introduction to semiotics of cultures, 2010 ronald barthes – myths today vesa matteo piludu...
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Introduction to Semiotics of Cultures, 2010
Ronald Barthes – Myths Today
Vesa Matteo Piludu
University of Helsinki
Semiotics
The term, which was spelled semeiotics (Greek: σημειωτικός, semeiotikos, an interpreter of signs) was first used in English by Henry Stubbes (1670, p. 75) in a very precise sense to denote the branch of medical science relating to the interpretation of signs
Plato and Aristotle both explored the relationship between signs and the world, and Augustine considered the nature of the sign within a conventional system. More recently, Umberto Eco, in his Semiotics and philosophy of language, has argued that semiotic theories are implicit in the work of most, perhaps all, major thinkers.
Semiotics, semiotic studies, or semiology is the study of sign processes (semiosis), or signification and communication, signs and symbols, both individually and grouped into sign systems.
It includes the study of how meaning is constructed and understood.
The tree ”souls” of Semiotics
Semantics: Relation between signs and the things they refer to, their denotata.
Syntactics: Relation of signs to each other in formal structures (systems of symbols, web of signification)
Pragmatics: Relation of signs to their impacts on those who use or consume them (social, cultural, political, psychological impact)
Roland Barthes (1915 – 1980)
Mythologies (1957)
The most journalistic of all the Barthes’ books, probably the most popular
No organic development
Fragmentary: the chapter were articles written every month for different magazine
Themes: myths of French popular culture and daily life
Influence of existentialism, Saussure, marxism
Myth in antiquity
Narratives about gods, heroes, fantastic beings who tell us why the world is organized at it its
The Ancient myths weren’t obvious but complicate: many philosophers, including Plato, discussed on their inner meaning
Ancient myths were deep, suitable for speculation
Modern myths according to Barthes
Simple narratives, often presented by media that express the obviousness and inevitable condition of the social order, status quo, where we live
Modern myths are dangerous, and for Barthes it’s relevant to unveil the ideological messages hidden in their discourse
Myths in 1954 - 1956
The essays were written every month for two years, from 1954 to 1956
Topics suggested by current events and media (articles, films, shows, exhibitions)
Barthes tried to reflects on myths of French daily life
He was upset for the naturalness and simplicity with newspapers and common sense dress up a reality determined by history
Confusion between Nature and History Ideological abuse of this confusion
A modern myths is the language of the falsely obvious: the mythologist should unmask the mystification that transform myths of middle class in universal and natural facts
Myths Today
The last chapter is theoretical: Myths Today
It is still a quite confuse, as Barthes itself stated in the introduction of 1970 edition: the semiotic analysis was quite unsophisticated
Even so, Barthes considered actual the necessity of unveiling myths
Myth today
A kind of speech, language that is connected to a particular historical time (French colonialism, mass media culture)
Myths could be ancient, but generally aren’t eternal: a myth could disappear rapidly in the media culture
Semiotics for Barthes isn’t metaphysic, it is always connected to some historical background
Everything (film, photo, article) could be transformed in a myth
Pictures are more imperative than writing: meaning at stroke, but they become a kind of writing when they are connected to certain meanings
Barthes: tripartite meaning process
Object or signifier could signify several meanings
In a certain contest is connected to a certain concept or significans
The signifier with a clear meaning become a sign in a certain historical and cultural background
Chat Noir by Theophile Steinlen
Many of the posters were produced, to advertise the local “cabaret” owned by Aristide Bruant, created in 1881 as a venue for performers and a nightclub for artists
elegant and luxurious body
This is a perfect balance of mass advertisement (in the right language) and art
Myths for Barthes
Second order semiological system, a metalanguage
A sign of the first semiological system (linguistic) became a raw signifier in the mythological system
In other words: the myths banalyse symbols, that became “raw material”
it is “natural” that the black cat means bad luck, we don’t need to think about it
According to media culture, is unnecessary know about the historical formation of the black cat as a symbol (Christianity)
Meaning of the African soldier’s image
France is a great empire and all his sons faithfully serve under the same flag
Signifier: black soldier Signified: “frenchness”, militarism
In the linguistic system the images contain a long story, connected to history, to a certain knowledge of reality
In the mythological system all is impoverished: the African soldier is considered a spontaneous, indisputable image
The myths doesn’t suppress meaning, it only impoverish it: the message loose some knowledge and appeal to a certain group of reader (the French middle class who supported French colonialism)
Same concept, different signifiers
In myths the same concept (French imperiality) could be repeated by several different forms or signifier
Distortions
Myth disport reality, doesn’t censure: the African soldier is deprived by his own history and memory … not of his existence
The sign is only half-amputated
Myth it is a stolen and replaced speech: it took a sign from somewhere in time and replace it in another context
The concept deforms, don’t abolish
The signifier become arbitrary, natural, frozen, eternalized: the French empire at the time was considered only as a natural, obvious fact
The myth of media culture look general, neutral
The history that caused the phenomenon is censured
Poor and incoplete images
Myths prefer to work with poor, incomplete image, ready for ideological significations
There are inexhaustible stores of simple images ready to be used for militaristic purposes
Saving Jessica Lynch: the movie
Fiction film
With Saving Private Ryan (1998) still in the public psyche, it was a tailor-made adventure to reinforce support for the campaign in Iraq
What the mythological photos don’t say
Many female soldiers say they are sexually assaulted by their male comrades and can't trust the military to protect them.
"The knife wasn't for the Iraqis," says one woman. "It was for the guys on my own side."
From the article: The private war of women soldiers By Helen Benedict
Switzerland: posters vs. minarets
The recent posters against minarets shows also the Western fear of the popularity of burka and of female terrorism
The connection between minarets, burka and terrorism is clearly ideological, but it is presented as a “natural” combination of things
Barthes: obviousness of myths
Myth transform a meaning in an obvious form: it’s language robbery, it become something unquestionable, justified in excess, it became a natural fact
Modern myths are often simple because articulate languages offer resistance to simplification
Barthes: the role of the scholar
The media often focus only on signifiers, considering them the ”obvious” representation of a concept
Myth is not a lie, it’s an inflection, a distortion: the naturalization and trivialization of objects, concepts and history
The scholar should distinguish signifier and significans, the representation and the concept
He focus on the mechanism of production of myths He is able to connect the myth and general history, To show hot it corresponds to the interest of a sector of a society To evidence how it is masked into innocent fashion