Semiotic Analyze of "Lost in Translation" -
What some believe to be called „power of cinema” is, according to Peter Wollen, aesthetic richness and it originates from simple fact of all three demensions of a sign: iconic, indexical and symbolic are being used (Wollen, 1998, p. 83). In this work, whereby I make a semiotic analysis of a still scene taken from film „Lost in Translation” (Sofia Copolla, 2003), I will explain notion of this classification, and, using Roland Barthes's model, show layers of denotation and conotation, explicitly pointing out compotents of a sign – signifiers and signifieds.
Concepts of denotation and conotation as layers of meaning are described by Barthes.
Denotation is simply „meaning of the image refering to it's literal, discriptive meaning” and conotation „meanings rely on cultural and historical context of the image and its viewers' lived, felt knowledge of those circumstances” (Sturken, Marita & Lisa Cartwright, 2009, p 19). Additionally he uses also a definition of sign, whitch is constructed from „signifier” - written word/sound/image, and „signified” - that is a concept whitch is evoked by signifier, Regarding that, on the picture we see signifier: a woman, in a bright hoodied blouse, sitting with crossed arms, a table with tableware, steaming pot and on the other side a man in black swater, with receding hair, wrinkles on face and shiny watch on one of his hands lying casually on table and his knee. Signified is she's younger than him, they know eachother, because the're looking themselfes in the eyes, by the configuration of hands and body language you can feel feel tension, awkwardness, pressure. Conotation in given exaple of this specific image is readly to know, assuming that author of this analysis is familiar with a whole storyline of the movie.
Charles Peirce developed a taxonomy of classes of sign. He called it „second trichonomy of signs” and devided it into icons, symbols and indexes. According to this theory, ”icon is a sign
whitch
Concepts of denotation and conotation as layers of meaning are described by Barthes.
Denotation is simply „meaning of the image refering to it's literal, discriptive meaning” and conotation „meanings rely on cultural and historical context of the image and its viewers' lived, felt knowledge of those circumstances” (Sturken, Marita & Lisa Cartwright, 2009, p 19). Additionally he uses also a definition of sign, whitch is constructed from „signifier” - written word/sound/image, and „signified” - that is a concept whitch is evoked by signifier, Regarding that, on the picture we see signifier: a woman, in a bright hoodied blouse, sitting with crossed arms, a table with tableware, steaming pot and on the other side a man in black swater, with receding hair, wrinkles on face and shiny watch on one of his hands lying casually on table and his knee. Signified is she's younger than him, they know eachother, because the're looking themselfes in the eyes, by the configuration of hands and body language you can feel feel tension, awkwardness, pressure. Conotation in given exaple of this specific image is readly to know, assuming that author of this analysis is familiar with a whole storyline of the movie.
Charles Peirce developed a taxonomy of classes of sign. He called it „second trichonomy of signs” and devided it into icons, symbols and indexes. According to this theory, ”icon is a sign
whitch
Bibliography: Sturken, Marita & Lisa Cartwright, 2009, „Practices of Looking. An Introduction to Visual Culture”, Oxford University Press Wollen, Peter, 1998, „Signs and Meaning in the Cinema”, London: BFI Publishing