Semiotic Analysis of a Text

 For this assignment you will need to apply to a media message the semiotic theory/terms we discussed. Your task is to: 1) select a message from the print media and, 2) analyze this message showing how meaning is created by the selection and arrangement of signs in the "text," correctly using semiotic concepts. The process of analysis should be like that used in class to analyze advertisements.

You may select any print media message you wish. Advertisements, of course, are likely to provide a good "text" for analysis. However, you may use a verbal message, a news photograph or photo story (and captions), an editorial cartoon, or some other kind of "text".  The text should be something since August 2000.   Be sure to attach the text to your paper. [If you wish to use a video "text," ask me first.]

A. Begin your paper with a description of the "text" and its context (where you found it, what its purpose seems to be, etc.).

B. Then discuss each of the signs found in the "text" (or the key signs in a long "text" or long verbal passage). Indicate whether the signs are icons, indexes, or symbols. Remember you are likely to find signs which fit more than one category. Be sure to explain how you have come to label the signs as you have.

C. Next, discuss what meanings are created by these signs in this message. Justify your interpretation by references to arrangement, coding conventions, paradigms involved (considering both signs present and absent), and other syntagmatic features.

D. In concluding speculate on what the semiotic analysis reveals about the intentions of the message source and the probable audience of this message and the response or effect of the message on that audience. Some discussion of archetype, myth or ideology found in the "text" may be useful in this section (as well as in section C).

Grades will be based on the clarity of your assertions about the "text", the clarity and quality of your support material (explanations of why your assertions are reasonable), the organization of the paper, and the mechanics and style of your writing. Specificity and concreteness will be important (probably accounting for a large share of the variation in grades). Additionally, I will consider the accuracy with which you use terms, the demonstrated plausibility of your interpretation, creativity, and the quality of your analysis in relation to the difficulty of your task/"text". Proofread !!!