The Transition from Rural Community to Urban Mass Society: Impact of Media Technologies

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IS THIS HOW THEY
SEE ME
MASSES, MESSAGES AND MEANINGS
 
Richard T. Craig
George Mason University
 
The Ubiquity of the Media Environment
 
Our lives are
saturated with
media
technologies
and images.
 
The Mass Society Questions:
What happened to American
Culture and Politics? (1865-1939)
 
How did we get to the point where the
public—or rather, the “masses”— can have
their hearts and minds shaped by mass
mediated propaganda?
 
How did we get to the point where the new,
powerful means of mass communication
have become polluted with mindless “mass
culture”?
 
The Answer:  The Transition from
Rural Community
 to 
Urban Mass Society
.
 
Rural Community
(Gemeinschaft)
 
Social stability.
Strong collective
values.
Reliance on
traditional
authorities.
Folk culture: organic,
participatory.
 
Urban Mass Society
(Gesellschaft)
 
Atomized individuals without social ties
pour into city.
Cut off from traditions, values, folk
customs.
 
The new urban masses:
isolated, anonymous individuals crammed
together in the new industrial city.
 
Semiotics:
The Study of Signs (Symbols)
 
Signs
 – are 
things
(objects, words,
images) that have a
meaning
.
 
How do 
roses
—a
physical object—
communicate
meanings
 (such as…)?
 
Sign = Signifier + Signified
 
Signified   
 
 
The meaning itself
.
 
The abstract “concept” carried by the signifier.
 
Signifier   
 
 
The physical carrier of
 
meaning
.
 
Word (sound), Word (written), Image, Object.
 
Sign = Signifier + Signified
 
Signifier
  
+
 
Signified           =
 
(Sign)
    
+
 
Love/Passion  =    (Roses=I Love You)
 
 
 
Writing on Card
  
+
 
Love/Passion =     (Words = I
Love You)
(“I Love You”)
 
Signifieds (meanings) 
must
 be associated with, or “carried”
by, signifiers (physical carriers) in order to be communicated
from one person to another.
 
Sign = Signifier + Signified
 
Two Important Points:
 
1. You cannot communicate abstract concepts without physical carriers (images, words on a page, the
sound of my voice).
 
The Arbitrary Nature of Signs
 
2. The relationship between signifiers
and signifieds is 
arbitrary
.
 
There is nothing 
inherent
 in the roses
that requires us to associate them with
“passion.”
 
 
Could you fix my Dodge Dakota?
 
But, if Signs are Arbitrary,
How Did (S)he “Get” What I Meant?
 
Cultural Codes and Conventions
 
(S)he “got” the meaning because (s)he and I shared the same cultural codes and conventions.
These codes and conventions tell us both to associate the 
signifier
 of a bunch of roses with a particular
signified
 or meaning – "I love you."
 
So What Does Semiotics Have to Do
with Cultural Studies?
 
The job of the analyst is to determine how a media 
text
 links up 
signifiers
—that is,
certain images, certain forms of language, and certain sounds—to communicate
particular 
signifieds
 (ie, particular social and cultural meanings).
 
Cultural Studies: Textual/Semiotic
Analysis
 
What meanings (signifieds) did the author intend to communicate by 
selecting
 and 
combining
 these
particular
 
signifiers
 -- these particular words, images, or narratives?
How is the text, and others like it, encouraging us to think about ourselves, others, and the society we live
in?
 
Denotation and Connotation
Two Levels of Meaning
 
Denotation
 
 The Surface,
Literal Meaning of a Sign.
 
Connotation
 
 The
Implicit, Expressive, Cultural
Meaning of a Sign.
 
A single sign can express
both
 denotative and
connotative meanings.
 
What is he handing you?
(denotation)
What does it mean, at a cultural
level?
 (connotation)
 
Stuart Halls Encoding Decoding Model
 
Encoding
                                                     
 Text
                                                                
Decoding
 
Producers Assemble
signifiers and arrange
them to communicate
particular meanings. The
intended
Meaning is the preferred
meaning.
 
The carrier
of the
producer’s
meaning.
 
Audience actively
interprets the text,
drawing on their own
personal experiences to
produce a particular
reading of the text (i.e. to
associate the signifiers
with specific signifieds.
 
Three outcomes of decoding
 
Dominant reading 
= audience decodes meaning of the text in line with the
producer’s intentions (viewer reproduces the “preferred meaning”
 
Oppositional reading 
= Audience rejects totally the social and political meanings
and values “preferred” by the producer.
 
Negotiated reading 
= audience endorses some elements of the message, while
rejecting other parts.
 
