INTERPRETATION OF SEMIOTICS ON
“SHAUN THE SHEEP”
STOP MOTION ANIMATED WORDLESS CARTOON
A THESIS
Submitted to the English Applied Linguistics Study Program in
Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of
Magister Humaniora
BY
YOHANI FITRI
Registration Number : 8116111023
ENGLISH APPLIED LINGUISTICS PROGRAM
POST GRADUATE SCHOOL
ABSTRACT
Yohani Fitri, 8116111023, Interpretation of Semiotic on Shaun the Sheep Stop Motion Animated Wordless Cartoon. Thesis: English Applied Linguistics Study Program, Post Graduate School, State University of Medan. 2015
ABSTRACT
Yohani Fitri, 8116111023, Interpretation of Semiotic on Shaun the sheep stop motion animated wordless cartoon. Thesis: English Applied Linguistics Study Program, Post Graduate School, State University of Medan. 2015
APPROVAL
This Thesis was examined on 15th April 2015 by The Board of Examiners
The Board of Examiners
Adviser 1 : Prof. Dr. Sumarsih, M.Pd NIP. 19581021 198303 2 002
Adviser 2 : Dr. I Wy Dirgeyasa Tangkas, M.Hum NIP. 19640422 199203 1 001
Examiner 1 : Prof. Amrin Saragih, M.A., Ph.D NIP. 19550113 198203 1 002
Examiner 2 : Prof. Dr. Busmin Gurning, M.Pd NIP. 19590713 198601 1 001
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
As this thesis completed, first of all, the writer would like to express gratitude to ALLAH SWT for the opportunity and possibility for her to complete this thesis. Then, she appreciate sincerely to all those who have given her invaluable help, support, suggestion, motivation, encouragement and contribution to the successful completion of this thesis. In particular, she would like to thank to the following people.
She would like to express her gratitude to her first supervisor Prof. Dr. Sumarsih, M.Pd and her second supervisor Dr. I Wy Dirgeyasa Tangkas, M.Hum for their excellent advices and encouragement from the beginning up to the end of this thesis. She is also extremely grateful to the head of English Applied Linguistics Program, Prof. Dr. Busmin Gurning, M.Pd and the secretary Dr. Sri Minda Murni, M.S for their support and role in developing her as a researcher will never be forgotten. Her gratitude goes to Farid as an administration Staff of English Applied Linguistics Program for helping the researcher in completing and checking the documents. Her gratitude also goes to all lecturers for their valuable knowledge and instruction and librarians of the state University of Medan for leading some useful books and other sources that are needed in writing this thesis.
She would say thankful to her reviewers, Prof. Dr. Amrin Saragih, Ph.D, Prof. Dr. Busmin Gurning, M.Pd and Dr. Anni Hollila Pulungan, M.Hum for their suggestions, critics and advices. Without their excellent academic guidance, this study wouldn’t have been possible. Furthermore, special thanks to my best friends
mention one by one whose unconditional support always be remembered in finishing this thesis. And very special deep of gratitude directed to her beloved husband, Iryuha Tantawi, M.A, for his support and encouragement when it was needed most.
Finally, I express my deepest gratitude to my parents and family for their loves and motivations during the writing of this thesis.
Medan, April 2015 The writer,
TABLE OF CONTENTS
2.4 Some Factors Affecting Interpretation……… 28 CHAPTER IV : DATA ANALYSIS, FINDINGS, AND DISCUSSION 4.1 Data Analysis……… ... 45
4.1.1 The Students’ Interpretations…. ... 45
4.1.2 Students’ Interpretations in Gestulant categories……… 56
4.1.3 Types of Students’ Interpretation ………... 61
4.2 Findings………... 66
4.3 Discussion……… 67
CHAPTER V : CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION 5.1 Conclusion……… ... 68
5.2 Suggestion…………. ... 68
REFERENCES……… 70
LIST OF TABLES
Pages
Table 1. Three Aspects of Signs in Peirce’s Semiotics………. 12
Table 2. Students’ Points Understanding………….……… 41
Table 3 The Students’ Indicators in interpreting the film…… ………. 42
Table 4. The students’ Interpretation Point Totals………. 42
Table 5. The Students’ point Totals……….……… 54
Table 6. The Category of Gesture in the Students’ Interpretation… ……. 61
LIST OF FIGURES
Pages
Figure 1. The relationship between the signifier
and the signified in Sausurean’s Semiotics……….. 9
Figure 2. The object and the concept in Sausurean’s Semiotics…………. 9 Figure 3. Peirce’s model of sign ……… 11 Figure 4. The processing of understanding language item
LIST OF EMOTICONS
Pages
LIST OF APPENDICES
Pages
Appendix A. The Episode of Loony Tic….……… 73
Appendix B. The Story of Loony Tic……….. 92
Appendix C. Students’ Interpretation on Loony Tic………. 94
Appendix D. Students’ Scores in Interpreting The Film……..………….. 110
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
1.1 The Background of the Study
We know that language is a source of human life. Human expresses communication in the world of language and signs. Sign takes the form of words, images, gestures or objects. Language is the system of sign to communicate. The system of a sign in a language has arbitrary relation and meaning of a language object. Human uses the sign or symbol to communicate to other people who have the same feeling, idea, or desire (Cobley, 2001:5).
