Select Currency
Translate this page

SEMIOTICS ANALYSIS OF NIGERIAN AND AMERICAN FILMS

Format: MS WORD  |  Chapter: 1-5  |  Pages: 84  |  1836 Users found this project useful  |  Price NGN5,000

  DOWNLOAD THE FULL PROJECT

SEMIOTICS ANALYSIS OF NIGERIAN AND AMERICAN FILMS

 

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.0 Background to the Study

Semiotics is a form of communication that uses signs, codes, symbols, and significations to articulate ideas and information. It is a method of communication that investigates the creation of meanings. Adedina and Taiwo (2015:6) define it as the study of signs within the framework of social life as expressed in a work of art. Ferdinand de Saussure, the Swiss linguist and semiotician who laid the foundation for the study of semiotics, posits that semiology (his preferred term) is the science that has to do with the study of signs in the society (1974:661). Pierce, the renowned American philosopher and semiotician representes semiotics as

“the quasi-necessary, or formal doctrine of signs. By describing the doctrine as “quasi – necessary,” or formal, I mean that we observe the characters of such signs as we know, and from such observation, by a process which I will not object to naming abstraction, we are led to statements, eminently fallible, and therefore in one sense by no means necessary, as to what must be the characters of all signs used by a “scientific” intelligence, that is to say by an intelligence capable of learning by experience” (cited in Desai and Nair 2005: 561).

The two definitions are associated with the patterns of communication; that is, socio-cultural relationships and interactions in human society.  While Saussure emphasises the social function of the sign, Pierce emphasises its logical function. Nevertheless, both perspectives are closely related; and more, the two terms “semiology” and “semiotics”, Adesanya (2014:50) submits, the same concept. Therefore, semiotics can be defined as the study of how signs, codes and symbols function within recognised sign systems for significations. To clarify Adesanya’s (2014) position, Adedina and Taiwo (2015:7) state that there exists the formal and social aspects of semiotics. They note that while formal semiology deals with conceptualising signs from the contexts of their usage, social semiotics examine semiotic practices that are specific to cultures. Semiotics therefore, finds expression in every phenomenon that is intended for communication, either contextually or culture specific.

In film, semiotics helps in deepening intended meaning. The visual basis of film gives it a universal power of communication. Film, Bankole (2014:2) notes, is a repository of semiological symbols. The meanings are inferred from societal practices; norms, cultural values, individual experiences and environmental contexts, to showcase the way the society functions as projected in films through aesthetics. As a result, every sign or sign system operates within a given context. Many filmmakers extensively deploy semiotics in expressing the myth, history legendary stories and archetypes within the respective cultures where their films are set. Kunle Afolayan and Mel Gibson are renowned for adopting semiotics in the treatment of the narratives that portray respective cultures.

In a broad sense, myth and archetypes refer to any traditional belief conveyed by cultural codes within socio-religious sign systems. According to Alagoa (1978:9), myths are sacred narratives of sacred things/beings and of semi divine heroes. Similarly, Jaja (2012:9) perceives myths “as stories that play explanatory functions in understanding reality, concepts and beliefs and further serve as explanations of nature and events such as creations, origin of things, history of a race or a people, and heroic deeds and achievements”. This clearly shows that myths true expressions of societal beliefs that are communicated through a collection of signifying elements. Okpewho, Finnegan,

Afolayan and Gibson’s films embody mythic representations that reinvent archetypes. Ihidero (2015:57) says:

Modern filmmakers across divergent continents have largely exploited their indigenous myths and archetypes in explaining major phenomenon and events in history. In Africa, and especially Nigeria, filmmakers have deployed archetypes in the re/presentation of African reality and they have continued to draw from primordial myths and divergent archetypes to depict the changing societies in Africa.