References
 
Al Mamun Khan, M. F. (2014). Semiotics: The Representation, Construction and Evaluation of
Reality. 
Language in India
14
(8), 78–89.
Hall, S. (1985). Signification, representation, ideology: Althusser and the post‐structuralist debates.
Lang, K., & Lang, G. (2009). Mass Society, Mass Culture, and Mass Communication:The Meanings of Mass. 
International
Journal Of Communication, 3
, 20. Retrieved from 
https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/597
Ouelette, L. (1997).  Media Education Foundation study guide: Gerbner series.  Media Education
Foundation.
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Our lives are influenced by the saturation of media technologies and images, leading to questions on American culture and politics. The shift from rural community to urban mass society has resulted in individuals being isolated and disconnected from traditions and values, shaping their hearts and minds through mass-mediated propaganda. The study of signs, semiotics, reveals how meanings are communicated through signifiers and signifieds. Explore how the evolution of society has impacted communication and culture.


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  1. IS THIS HOW THEY SEE ME MASSES, MESSAGES AND MEANINGS Richard T. Craig George Mason University

  2. The Ubiquity of the Media Environment Our lives are saturated with media technologies and images.

  3. The Mass Society Questions: What happened to American Culture and Politics? (1865-1939) How did we get to the point where the public or rather, the masses can have their hearts and minds shaped by mass mediated propaganda? How did we get to the point where the new, powerful means of mass communication have become polluted with mindless mass culture ? The Answer: The Transition from Rural Community to Urban Mass Society.

  4. Rural Community (Gemeinschaft) Social stability. Strong collective values. Reliance on traditional authorities. Folk culture: organic, participatory.

  5. Urban Mass Society (Gesellschaft) Atomized individuals without social ties pour into city. Cut off from traditions, values, folk customs. The new urban masses: isolated, anonymous individuals crammed together in the new industrial city.

  6. Semiotics: The Study of Signs (Symbols) Signs are things (objects, words, images) that have a meaning. How do roses a physical object communicate meanings (such as )?

  7. Sign = Signifier + Signified Signified The meaning itself. The abstract concept carried by the signifier. Signifier The physical carrier of meaning. Word (sound), Word (written), Image, Object.

  8. Sign = Signifier + Signified Signifier + Signified = (Sign) + Love/Passion = (Roses=I Love You) Writing on Card Love You) ( I Love You ) + Love/Passion = (Words = I Signifieds (meanings) must be associated with, or carried by, signifiers (physical carriers) in order to be communicated from one person to another.

  9. Sign = Signifier + Signified Two Important Points: 1. You cannot communicate abstract concepts without physical carriers (images, words on a page, the sound of my voice).

  10. The Arbitrary Nature of Signs 2. The relationship between signifiers and signifieds is arbitrary. There is nothing inherent in the roses that requires us to associate them with passion. Could you fix my Dodge Dakota?

  11. But, if Signs are Arbitrary, How Did (S)he Get What I Meant? Cultural Codes and Conventions (S)he got the meaning because (s)he and I shared the same cultural codes and conventions. These codes and conventions tell us both to associate the signifier of a bunch of roses with a particular signified or meaning "I love you."

  12. So What Does Semiotics Have to Do with Cultural Studies? The job of the analyst is to determine how a media text links up signifiers that is, certain images, certain forms of language, and certain sounds to communicate particular signifieds (ie, particular social and cultural meanings).

  13. Cultural Studies: Textual/Semiotic Analysis What meanings (signifieds) did the author intend to communicate by selecting and combining these particular signifiers -- these particular words, images, or narratives? How is the text, and others like it, encouraging us to think about ourselves, others, and the society we live in?

  14. Denotation and Connotation Two Levels of Meaning Denotation The Surface, Literal Meaning of a Sign. Connotation The Implicit, Expressive, Cultural Meaning of a Sign. A single sign can express both denotative and connotative meanings. What is he handing you? (denotation) What does it mean, at a cultural level? (connotation)

  15. Stuart Halls Encoding Decoding Model Encoding TextDecoding The carrier of the producer s meaning. Producers Assemble signifiers and arrange them to communicate particular meanings. The intended Meaning is the preferred meaning. Audience actively interprets the text, drawing on their own personal experiences to produce a particular reading of the text (i.e. to associate the signifiers with specific signifieds. Three outcomes of decoding Dominant reading = audience decodes meaning of the text in line with the producer s intentions (viewer reproduces the preferred meaning Oppositional reading = Audience rejects totally the social and political meanings and values preferred by the producer. Negotiated reading = audience endorses some elements of the message, while rejecting other parts.

  16. References Al Mamun Khan, M. F. (2014). Semiotics: The Representation, Construction and Evaluation of Reality. Language in India, 14(8), 78 89. Hall, S. (1985). Signification, representation, ideology: Althusser and the post structuralist debates. Lang, K., & Lang, G. (2009). Mass Society, Mass Culture, and Mass Communication:The Meanings of Mass. International Journal Of Communication, 3, 20. Retrieved from https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/597 Ouelette, L. (1997). Media Education Foundation study guide: Gerbner series. Media Education Foundation.

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