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Decoding, in
semiotics Semiotics (also called semiotic studies) is the systematic study of sign processes ( semiosis) and meaning making. Semiosis is any activity, conduct, or process that involves signs, where a sign is defined as anything that communicates something ...
, is the process of interpreting a
message A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus. A ...
sent by an addresser (sender) to an addressee (receiver). The complementary processcreating a
message A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus. A ...
for transmission to an addresseeis called encoding.


Overview

All communication depends on the use of codes. More traditional communication models always include three main elements: a sender, a transmitter, and a receiver (Fawkes 21). The sender is responsible for “ encoding” (i.e., selecting information) their message and putting it through a transmitter (i.e., a
communication channel A communication channel refers either to a physical transmission medium such as a wire, or to a logical connection over a multiplexed medium such as a radio channel in telecommunications and computer networking. A channel is used for informa ...
or a
medium Medium may refer to: Science and technology Aviation * Medium bomber, a class of war plane * Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design Communication * Media (communication), tools used to store and deliver information or data * Medium ...
like a video, radio, text messaging, etc.) (Fawkes 21). When the encoded information, put through the transmitter, gets to the receiver, it is the responsibility of the receiver to “decode” (i.e., interpret the message) and respond accordingly with
feedback Feedback occurs when outputs of a system are routed back as inputs as part of a chain of cause-and-effect that forms a circuit or loop. The system can then be said to ''feed back'' into itself. The notion of cause-and-effect has to be handled ...
(Fawkes 21). The communication process cannot work without all its three major parts: the sender/encoder, the transmitter/
medium Medium may refer to: Science and technology Aviation * Medium bomber, a class of war plane * Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design Communication * Media (communication), tools used to store and deliver information or data * Medium ...
, and the receiver/decoder. If there is no sender/encoder, then nobody crafts the beginning message(s) to send out. If there is no
medium Medium may refer to: Science and technology Aviation * Medium bomber, a class of war plane * Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design Communication * Media (communication), tools used to store and deliver information or data * Medium ...
/transmitter to put the message through, then the message cannot be delivered to the receiver. If there is no receiver/decoder then a message can’t be decoded and hold any value whatsoever (Eadie and Goret 29). When there is no value to a message the decoder cannot make meaning out of it (Eadie and Goret 29). When the
message A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus. A ...
is received, the addressee is not passive, but decoding is more than simply recognizing the content of the message. Over time, each
individual An individual is that which exists as a distinct entity. Individuality (or self-hood) is the state or quality of being an individual; particularly (in the case of humans) of being a person unique from other people and possessing one's own need ...
in the
audience An audience is a group of people who participate in a show or encounter a work of art, literature (in which they are called "readers"), theatre, music (in which they are called "listeners"), video games (in which they are called "players"), o ...
develops a
cognitive Cognition refers to "the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses". It encompasses all aspects of intellectual functions and processes such as: perception, attention, thought ...
framework of codes that will recall the denotative meaning and suggest possible connotative meanings for each signifier. But the actual meaning for each message is
context Context may refer to: * Context (language use), the relevant constraints of the communicative situation that influence language use, language variation, and discourse summary Computing * Context (computing), the virtual environment required to s ...
-dependent: the codified relations between the signifiers in the particular context must be interpreted according to the
syntactic In linguistics, syntax () is the study of how words and morphemes combine to form larger units such as phrases and sentences. Central concerns of syntax include word order, grammatical relations, hierarchical sentence structure (constituency) ...
,
semantic Semantics (from grc, σημαντικός ''sēmantikós'', "significant") is the study of reference, meaning, or truth. The term can be used to refer to subfields of several distinct disciplines, including philosophy, linguistics and comput ...
, and social codes so that the most appropriate meaning is attributed (for labeling usages by reference to national characteristics, see Americanism). Away from the communication process itself, decoding has become so second nature in the lives of individuals to the point where we do not even realize we are decoding. When
driving Driving is the controlled operation and movement of a vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, and bicycles. Permission to drive on public highways is granted based on a set of conditions being met and drivers are required to ...
, for example, we are using the
color Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associ ...
of the
traffic light Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traffic. Traffic light ...
s (an encoded nonverbal signal, in this case) as the basis of the encoded messages which we interpret. A green light is an encoded signal telling us (the receivers/decoders) to go ahead. Here, it is the context-dependent meaning – according to universally agreed-upon social codes of
road rules ''Road Rules'' is an MTV reality show that was a sister show of the network's flagship reality show, '' The Real World''. The series debuted on July 19, 1995, and ended on May 9, 2007. This allowed ''Road Rules'' a total of 14 seasons and 12 yea ...
– where we appropriately attach meaning to the
color Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associ ...
s of
traffic light Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traffic. Traffic light ...
s. Overall, these encoded
message A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus. A ...
s, supported by social codes and other factors, “function like dictionaries or look-up tables” for individuals in society (Chandler 178).


