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Communication semiotics is most concerned with how meaning is generated and how it is communicated. In general, people tend to think of semiotics as purely speculative, while communication studies is mainly applied to practice.
Communication semiotics is the use of semiotic speculative thinking to study cultural practices in society. The significance of this is that it not only promotes the transformation of semiotics from "ignoring reality" research to "practice-oriented" research, but also promotes the transformation of empirical communication from "lack of academic theory" to "theoretical depth", which is the academic value and significance of communication semiotics.
Using communication semiotics to study the films directed by Li Yu, interpreting the profound connotation of communication symbols in Li Yu's films, and excavating the uniqueness of its symbol use, is not only conducive to enriching the theoretical system of contemporary Chinese film, but also can give more reference significance to the new generation of directors.
Communication semiotics plays a unique role in text analysis, which is conducive to better highlighting the social reality and ideological themes reflected in Li Yu's films.
Therefore, interpreting Li Yu's films with communication semiotics as the starting point, exploring the profound connotation and practical role of these symbols, reflecting their deep concern for reality, has certain practical significance, and provides a certain reference for other directors in the use of communication symbols.
Two types of communication symbols and film narratives in Li Yu's films
"The most common classification of symbols in communication is the bimodal confrontation between linguistic and non-verbal symbols." Both linguistic and non-verbal symbols are important research objects of communication semiotics.
Li Yu expresses his concern for specific groups of people through verbal and non-verbal symbols in his films, which is also the functional embodiment of the meaning of his films. Objects, images, etc. are widely used in reality, becoming symbols for information dissemination and playing the function of conveying meaning.
However, this expression is never carried out in an autonomous way, that is, these symbols cannot reflect the meaning they express from their own value, they are always entangled with the interpretation of language, and the expression function of language is used to explain the meaning of various other symbols.
So in what way does the communication symbol express meaning? What are the unique communication symbols in Li Yu's films? What role do communication symbols play in film narrative? These will be the main questions addressed in this chapter.
Language symbols that represent the state of existence
Of all the symbols, language is the most complex and widespread ideogram of human beings, and its forms are divided into two categories: one is language in the form of sounds, and the other is writing in the form of writing. The American structuralist Sapiel argued: "Language is purely artificial, non-instinctive, and uses a consciously created system of symbols to convey ideas, emotions, and desires." ”
This reveals to a certain extent the relationship between language and symbols. "Language symbols can be found everywhere in film text, or in the form of words, such as subtitles, text signs in images, or the content of letters, or in the form of words, such as character dialogues, monologues, narrations, as well as lyrics in film episodes, radio broadcasts in films, etc."
"Language itself is a kind of symbol, and the meaning it refers to in the film is first of all the ideogram according to the rules of the language system, on the basis of which it forms a larger symbol system including language together with the non-verbal symbols in the film text, and the ideogram of the language symbol at this time also follows the ideographic mechanism of the film symbol system."
It can be seen that once it enters the film text, the ideogram of language symbols is different from the ideogram of language symbols in daily life or literary works. When language enters the film and becomes a film symbol, it mainly includes two forms: words and words.
discourse
"The main types of discourse in the film are dialogue, monologue, narration, etc. On the one hand, they convey information, express characters, and promote the narrative of the film, on the other hand, they also refer to the deep meaning related to the connotation of the film. ”
The dialogue of the characters in Li Yu's film is more unique, and she draws the audience's attention to the phenomenon of gender oppression in society through character dialogue, arousing the audience's sympathy for what happened to women. At the same time, she also makes expressions through character dialogue.
Character dialogue, also known as dialogue, is a common form of discourse in movies, and language is more accurate at expressing ideas and conveying information than other symbol systems. The famous film theorist Louis Janetti once said: "Words can express a person's class status, regional characteristics, occupation, prejudice, and so on." ”
In the movie "This Summer", the small group participated in multiple blind dates under the pressure of their mother, so there were five conversations about blind dates and marriage in the film. For example, when waiting for a blind date for the first time, Xiaoqun and his cousin have this conversation:
"It is natural that women must marry and have children at this age." "Aren't you also divorced, cousin, didn't I tell you, I have no feelings for men."
"You don't feel for men, what do you feel? I see that you are sick, do you want to find you a doctor? Your mother is okay like this, forcing you to get married, forcing you to live a normal life, she doesn't want you two to rely on each other when you are old. ”
In this dialogue, the cousin labels women to marry and have children. He believes that the "lack of feelings for men" in small groups (women) is "pathological", abnormal, and contrary to normal ethics. This dialogue also reflects that the cousin feels that only by marrying a man and relying on men for life is the ultimate choice for women.
