2. 5ft. – 4ft. Far phase anywhere from one arm’s length to the distance required for both individuals to touch hands. Beyond this distance one must move in order to touch.

Question 12

Social Code: Social distance

Answer 12

4ft. -12 ft

Non involving/non threating distance by most individuals

4ft. – 7 ft. impersonal relations in social gatherings

7ft-12ft far phase minimum distance in which one can go about one’s business without seeming rude

Public distance 12ft. And beyond

Question 13

Public/private/sacred spatial codes

Answer 13

Public-how people interact in public sites;

Private – how people interact in private spaces

Sacred – codes that regulate behavior in locales that are believed to have spiritual qualities.

Question 14

Public Space

Answer 14

Public spaces – extensions of the communal body – gatherings for various reasons: entertainment/recreation, celebration etc.. Usually ritualistic behaviors unfold.

People usually assume the social personae that they are assigned or are expected to play: clothes to wear/ behaviors that are appropriate, subject matters that are appropriate.

The public space is often experienced as a collective.

Public spaces set aside for specific activities – shopping malls. Much more than just a place to buy things. More and more a social space in which to meet/ hang out

Question 15

Private Space

Answer 15

Private space-typically extension of semiotic Self-space.

A home – provides shelter extension of the body’s protective armor. Identification of Self with the home is characteristic of all cultures.

Within the home however rooms will have different sign spaces. Kitchen, bedrooms, living rooms and bathrooms, although all within the home will have different degrees of “privateness”.

Question 16

Sacred Spaces

Answer 16

Sacred spaces- where humans believe they can secure some form of contact or proximity to the supernatural. Behavior coded.

Every culture has designated sacred spaces.

• Architecture
• Function of buildings
• Identity/status/power
• Highest: in the past/Middle Ages Churches present Financial institutions. Representing the shift in power structures.

Question 17

Advertising

Answer 17

Persuasion and influence - “Buy this, be happy”

As Don Draper says… “Advertising is based on one thing: happiness.”

Verbal and non-verbal techniques

Advertising as a “sign making system” – creates and gives meaning to signs and symbols

Advertising targets certain audiences based on age, location, income, employment, gender expression, education – semiospheres

Question 18

3 main categories of Advertising

Answer 18

(1) Consumer Advertising
(2) Trade Advertising
(3) Political-social advertising

Question 19

History of Advertising

Answer 19

Advertising began in Babylon, 3000 BCE

Ancient Greek and Roman merchants used recognizable visual symbols to advertise their businesses, as few people could read

15th century invention of printing press allowed for reproduction and wide distribution of business/product ads

1920s North American “advertising campaigns” made advertising an instrument of persuasion – attempts to build semiotic bridges between products and consumers’ consciousness.

Commercials (Radio 1920s & TV 1950s) – mini narratives or jingles became extremely popular and successful;

created the perception that the product was intertwined with the style and content of the commercials – “symbols of the good life”

Creating narratives

Question 20

What Makes Advertising Powerful?

Answer 20

Positioning: the placing or targeting of a product to the right people (those who will buy it)

Image-Creation: the amalgamation of the product’s name, packaging, logo, price and overall presentation to create a “personality” or “recognizable character” for the product – what does it mean to use/buy this product?

Image of the product projected onto the consumer through purchase and use

Examples? What products can you think of that have specific “personalities” that appeal to a certain target market?

Question 21

Mythologization in Advertising

Answer 21

Strategy of imbuing brand names, logos, product designs, ads, and commercials with a mythic meaning Ex. National mythologies (I AM CANADIAN) or universal mythologies (Quest for beauty, search for love, conquest of age/death)

The use of the “mythic” evident in the use of people –celebrities or models who are attractive, god-like, and “unreal” – we want to be with them or be them

Advertiser stressing the social/mythic meanings that will come from purchasing the product, not stressing the product itself

Question 22

Language of Advertising

Answer 22

Language is generally a means of reinforcing, alluding to, or simply stating the subtextual meaning of the ad

Verbal techniques/devices include jingles and slogans; use of imperative form; formulas; alliteration; absence of language; intentional omission; metaphor; metonymy (see p. 268-269)

Brand name itself a signifier for the product as well as for understanding the advertisement’s subtext

Question 23

Brand Names and Logos

Answer 23

Product’s “personality” comes from the construction of a signification system – “culture signs”

Brand name: product recognizable just by name

(Trademark); linked to corporate identity

Logo: visual representation/symbol for the product; pictorial counterpart of brand names

Question 24

Analyzing Ads

Answer 24

Many ads can be interpreted at 2 levels:
surface level: the actual ad text (verbal and visual)
underlying level: the connotations derived from the signifiers of the surface elements; speaking indirectly to the unconscious mind

** Just like any sign, there are multiple interpretations to an advertisement – innumerable signifieds for each signifier

“The key to unlocking the underlying subtext is to consider the surface signifiers in a chain, like a comic strip, in order to see where they lead” (Danesi 268)

–“Connotative Chaining”