Portfolio Task 3- Semiotic Analysis

Write a 300-400 word semiotic analysis of this Sun front cover. Make sure that your analysis highlights all of the key signifiers, and what they denote and connote. Also, try to highlight any examples of myth that you can see- what ideologies or cultural prejudices are naturalised by the text?. Also, pay attention to paradigmatic and syntagmatic structures and suggest how these shape our reading. Try to outline who the text is trying to communicate, and what cultural codes it relies on to do this. Pay attention to the interrelation of text and image. Pay close attention to the language used in both headline and text.






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This Sun newspaper article is a typical example of how 'red top' newspapers use Semiotics to shape our reading and response to the subject matter.

The article heading of 'Gotcha' is an immediate signifier, spelled out in capitals with a high Pt, which sets the tone of the one sided syntagmatic structured article. Gotcha is a slang term which denotes 'got you' but has casual and relatable connotations towards the working class consumer. Underneath the heading, the article is divided by the imagery of attacked Argentine warships and paradigmatic introduction of the article. Again, both the images and introduction are key signifiers which inform readers of the conflict, but with a strong sense of national pride. The language used in the image captions, particularly 'crippled', denotes the defeat of Argentine warships yet connotes a patronising, sporting-like advantage. All whilst swerving the topic of lives lost on the boats. The article introduction uses key signifiers in the informal use language, addressing the British soldiers as 'our lads' for example.

“WALLOP: They torpedoed the 14,000 ton Argentina cruiser General Belgrano and left it a useless wreck.”

The casual language approach contradicts the heavy nature of war, the use of the word 'wallop' denotes that of a strong impact yet the connotations gear towards a punch in a fist fight, which is a more relatable situation for those unfamiliar with the seriousness of warfare. “Our Navy has the Argies on their knees” demonstrates a patriotic pride in 'our' Royal Navy whilst undermiming the Argentines by referring to them as 'Argies', which sets up an 'us and them' ideology to the readers. These outdated ideologies could relate back to previous conflict, such as the term 'jerries' used by Americans during World War 2 to refer to the Germans. The semiotics of the article are a recycling of national patriotism, used to encourage the British public to back the conflict and defeat 'them'.