Here, the cousin is a symbol of male power, and his questioning of the small group reflects the suppression of women by male power, so that the small group that originally wanted to try to identify their homosexuality could not continue to speak.
In the process of blind date, the cousin has drunk down, the blind date has also dizzy, only the small group is still stubbornly standing up with the blind date object and punching, which is the small group is using its own way to resist male suppression.
The second blind date is in a tea house, and the conversation between a small group and a blind date object is as follows:
"So what do you want your lover to be like?" "Lover, in fact, I like you use the word lover, foreigners always say that Chinese is not open, Chinese call husband and wife lovers, it sounds quite intimate a word, indeed I think that talking about lovers, indicating that you are quite high-quality, this is a recognition of feelings."
"Are you 30 this year?" "How?" "Nothing, in fact, I want to find someone older than me, maybe what Freud called the 'Oedipus complex'." Of course it's not that serious, I don't lack maternal love, my mother is very good to me, very good. So, sometimes I wonder if I can find someone who is a little fiercer to me, maybe it sounds a little perverted. ”
Through this dialogue, the director creates for us a male image with an Oedipal plot, showing from the dialogue his ambivalence that he is both dependent on his mother and wants to get rid of. The small group's quiet speech and cold attitude show that the small group does not agree with his views.
In order to relieve his irritability, Xiaoqun took out a cigarette and asked the other party to help him hand him matches, and his hurriedly lit the cigarette and his timid tone made Xiaoqun's personality stronger. Such conversations give the impression that men who should be in the position of "big men" have become resigned.
Li Yu's creation of such a contrast in the film is actually a subversion of traditional male roles, and opposes the suppression of male power from another level.
The third was a conversation with a man working in the tax office on a blind date:
"Do you know me then?" "How can I say it, your cousin introduced you to me. You're 29 years old, you have a job, you're pretty good, and as for the rest, I think we'll get to know each other in a while, right? "Well, I think you're quite tolerant."
"You're right, I'm the kind of person, that is, the kind of man and woman who marry in order to understand, divorce because they don't understand, I am the person who can find the advantages of others and appreciate the advantages of others, of course, if you love her, even his shortcomings, right?" "You're quite tolerant." "If you know, you know."
"Then I'll tell you, I'm not interested in men, I like women." "What? No way? "There are very few such people, I don't seem to have seen them before."
"This same-sex repulsion and opposite-sex attraction should be a natural thing, how can this be?"
Of the several blind dates in small groups, this conversation was the longest. The man who works at the tax office speaks politely and thoughtfully, while the small group considers him a "tolerant" person. Therefore, the small group honestly informed him about his homosexuality.
When he learned the truth, he did not express understanding, but asked the small group one after another: "Isn't it? No way? This two-in-a-row of questions shows the blind date's disbelief and his difficulty accepting the lesbian community. In the conversation that followed, he once again labeled women as natural for getting married and having children.
The attitude of the blind date puts the small group in an awkward situation, and at the same time he is also a true portrayal of most men in society. The courage of a small group to speak out to a "tolerant" stranger about their true orientation, but the difficulty of acceptance, reveals the real dilemma faced by the marginalized group of lesbians.
The fourth was a blind date with a police officer with a child, and the conversation was mainly about the child, mostly telling interesting stories about the child, and did not exchange about marriage. This shows that the purpose of the police blind date is only to find a good-natured mother for the child, not to find a lover himself.
The small group did not participate in the communication throughout the process, which clearly showed her irritability and impatience for this blind date. Silence is the only way to survive in a patriarchal society, which also leaves the way for small groups to bravely express their ideas and promote the development of the plot.
The fifth was a blind date with a middle-aged man who lost his wife:
"I want to find a 30- to 40-year-old who can take care of my son." "Miss Xiaoqun, can I ask you why you haven't married yet?" "There's no reason." "Miss Xiaoqun, why are you still smoking? Smoking is not good for health, you see you look so beautiful, smoking is not good for the skin. I'm a man and I don't smoke, if I want to smoke, I'll smoke early. "What are your conditions for finding a daughter-in-law?"
"Virtuous, noble, swinging. In the kitchen is a virtuous woman, in the living room is a noblewoman, in the bedroom is a slut. "Mr. Zhang, if you said this in the 90s, I would still admire you, but now it is too old-fashioned."
