Media Language
Semiotics (Saussure)
| Sign | A representation of a physical object. “Signifier + Signified = Sign” |
| Signifier | The sign that we ‘read’ and extract meaning from. |
| Signified | The meaning we extract from the signifier (sign). |
| Dominant Signifier | The most prominent ‘sign’. |
Semiotics (Pierce)
| Icon | Has a ‘close physical resemblance’ to what it signifies. Eg. A line drawing that looks like a TV |
| Index | Has some physical resemblance with what is signifies. Eg. Paw prints |
| Code | A system of signs, a group of symbols that represent something. |
| Symbol | Has no resemblance between the signifier and the signified. Eg. Symbols that are used to identify gender. |
Semiotics (Barthes)
| Signification | The representation of the meaning. |
| Denotation | The literal meaning of the sign. |
| Connotation | The inferred or representational meaning of the sign. |
| Myth | How words and images are systematically used to communicate cultural and political meanings. |
| Paradigm | A set of signs that are similar and are connected but different. |
| Syntagm | A sequence of signs that work together to create meaning. |
| Anchorage | Words that accompany a sign and help to provide context and meaning associated with the sign. |
| Ideology | A body of ideas or set of beliefs that people have regarding different technologies. |
Narratology
| Narrative Codes | |
| Narration | |
| Diegesis | |
| Quest narrative | |
| Character types | |
| Causality | |
| Plot | |
| Masterplot |
Narratology (Todorov)
| Narrative structure | |
| Equilibrium | |
| Disruption | |
| New equilibrium |
Narratology (Aristotle)
| Anagnorisis | |
| Pathos | |
| Unity | |
| Peripeteia | |
| Catharsis |
Genre (Neale)
| Conventions and rules | |
| Sub-genre | |
| Hybridity | |
| Genres of order and integration | |
| Genre as cultural category |
Structuralism (Strauss)
| Binary oppositions | |
| Mytheme | |
| Cultural codes | |
| Ideological reading | |
| Deconstruction |
Post-modernism
| Pastiche | |
| Bricolage | |
| Intertextuality | |
| Implosion |
Post-modernism (Baudrillard)
| Simulacra | |
| Simulation | |
| Hyperreality |