As profound as Ihidero’s (2015) assertion is, many film critics in Nigeria have not given much critical attention to the use of myth in explaining the social reality of the country. Also, only a fraction of filmmakers in Nigeria have employed myth in their films in a manner that will engender development. Tunde Kelani is one of the filmmakers who creatively use Yoruba myth to explain the action and, or, inaction of his film characters. Popular among his works are Saworoide (1999); Agogo-eewo (2002); Thunderbolt: Magun (2001); Arugba (2008); Maami (2012) – an adaptation of Femi Osofisan’s Maami (1987); The Narrow Path (2006) – an adaptation of Biyi Bandele’s novel of the same title; and Sidi Ilujinle (2017) – an adaptation of Wole Soyinka’s The Lion and the Jewel (1959). Furthermore, Andy Amenechi adapted Elechi Amadi’s The Concubine (2007) to film, and so did Biyi Bandele adapted Ngozi Chimamanda’s Half of a Yellow Sun (2012) to film, among many others. The above listed films deal with the past, present and changing conditions of the Nigerian society in all spheres, using myth-archetypes as elements of meaning making for resolutions. Kunle Afolayan and Mel Gibson fall under some of the modern filmmakers that have used myths in their films to interrogate their immediate environment and the modern society at large. This is evident in the films of Kunle Afolayan that are chosen for this study. Fundamental to the filmic representations of Afolayan and Gibson is the deployment of semiotic properties in creating profound meanings. To this end, this study analyses and interprets archetypes in the selected films of Kunle Afolayan and Mel Gibson within the purview of Semiotics. This study employs semiotics as an intricate term that encapsulates the various levels of narratives, the filmic signs and codes, and other signifying elements that are capable of being semiotically analysed in the selected films.

This study also investigates the intermingling of the signifying elements in the signification and the interpretations of the films, and further juxtaposes the codes and signs employed in the films by these filmmakers. The films selected for this study are Irapada (2006), Figurine (2009), and October 1 (2014) by Kunle Afolayan, and Passion of the Christ (2004), Apocalypto (2006) and The Braveheart (1996) by Mel Gibson. The criteria for the selection of these films is recurring theme of myth, which covers sacrifice, horror and heroic feats that are communicated through the various filmic and cultural codes and signs. The predominant elements of semiotics in these films are verbal language, text, images, and other non-verbal signs of communication that are semiotically internalised and analysed for signification and interpretation. The codes and signs used in these films are culture-based, as it is with other communication systems that require signification and interpretation. This situates the semiotic elements within the milieu of cultural semiotics.

For a semiotic reading of a work of art, an in-depth understanding of such a work will guide the interpretation of all the elements of production employed in the work. The semiosis of film has been broadly categorised into various ideological milieu: syntagmatic ideology, paradigmatic ideology, rhetorical tropes (Chandler 2005:52, 63, 88) and other cultural and social codes and signs. The concept of ideology is generic. Ideology, in this context, is defined as ideas or beliefs underlyimg actions of a class or group of class or group of people. The paradigmatic (synchronic) and the syntagmatic (diachronic) analyses, rhetorical tropes, and other cultural and social codes and signs (which are aspects of semiotics), often intermingle for an accurate analysis and interpretation to be arrived at. The synchronic analysis involves a search for the hidden pattern of oppositions that are buried in the films that generate meaning. The diachronic analysis is a syntagm. In this type of analysis, a text is examined as a sequence of events that form the narratives of the film. Filmmakers combine these levels of codes with other linguistic, non-linguistic and rhetorical tropes to achieve their motif in the narration. In narratological terms, the synchronic structure of film is otherwise referred to as the fabula and the diachronic structure is known as the sjuzhet. The films chosen for this study will be analysed using the above listed variables, which are incorporated in a semiotic analysis.