Misinterpretations in Decoding Messages

Although the addresser may have a very clearly defined intention when encoding and wish to manipulate the audience into accepting the preferred meaning, the reality is not that of textual
determinism Determinism is a philosophical view, where all events are determined completely by previously existing causes. Deterministic theories throughout the history of philosophy have developed from diverse and sometimes overlapping motives and cons ...
. What is decoded does not follow inevitably from an interpretation of the
message A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus. A ...
.
Roman Jakobson Roman Osipovich Jakobson (russian: Рома́н О́сипович Якобсо́н; October 11, 1896Kucera, Henry. 1983. "Roman Jakobson." ''Language: Journal of the Linguistic Society of America'' 59(4): 871–883. – July 18,message A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus. A ...
s, “ coding involves moving from symbol to referent to experience as the constitution of meaning” (Lanigan 73). Not infrequently, the addressees find different levels of meaning. Addressees, or the receivers, decode according to their cultural signs because it is semiotics that often entails “the decoding of cultural signs” (Tiefenbrun 528). When decoding, the receiver must be the one to find the balance between a signifier and a signified (Tiefenbrun 196). In finding a balance, however, receivers engage in an “analytical quest” that may result in them inferring a completely unintended meaning that the encoder/sender did not intend (Tiefenbrun 195). This could be because of the receiver’s cultural background, previous knowledge, or perhaps another reason.
Umberto Eco Umberto Eco (5 January 1932 – 19 February 2016) was an Italian medievalist, philosopher, semiotician, novelist, cultural critic, and political and social commentator. In English, he is best known for his popular 1980 novel ''The Name of th ...
called this mismatch between the intended meaning and interpreted meaning aberrant decoding. This apparent failure of
communication Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inqui ...
may result for a variety of reasons, including 1) because the parties may use different codes due to their
social class A social class is a grouping of people into a set of hierarchical social categories, the most common being the upper, middle and lower classes. Membership in a social class can for example be dependent on education, wealth, occupation, inc ...
, 2) because the parties have different training or ability due to different
world view A worldview or world-view or ''Weltanschauung'' is the fundamental cognitive orientation of an individual or society encompassing the whole of the individual's or society's knowledge, culture, and point of view. A worldview can include natural ...
s or
ideologies An ideology is a set of beliefs or philosophies attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely epistemic, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones." Formerly applied prim ...
, or 3) because the parties are from different
culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...
s. David Morley argues that the outcome of decoding will be influenced by
pragmatic Pragmatism is a philosophical movement. Pragmatism or pragmatic may also refer to: *Pragmaticism, Charles Sanders Peirce's post-1905 branch of philosophy * Pragmatics, a subfield of linguistics and semiotics *'' Pragmatics'', an academic journal i ...
issues, i.e. whether: *the addressee can comprehend the
message A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus. A ...
in its entirety; *the
message A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus. A ...
is relevant to the addressee; *the addressee is enjoying the experience of receiving the
message A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus. A ...
; and *the addressee accepts or rejects the addresser's
values In ethics and social sciences, value denotes the degree of importance of something or action, with the aim of determining which actions are best to do or what way is best to live (normative ethics in ethics), or to describe the significance of di ...
. Further,
Umberto Eco Umberto Eco (5 January 1932 – 19 February 2016) was an Italian medievalist, philosopher, semiotician, novelist, cultural critic, and political and social commentator. In English, he is best known for his popular 1980 novel ''The Name of th ...
suggests a distinction between ''closed'' texts which predispose a dominant interpretation and more ''open'' texts which may have latent meanings or be encoded in a way that encourages the possibility of alternative interpretations.


