Pop Culture Assignment

1.

This is a picture of the popular K-Pop group BlackPink, who have recently gained fame

internationally, including in the United States. Not knowing much about K-Pop groups or their

culture, I was confused the first few times I saw pictures of them making this sign with their

hands. It was only after I learned more about the K-Pop industry that I learned that sign is meant

to represent a heart, and is used to show love to their fans. Semiotics theory looks at relationships

such as this one where a symbols meaning depends on the person perceiving it rather than the

symbol or word itself.

My understanding of semiotics theory is what urged me to learn the meaning behind this in

the first place. Knowing that the meaning of symbols can vary from culture to culture, when I

didn’t know what the sign meant the first thing I considered was that it was a cultural difference

and that I should start there to understand its meaning. This understanding of the theory that

prompted me to look further is why I now know what the meaning behind this hand gesture is

and how it is used.

2. https://www.ellentube.com/video/ellen-gets-audience-members-to-spill-the-tea.html

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 In this example, Ellen plays a game called “Spill the Tea” with some of her audience

members, which is referencing a popular saying that has emerged in recent years. This is an

example of semiotics theory because saying “spill the tea” to someone in todays society will

have a completely different meaning than it would have 50 years ago. Through our culture this

phrase has taken on the meaning of telling a secret or gossiping. This is an example of the

assumption in semiotics theory that words are arbitrary and meaning lies within the person

instead of the symbol or word.

Understanding semiotics theory helps to make sense of phrases like this one where there is

more than one meaning. The culture and audience using the symbol play an important part in

determining what the meaning of the symbol is. Knowing that Ellen is a popular talk show that is

watched for entertainment purposes, I can assume the meaning they

were intending is likely the one meaning to “tell a secret”.

3.

This is an image I came across when looking through Pinterest, and is an example of a

common texting style used today, although a bit more extreme. Emojis are frequently used in

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place of words when texting, and this is possible because of the relationship between a symbol

and its meaning described by semiotics theory. Semiotics theory states that the meaning of a

symbol is dependent on the person and their culture, so this kind of communication will only be

effective if both parties share the same understanding of the emojis being used.

At first glance, this may look like a bunch of random emojis with no coherent message.

However, understanding semiotics theory let me know that symbols can have multiple meanings

depending on the person and context. Knowing this, and considering the culture we live in that

frequently communicates through texts and images, I am able to interpret the underlying

meaning behind the symbols.