However, existing critiques on these films have not been read from the purview of archetypal conventions and how they define the contemporary society. The few accessible critiques on The Figurine is Afolayan’s (2015) Auteuring Nollywood: Critical Perspectives on The Figurine. Most of the essays in this book adopt extraneous standards to appraise the themes inherent in the film. The implication of analysing The Figurine using a foreign model is that it may reduce the export of the Yoruba narratological systems and codes which Afolayan deploys in telling his stories but because he has carved a niche for himself on the international film scene. For example, Afolayan’s October 1 and The Figurine deploy nuanced forms of barding and, or diachronic communication systems which absolutely differs from colloquial usage. Thus, the export of Yoruba representational art in films cannot be said to have been given credible treatment the same way the English narrative style and myth-archetypes have found expressions in Gibson’s films.

Several orientations exist on the application of semiotics in film or literary studies. Due to the similarities in the codes and signs employed by the filmmakers in their representations of myth-archetypal elements, this study appraises the myth-archetypes in the selected films. The conception of semiotics from this dimension conveys the cultural modes that drive the diegesis of the films. The application of this dimension to the films will change the interpretations and constructions of meanings in the film. It will inevitably change some established understandings and meanings of such myths. To this end, the several schools of thought that have theorised on film analysis have a point of convergence; the construction of meanings which can be taken as semiotics. This is because the semiotic theory specifically constructs and analyses man’s communicative behaviour. In this case, our task mainly is the interrogation, identification and description of signs and sign-systems for the purpose of signification. This is supported by Lemke’s (2004:177) argument that

Semiotics suggests that each intelligence is mediated by an analytically distinct semiotic resource system, such as language, visual depiction, or mathematical symbolics, and that when we combine these resources their meaning-making potentials quite literally multiply one another, making possible distinct kinds of meaning that cannot be made in each one separately.

Lemke’s assertion is imperative in a semiotic analysis of film of this kind in the sense that it combines all the employed semiotic resources for signification. This study uses the parameters that guide a semiotic analysis of film such as synchronic and diachronic examination, denotation and connotation, metonymy, metaphor, and irony to interrogate how meanings are produced in the selected films. By so doing, the latent meanings that enhance the significance of the films from a socio-cultural context and sub-contexts will be uncovered. Filmmakers employ these resources in creating ethno-religious and socio-culturally situated activities where the audience also observe the presence of the social world, either because it is mentioned, or because various resources have been symbolically used in the process of making sense of the events represented. Applying these elements of narrative accelerates the psychological reorientation of the audience specifically with regard to the construction of their social reality.

Statement of Research Problem

Archetypal representations exist in abundance in all human societies. In film studies generally, a lot of researches have been carried out using the semiotic perspective to analyse these representations. In Nigeria, such existing works have focused largely on the general identification and analysis of films using the theory of semiotics. A number of other works have only focused on general archetypal representations in films. Much has not been done on the semiotic analysis of archetypal representations in films. Paying attention to archetypal representations will enable us to compare motifs in the selected films of the filmmakers. This study intends to fill this gap.

Objectives of the Study

The specific objectives of the study are to

(a)   identify the archetypal representations in the selected films of Kunle Afolayan and Mel Gibson;

(b)   analyse the varieties of codes and signs used to project the archetypal motifs in the narratives;

(c)   examine the relevance of the codes and signs in locating the films within archetypal and semiotics criticism; and

(d) juxtapose the codes and  signs used by the filmmakers in communicating their messages.

  DOWNLOAD THE FULL PROJECT

SEMIOTICS ANALYSIS OF NIGERIAN AND AMERICAN FILMS

Not The Topic You Are Looking For?



For Quick Help Chat with Us Now!

+234 814 010 7220

+233 55 397 8005


HOW TO GET THE COMPLETE PROJECT ON SEMIOTICS ANALYSIS OF NIGERIAN AND AMERICAN FILMS INSTANTLY

  • Click on the Download Button above.
  • Select any option to get the complete project immediately.
  • Chat with Our Instant Help Desk on +234 814 010 7220 for further assistance.
  • All projects on our website are well researched by professionals with high level of professionalism.

