A good way to illustrate the meaning of signs is brand logos. When we think of prominent brands such as Nike, whenever we look at the ‘swoosh’, we think of the quality the goods possess and sports celebrities associated with it. In this case, the images of Roger Federer wearing that Nike headband and Tiger Woods putting on his golf cap all come to mind. Lury (20004 P.91) noted from Warner, “This graphic sign has no (or very little) individualism and is not an index, but is rather an abstract personification – in this case, first of desire, the desire of success, and then of its realization, success itself.” However, brand logos along with words can be subjective due to certain considerations.
One of the considerations is contextual relation. When speaking to another from a different culture, the meaning of the signifier might not be similar to what the other person is thinking, because of different dominant values. Shirato(2000,P.26) notes an example, “there is an important relationship between the dominant value or meaning of the signifier ‘woman’ and the way women are treated in a culture . If ‘woman’ is associated with emotionality, lack of reason, unprofessionalism and domesticity, then it is very difficult to change the material conditions in which women find themselves”. In this case, it is clear that certain cultures picture the word ‘woman’ differently. While in most developed countries, women are treated as equals, less develop countries view them differently. This leads us to the question of power.
If a country’s leader is a female, I will believe that it will have significant change on how women are viewed. Which is why in most cases, power depicts the meaning of words. Since the history of mankind, the people that held the most power controlled how things are perceived. If a new word is to be constructed, it has to be done by one holding power, not by anyone. Even in recent times, where younger tech savvy people create new words or short forms of words on the internet, it is never actually formal until it is adopted and seen by academics or in some cases, the dictionary publishers. How that word is interpreted then, is up to those who hold power.
Reference:
Schirato, T. and Yell, S. 2000
Communication and Cultural Literacy: An Introduction Sydney : Allen and Unwin
Lury, C, “Logos” In Brands: The logos of the Global Economy. London Routledge 2004
