Week 1- Semiotics

Today's lecture was all about semiotics. Semiotics is the study of signs and symbols and their use or interpretation. Here are some notes I made before the lecture so I could have a better understanding: 

Notes from the Lecture.

During the lecture with Nick we were asked to watch a clip on a wrestling match from 1981 (shown below) and think about how semiotics is relevant to this video.

Semiotics in wrestling.

 1. How is the role/character of each wrestler defined and communicated to the audience? 
When the wrestlers are announced you could argue there is a slight bias towards them. For example Big Daddy is presented as a 'famous' TV Personality whereas Giant Haystacks is presented with just his, height, weight and name. Now, I think both of them are dressed hideously however looking past that, Big Daddy (you could argue) is presented a lot better than Giant Haystacks, eg. BD to begin with has a red sparkly cloak and golden hat and underneath is wearing a white costume, whereas GH is scruffy looking with his hair and maroon costume. Furthermore, BD waves and smiles at the audience and GH ignores them and sneers therefore you could argue that this displays a hero and villain dynamic. 

​2. What is the role played by the commentator?
The commentator acts enthusiastic and puts things into context; he narrates the 'story' and the events that unfold during the wrestling match. 

3. What about the role of the referee? 
In this clip, the referee seems to be there more for comedic purposes as opposed to the kind of referee you'd see in a rugby match for example. He seems to add more 'drama' and indirectly engages the audience when he's knocked over and replaced with another referee. However I think, within the narrative of the wrestling match, he does act as someone that tries to ensure that the fight is fair and that the rules are being adhered to.  

4. Crowd Response- is the action in the ring clear to follow? If so, how is this made possible?
I find that the gestures of the wrestlers are greatly exaggerated in order for the audience to clearly see what is happening in the fight. The cheers and boos coming from the audience denote how they feel towards the wrestlers and the actions of the fight itself. 
 
5. Based on observation- would you classify wrestling as a sport? 
​I don't really think that you can classify wrestling a a sport. To me, it's more of a performance art. The theatrics are clearly rehearsed beforehand and therefore the outcome of the match is predetermined. I think for it to be a sport, there has to be an element of competition and not knowing who the winner would be. There's no doubt that wrestlers are in themselves athletes, personally I think that they train hard to ensure that the story they have to act out is done so safely and professionally. But I wouldn't classify this as a sport, it's more of an act.