Semiotic interpretation of an image

Project description
Assignment:
Interpret an image that is give to you by your instructor in section according to the concepts of denotative and connotative signification. You must use the image provided by your instructor.You may not use your own image.
Some important point:
Form-the elements of the photograph.Tell me what you see in this photo, details are important!

content-content of image:who made it? where was it published? when? for what purposed?
-content of place:what was going around the image?

for the citation, you must have in-text citation, and a reference page.

Attention!nodefinition in the essay.If you use your own word to explain this word,it is fine. you don’t need to repeat it because book already explain to us.

Draw from semiotic terminology discussed in:
Barthes Rhetoric of the Image (and/or Myth Today from recommended)
Chander Signs and Denotation, Connotation and Myth
Practices of Looking, Chapter One (note that relevant terms are also reviewed in the glossary at the back of the book)
you just can use these three books to discuss your ideas. not allow to use other books.
Required:Practices of Looking: An Introduction to Visual Culture

This assignment should be approximately two or two and half single-spaced typed pages in a 12-point standard typeface such as Times Roman. Include your name, student number, and section number on the top of the first page. Do not add an extra cover page and do not use fancy, bold or italic typeface in this document. Keep it simple.

Some helpful strategies:
Use your page space in full to make your denotative and connotative interpretations in ways that show us you understand the concept. You do NOT need sentences like Denotation means [rewording of textbook definition]. Use the terms in a way that shows up you know what it means. Do not repeat or rephrase definitions of terms.

Background review:
In Mythologies, Roland Barthes writes that myth is a form of signification. Using Ferdinand de Saussure’s method for analyzing the linguistic sign, Barthes describes myth as a second order of signification. The sign in the first order of signification is denotative. For example, the signifier apple (the word€”or, a photograph or drawing that would be widely recognized as apple) is tied to the signified: a physical object, the fruit, which we think of as obviously something that grows on trees and is eaten. That is an example of a first-order, or denotative, sign. But this sign relationship can also be turned into a signifier in a second order or level of use: The apple can be used to signify connotatively in many different ways: fresh flavor, forbidden knowledge, a record label, a brand of computers, and many other things. In other words, myth, for Barthes, is a realm of second-order signification that can be seen as a cultural or ideological meaning, as distinct from its seemingly more direct or obvious denotative meaning. Some critics have argued that the line between denotative and connotative meeting is not hard and fast: Denotative meanings are also cultural; an apple does not have objective, universal meanings, but will be interpreted differently according to the context and history of the interpreter. Others propose that connotative meeting is also highly subjective and not always widely shared. Despite these challenges to the model, it is helpful to separate between meanings that are more strongly on the side of the denotative or formal, on the one hand, and those that are more strongly contextual, culturally inflected by ideology, and connotative, on the other.

Your assignment is to interpret the image provided by your section leader according to its denotative and connotative meanings, using terminology from Barthes, Chandler, and Sturken and Cartwright. Remember that even the most seemingly obvious connotations require contextual support. A heart shape may be a fairly universal signifier of love, but heart = love is a connotative, second-order sign. A heart is a heart (denotative) and is love (connotative). The effort involved is to explain each level of signification interpretively and analytically, using terminology you have learned, always with reference to the material conditions of the image. It is helpful to explain how a denotative sign is culturally inflected.

Further points to keep in mind:
It may be tempting to suggest what an image means to you personally and then try to defend your personal interpretation. You are advised to be careful not to make the connotative analysis highly subjective because that may lead you to assume the reader shares your interpretation without you having to describe and explain it. The point is not to defend what you feel the image to mean, but to analyze through evidence what the image is likely to mean in its implied cultural context. Remember that the proof is in the description and we often fail to notice very basic but important aspects of images (such as the presence of text, or formal elements such as color and lighting and framing, or cultural context). Nothing should be taken for granted as obvious€”everything in the image at the denotative level and in the second-order signification you claim for it needs to be described and explained. It may also be tempting to cover only what the general connotation of an object is (for example, an apple may suggest fresh or nature). But it is your job to show us a more specific second-order signification or myth in the specific image, and not only the general connotation of the object in it. For example, is the image an advertisement? Is there an implied context?

Projects awarded A grades tend to offer depth of analysis, interpretation, and/or insight in a creative manner with a strong thesis or framing of concepts, and bear a well documented relationship to the course materials. The A project is usually well organized or well designed. The thesis is well supported by concepts and issues drawn from class materials. A assignments offer description and analysis of the points made and examples used to make them. Projects awarded an A grade usually integrate themes, issues, and concepts from readings, screenings, and discussions in comprehensive and detailed ways that make a point or raise ideas. Quotes and ideas from sources are used in a manner that goes beyond re-statement of another author’s claims. All direct quotations are cited and their meaning in the context of the project is explained rather than left to stand on their own for the reader to determine. Any use of audio or visual material is carefully thought through in terms of design, composition, and juxtaposition with other forms (such as writing). Design and organization of the project are thoughtfully worked through and communicate effectively in a manner that adds interest to the project. Creativity is a strong feature of the A project! Very important for A assignments: Creativity is evident in concept or thesis, and/or in the research or technical design of the project. Attempts to push boundaries with creative form outside the traditional essay style are to be rewarded, even if these projects are less clear than conventional styles of presentation. Creativity is a strong feature of A projects. Assignments that are very competently done but do not offer a new insight or say anything new beyond what the materials themselves offer are in the B range.