This Mr. Zhang is a representative of traditional men, and he believes that it is their own responsibility for women to marry at the right age, and to be virtuous and sensible in marriage.
This dialogue exemplifies the repression of the patriarchal order faced by the lesbian community, represented by small groups. However, Xiaoqun did not remain silent this time, and the term "old-fashioned" is not only an opposition to the views of Mr. Zhang, the blind date, but also a rebellion against the suppression of male power and the oppression of traditional social order.
The labels of "men marrying women, husbands and children, good wives and good mothers" are attached to the blind dates, who believe that it is natural for women to do so, and although the group does not agree with these views at first, she tries to find her place in a male-centric society in a silent way.
In the end, she stood up against the men's views, a gesture of her courageous defiance. By setting up these five blind date scenes, Li Yu combines the image with his own heart, and spreads out the real plight encountered by a small group as lesbians on the screen in the form of dialogue, showing his sincere concern for the marginalized group of lesbians.
Li Yu does not just tell the simple love-hate entanglement in the film, but places these relationships in the context of the whole society and looks at the experience of lesbians, thus expressing the theme of the film, that is, reflecting the plight and struggle of the lesbian community.
The dialogue in the movie "Red Face" also plays a certain role in reflecting the current situation of the characters' existence and promoting the narrative of the film. The conversation between Xiaoyun and Wang Feng under the bridge after being criticized by the school is as follows:
"Still friends?" "I don't know." "My sister will operate on you next week, don't worry, she bought me a ticket." "Train tickets." "Yes, train ticket, I'll go to my uncle's house for an apprentice, a construction carpenter." "When do you leave?" "Tomorrow, the land of right and wrong, I really want to leave this place quickly, maybe I will come back to see you."
When Xiao Yun became pregnant unexpectedly, Xiao Yun and Wang Feng were surrounded by gossip in the small city. Wang Feng couldn't stand the criticism of others and chose to flee from this "land of right and wrong", leaving Xiaoyun alone to bear the pressure from family and society, which reflected Wang Feng's irresponsibility as a man.
At the same time, in this dialogue, Xiao Yun has been standing behind the bamboo under the bridge, and the camera cannot see her, which shows that Xiao Yun cannot leave as dashingly as Wang Feng. On the one hand, the director shows through this dialogue that in a patriarchal society, men hold the right to speak, and Xiaoyun, who is also imprisoned as a woman, has to bear more pain and pressure.
On the other hand, the occurrence of this event is also a symbol of the end of Xiaoyun's youth life and the beginning of cruel adult life, which promotes the development process of the story.
Xiao Yun's conversation with Boss Qian at his residence:
"All the people of your group go to my cabaret to sing, men and women, just because you have a big shelf, you won't come to shout." "Mimi might be in the rehearsal hall." "You're a kind of funny person." "It's not as interesting as you." "Then we mean." "No face!"
"I don't want to be faceless, Laozi is a well-known entrepreneur in the county. There is a head, a face, and money, everything that should be in this world, Lao Tzu has it, as long as it is what I want, I can get it. Push me away? What do you mean? Two hundred, one night, what? "No face!"
In this conversation, Li Yu presented us with such a picture: the boss Qian with identity and status wanted to take the opportunity to disrespect Xiaoyun, but Xiaoyun refused. So, he became angry and verbally insulted Xiao Yun.
The director's intention to set up such a lewd and shameless male image is mainly twofold: one is to show Xiaoyun's pain and helplessness and arouse the audience's attention; The second is the director's opposition to the phenomenon of male power suppression with his own practices, which also laid the groundwork for Xiaoyun's subsequent departure and change.
The two dialogues in "Hong Yan" appear before Xiaoyun became an adult and after he became an adult, whether it was his boyfriend Wang Feng who he met before becoming an adult or Boss Qian who he met as an adult. Despite their different identities, they are all symbols of irresponsibility, and women are only tools for sex for them.
However, whether it was Wang Feng's ruthless abandonment or Boss Qian's frivolous teasing, Xiaoyun did not obey this, and her wordless silence and silent crying represented her rebellion against fate against forced male power.
Li Yu's film scripts were all co-created by himself and the production team headed by Fang Li. The dialogue of the characters in her films is very unique, and through straightforward character dialogue, the real experience of women is realistically reproduced.
Make it easier for the audience to pay attention to the gender oppression phenomenon of patriarchal society, thereby triggering the audience's empathy, triggering their realistic thinking and attention to social phenomena.
At the same time, she is also expressing her indictment of the patriarchal world in this way, full of her concern for reality.