Semiotics, The, And The Greatest Obsessions Of Beauty By...

Semiotics is a theory often employed in the analysis of texts and through juxtapositions, it has many forms which exists in symbolic visualisations and consist of significant meanings behind a message. By analysing the syntagmatic structure of the film, directed by Hayao Miyazaki, one can gather that the film s overall intent is portraying the effects of war and pacifism and the greatest obsessions of beauty by juxtaposing signs, symbols, denotation, connection and myth. My analysis is separated into 4 juxtapositions: war, pacifism, beauty, ugliness and consumerism; each identifying the signifies and signified, the model being exploited, what messages are being put across and the principle at work linking them all together. This is based on Robert M. Seiler’s â€Å"Guide To A Semiological Analysis†. The symbolisation of beauty and ugliness depends on where you are from as â€Å"culture and society decide what the sign means, rather than nature or biology† (Bignell, 2002) It’s not something we are born with. It’s something our surroundings decides for is. However, people within the same culture may differ in how they interpret a sign because of their way of thinking. Therefore it is more of a case that semiotics â€Å"is the study of signs in society, and while the study of linguistic signs is one branch of it, it encompasses every use of a system where something carries a meaning for someone† (Bignell, 2002), which means people will always have their own opinions about something.