Colors and Signs

Semiotics is a type of science that studies signs and symbols and their use of interpretation. Danesi refers to semiotics as the "science that attempts to answer the following question: What does X mean? The X can be anything from a single word or gesture, to an entire musical composition of film. The 'magnitude' of X may vary, but the basic nature of the inquiry does not" (Danesi 3). Semiotics has grown into a large study of many different things such as art forms, advertisements, clothing, media, language, or even body language. There are very many hidden messages that can be found in different types of media.

Danesi discusses how a certain color can make you think of many different things. He gives us the example of the color red and how there are many meanings for it: like a stop sign, or a red warning flag, or a sign of anger and hatred.

The first thing that popped into my head while I was reading about this was the different colors of roses  (as seen in the hyperlink) and how they all symbolize something greater. I have personally always had an interest in how things such as the simple color of a flower could stand for something larger than the flower itself.

As many of us know, the symbol of a red rose is the sign for love and passion, the white rose symbolizes purity and innocence, the pink rose symbolizes gratitude and happiness, the orange rose symbolizes desire, the yellow rose symbolizes friendship and joy, and lastly the lavender rose symbolizes enchantment and charm. A good example of this can be found in media is Beauty and the Beast with the rose as the greatest symbol for love in the movie.

Along with the single symbolization of each color rose, when combined together, can portray different emotions and signs.  Danesi says, "A sign is anything-a color, a gesture, a wink, an object, a mathematical equation, etc.-that stands for something other than itself" (Danesi 4).