Symmetry and The Two Dominant Positions

Signs are known to have some sort of balance in them—known as symmetry (Meagher 185). When there is symmetry in the communication process - symmetry between encoding and decoding - it can be placed in the field of “meaningful media signs” (Meagher 185). Within this view, there are two dominant positions that one can take: there is the most symmetrical position (called the dominant hegemonic position) and there is the least symmetrical position (called the oppositional position) (Meagher 185). In the dominant hegemonic position (the most symmetrical position), “the viewer interprets the media sign according to the same
logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from prem ...
used by encoder-producers” (Meagher 185). For example, if you are a recreational hockey player living in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
and see a
commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...
from a
Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
company (the sender/encoder in this situation) for their new line of “ultra flex”
hockey stick A hockey stick is a piece of sports equipment used by the players in all the forms of hockey to move the ball or puck (as appropriate to the type of hockey) either to push, pull, hit, strike, flick, steer, launch or stop the ball/ puck during pla ...
s, you (the receiver/decoder) will already understand the main benefits of the hockey sticks because you play
hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...
. In this example, you (the decoder) have something in common with the
Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
company that produced the
commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...
(the encoder), which allows you to share the same
logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from prem ...
used by the
Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
company. When the receiver/decoder interprets the sign using the same
logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from prem ...
as the encoder, it can be called a “preferred reading” (Meagher 185). In the oppositional position (the least symmetrical decoding position), “the viewer recognizes the preferred reading that has been constructed by producers, but rejects it in its totality” (Meagher 185). Back to the example with hockey sticks, let’s say you – a recreational hockey player –  understood the main benefits of the commercial for the new line hockey sticks, but reject the idea that it is an “ultra flex” stick because of the
price A price is the (usually not negative) quantity of payment or compensation given by one party to another in return for goods or services. In some situations, the price of production has a different name. If the product is a "good" in the ...
and the image of the stick. Here, you still share the same
logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from prem ...
as the encoder and still understand the commercial, but you reject it because of its look and
price A price is the (usually not negative) quantity of payment or compensation given by one party to another in return for goods or services. In some situations, the price of production has a different name. If the product is a "good" in the ...
. This is the oppositional position. Note that most times the oppositional position occurs because the decoder sees the
message A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus. A ...
as either deceptive or as a misrepresentation of the real world (Meagher 185).


Semiotics in The World of Advertising

Essentially,
Semiotics Semiotics (also called semiotic studies) is the systematic study of sign processes ( semiosis) and meaning making. Semiosis is any activity, conduct, or process that involves signs, where a sign is defined as anything that communicates something ...
works to understand how signs can be interpreted in various forms, one of which can be accomplished through
Advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...
. Since advertising works to persuading buyers to purchase goods and services, ads can display various messages (Zakia, Nadin 6). These
advertisements Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...
often contain messages through images and words that help
consumers A consumer is a person or a group who intends to order, or uses purchased goods, products, or services primarily for personal, social, family, household and similar needs, who is not directly related to entrepreneurial or business activities. ...
interpret these symbols and signs (Zakia, Nadin 6). Therefore, this is how
semiotics Semiotics (also called semiotic studies) is the systematic study of sign processes ( semiosis) and meaning making. Semiosis is any activity, conduct, or process that involves signs, where a sign is defined as anything that communicates something ...
applies through advertising in simple terms. The use of semiotics as a method of
advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...
and
marketing Marketing is the process of exploring, creating, and delivering value to meet the needs of a target market in terms of goods and services; potentially including selection of a target audience; selection of certain attributes or themes to emph ...
can be classified based on how the messages within the advertisements can answer three questions, who is the
target audience A target audience is the intended audience or readership of a publication, advertisement, or other message catered specifically to said intended audience. In marketing and advertising, it is a particular group of consumer within the predetermined ...
, what is the purpose of the
product Product may refer to: Business * Product (business), an item that serves as a solution to a specific consumer problem. * Product (project management), a deliverable or set of deliverables that contribute to a business solution Mathematics * Produ ...
, what is the product (Zakia, Nadin 6). For example, when analyzing
tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
advertisements, specifically
Marlboro Marlboro (, ) is an American brand of cigarettes, currently owned and manufactured by Philip Morris USA (a branch of Altria) within the United States and by Philip Morris International (now separate from Altria) outside the US. The largest Mar ...
and Virginia Slims, they target two very different
demographics Demography () is the statistical study of populations, especially human beings. Demographic analysis examines and measures the dimensions and dynamics of populations; it can cover whole societies or groups defined by criteria such as ed ...
(Anderson et al. 256). Marlboro targets a male audience that symbolizes “rugged, masculine, independent, and heroic overtones,” whereas Virginia Slims’s
target audience A target audience is the intended audience or readership of a publication, advertisement, or other message catered specifically to said intended audience. In marketing and advertising, it is a particular group of consumer within the predetermined ...
is women that convey “women’s liberation, femininity, and glamour” (Anderson et al. 256). These two examples display and answer who is the
target audience A target audience is the intended audience or readership of a publication, advertisement, or other message catered specifically to said intended audience. In marketing and advertising, it is a particular group of consumer within the predetermined ...
? Which depends on the demographic. What is the purpose of the product? To sell
cigarettes A cigarette is a narrow cylinder containing a combustible material, typically tobacco, that is rolled into thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end, causing it to smolder; the resulting smoke is orally inhaled via the opp ...
to their
target audience A target audience is the intended audience or readership of a publication, advertisement, or other message catered specifically to said intended audience. In marketing and advertising, it is a particular group of consumer within the predetermined ...
, and what is the product? Which is the product of tobacco.