Here's what our amazing customers are saying

Ibrahim Muhammad Muhammad
Usmanu danfodiyo university, sokoto
It's a site that give researcher student's to gain access work,easier,affordable and understandable. I appreciate the iproject master teams for making my project work fast and available .I will surely,recommend this site to my friends.thanks a lot..!
Excellent
Oluchi From Michael Opara University
If you are a student and you have not used iprojectmaster materials, you are missing big time! iprojectmaster is the BEST
Excellent
Uduak From Uniuyo
IProjectMaster is the best project site for students. Their works are unique and free of plagiarism!
Excellent
Samuel From Ajayi Crowther University
You guys just made life easier for students. Thanks alot iprojectmaster.com
Excellent
Stancy M
Abia State University, Uturu
I did not see my project topic on your website so I decided to call your customer care number, the attention I got was epic! I got help from the beginning to the end of my project in just 3 days, they even taught me how to defend my project and I got a 'B' at the end. Thank you so much iprojectmaster, infact, I owe my graduating well today to you guys...
Excellent
MATTHEW NGBEDE
Ahmadu Bello University
I wish I knew you guys when I wrote my first degree project, it took so much time and effort then. Now, with just a click of a button, I got my complete project in less than 15 minutes. You guys are too amazing!
Excellent
Azeez Abiodun
Moshood Abiola polytechnic
I actually googled and saw about iproject master, copied the number and contacted them through WhatsApp to ask for the availability of the material and to my luck they have it. So there was a delay with the project due to the covid19 pandemic. I was really scared before making the payment cause I’ve been scammed twice, they attended so well to me and that made me trust the process and made the payment and provided them with proof, I got my material in less than 10minutes
Very Good
JONNAH EHIS
Ajayi Crowther University, Oyo
I was scared at first when I saw your website but I decided to risk my last 3k and surprisingly I got my complete project in my email box instantly. This is so nice!!!
Excellent
Musa From Ahmadu Bello University
Thank you iprojectmaster for saving my life, please keep it up and may God continue to bless you people.
Excellent
Abdulrahman Jibrin
Nti Abaji
Nice one work prompt delivery tanx
Very Good

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How do I get this complete project on SEMIOTICS ANALYSIS OF NIGERIAN AND AMERICAN FILMS?

Simply click on the Download button above and follow the procedure stated.

I have a fresh topic that is not on your website. How do I go about it?

How fast can I get this complete project on SEMIOTICS ANALYSIS OF NIGERIAN AND AMERICAN FILMS?

Within 15 minutes if you want this exact project topic without adjustment

Is it a complete research project or just materials?

It is a Complete Research Project i.e Chapters 1-5, Abstract, Table of Contents, Full References, Questionnaires / Secondary Data

What if I want to change the case study for SEMIOTICS ANALYSIS OF NIGERIAN AND AMERICAN FILMS, What do i do?

Chat with Our Instant Help Desk Now: +234 814 010 7220 and you will be responded to immediately

How will I get my complete project?

Your Complete Project Material will be sent to your Email Address in Ms Word document format

Can I get my Complete Project through WhatsApp?

Yes! We can send your Complete Research Project to your WhatsApp Number

What if my Project Supervisor made some changes to a topic i picked from your website?

Call Our Instant Help Desk Now: +234 814 010 7220 and you will be responded to immediately

Do you assist students with Assignment and Project Proposal?

Yes! Call Our Instant Help Desk Now: +234 814 010 7220 and you will be responded to immediately

What if i do not have any project topic idea at all?

Smiles! We've Got You Covered. Chat with us on WhatsApp Now to Get Instant Help: +234 814 010 7220

How can i trust this site?

We are well aware of fraudulent activities that have been happening on the internet. It is regrettable, but hopefully declining. However, we wish to reinstate to our esteemed clients that we are genuine and duly registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission as "PRIMEDGE TECHNOLOGY". This site runs on Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), therefore all transactions on this site are HIGHLY secure and safe!