How The Interpretation of Law Uses Semiotics

When looking at
law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...
itself, it is a composite form where there are individual norms that are formed together to create a whole. Texts incorporate the structural features of the signifiers with which they are built, but they are not conceptually identical to their signifiers as a whole. According to Sebeok and Danesi, a coherent modelling system can be used to describe law. In traditional semiotic theory, a code is a system that provides specific types of signifiers that can be employed in a variety of ways and for a variety of representational goals. In terms of semiotics, a lawyer's attempt to grasp the signs of the code, to explain the law, is called a decoding process, i.e., a method that is supplied to solve problems created by deviations (shifts in meaning) and questions about intents that are buried in the code.


The Legal System: The Semiotic Mesh Model

From a semiotic-legal perspective, the legal system is a web of legally significant texts and meanings. To state that the legal system follows a Semiotic Mesh Model is to say that legal documents are connected to one another in some way, whether through syntactic, semantic, or pragmatic exchanges between legal actors. It's critical to stress, as Swiss jurist Pierre Moor emphasises, that the set of texts is always mobilised by the actions of legal players, making the community of legal actors responsible for the legal system's continual activity. Semioticist Bernard Jackson points out that legal language is a
medium Medium may refer to: Science and technology Aviation * Medium bomber, a class of war plane * Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design Communication * Media (communication), tools used to store and deliver information or data * Medium ...
of communication for a specialised set of people known as
jurists A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyses and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal qualification in law and often a legal practitioner. In the U ...
.


See also

*
Encoding (semiotics) Encoding, in semiotics, is the process of creating a message for transmission by an addresser to an addressee. The complementary processinterpreting a message received from an addresser{{spaced ndashis called decoding. Discussion The process o ...
* Encoding/decoding model of communication * Models of communication *
Semiotic theory of Charles Sanders Peirce Charles Sanders Peirce began writing on semiotics, which he also called semeiotics, meaning the philosophical study of signs, in the 1860s, around the time that he devised his system of three categories. During the 20th century, the term "semiot ...
*
Semiotics Semiotics (also called semiotic studies) is the systematic study of sign processes ( semiosis) and meaning making. Semiosis is any activity, conduct, or process that involves signs, where a sign is defined as anything that communicates something ...


References

{{Reflist * Anderson, S.J; Dewhirst, T.; Ling, P.M (2006). "Every document and picture tells a story: using internal corporate document reviews, semiotics, and content analysis to assess tobacco advertising". ''ProQuest''. * Chandler, Daniel. (2001–2007). ''Semiotics: The Basics''. London: Routledge. * Chandler, Daniel. Semiotics: The Basics. United Kingdom, Routledge, 2017. * Cobley, Paul, and Peter Schulz. ''Theories and Models of Communication''. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter Mouton, 2013. *Eadie, William, and Robin Goret. “Theories and models of communication: foundations and heritage.” Theories and Models of Communication, edited by Paul Cobley et al., Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter Mouton, 2013, pp. 17–36. *Eco, Umberto. ''The Role of the Reader''. London: Hutchinson. (1981) *Fawkes, Johanna. “Public relations and communications.” ''The Public Relations Handbook'', edited by Alison Theaker, Routledge, 2004, pp. 18–31. *Lanigan, Richard. “Information theories.” ''Theories and Models of Communication'', edited by Paul Cobley et al., Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter Mouton, 2013, pp. 59–84. *Meagher, Michelle. “encoding/decoding.” ''The Concise Encyclopedia of Sociology'', edited by George Ritzer et al., Blackwell Publishing, 2011, p. 185. *Morley, David. ''Television, Audiences and Cultural Studies''. London: Routledge. (1992) *Tiefenbrun, Susan. ''Decoding International Law: Semiotics and the Humanities''. Oxford University Press, 2010. *Zakia, Richard D., and Mihai Nadin.(1987) “Semiotics, Advertising and Marketing.” Emerald Insight. Semiotics