A symbol or a sign of a language is manifested by everyone in many forms. It is used such as in logo, slogan in advertisement, billboard, even in film. All of symbols or signs in that forms design meaning. The symbol or sign of the design gives a message or meaning to their viewers, readers, or users itself.
When we talk about film, so, it has a closer relationship with television as one of media environments, which offers people opportunities to select their entertainment. Therefore, television viewers are motivated to watch television in order to satisfy their various wants, needs and desires at the time. This does not mean that viewing behavior is always pushed by strong psychological drives but, for most of the time, that people watch television and, this applies to some extent even to the young or children, they do so for a reason. This reason may be as simple as to pass the time.
When children watch television, it can‟t be denied that cartoon is mostly
which is firstly viewed on TVRI and it becomes the favourite children cartoon in 1990s.
Due to the development of technology, cartoons are also having progress. From traditional cartoon until animated cartoon which are viewed by many television channels nowadays and Shaun the sheep, an animated cartoon, is one of the top ten cartoons mostly waited and watched by children in most all over the world today. It is viewed everyday in the afternoon on MNC TV.
Not like other cartoon, Shaun the Sheep is a British stop motion animated children‟s television series produced by Aardman Animations and commissioned
by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The episodes have many combination of slapstick in Aardman‟s recognizable animation style. There is no
spoken dialogue, even by human characters. In this way, it is reminiscent of silent comedy cartoon. Moreover, simple grunts, bleats, and signs are all used to add subtle expression to each character‟s moods and feelings.
Interpretation towards the film is not always the same for individuals. That‟s why people may have different interpretation toward the same object. It
can be influenced by the different level of education, economical status, family background, and many more. When the cartoon “Shaun the Sheep” is then
In the episode “Bull Vs Wool”, most children did not understand why
Bitzer and Timmy are chased by the Bull and the rest of them had interpreted to the colour of “Red” which made the Bull angry and chased Bitzer and Timmy.
Actually, in the story, Bitzer plays the Red wool by shaking it to Timmy and the Bull watches them. It is not true that because of the Red wool played by Bitzer makes the Bull angry but it is because of the Bitzer‟s action in shaking the wool.
In the episode of “The Coconut”, most children did not understand why
the two characters, the farmer and Bitzer tossed their glasses together after they succeed in cutting the coconuts. They did not understand why the characters do so. It actually relates to the western culture when they have succeeded in doing something and they will celebrate it by tossing their glasses and drinking together. What makes children interpret the meaning of signs in the story “Shaun
the Sheep” in such a way encourages the researcher to make a deep research on it. The researcher is interested in finding the children‟s interpretation toward the film
and find the factors of the children interpret the story in such a way.
Signs can take the form of words, images, sounds, odours, flavours, acts or object (Peirce,1931). (Saussure, 1966) divides a sign into two components – the signifier (the sound, image, or word) and the signified, which is the concept the signifier represents, or the meaning. In other words, signs can mean anything and they can mean different things to different people.
As well as Peirce (1931:24), one of the American Philosophers, also ever argued that interpreters have to supply part of the meanings of signs. He wrote that “a sign is something which stands to somebody for something in some respect
or capacity”. It means that Peirce considered semiotics important because
whatever we do, can be seen as a message.
Pierce categorized the patterns of meaning in signs as iconic, symbolic, and indexical. An iconic sign is one which is, in one or more respects, the same as the object signified; a symbol, as Pierce reminds us, originally meant something „thrown together‟ making a contact or convention; in a contemporary setting, a
symbol refers to conventional signs used, for instance, in speaking and writing (Lechte, 2000). An index is a sign physically linked to, or affected by, its object. For example, a cry for help may indicate someone in need. Similarly, a knock on the door may indicate that there is someone at the door.
As sign system are involved in the construction of meaning and film makes use of signs to convey its message, therefore this study attempt to investigate how well the children‟s understanding in interpreting the signs or
gestures from the cartoon film ”Shaun the Sheep.” The cartoon film “Shaun the
1.2 The Problems of the Study
In relation to the background of the study, there are some problems to be identified by the researcher:
1. How do the children interpret the “Shaun the Sheep” film in the Episode of Loony Tic?
2. What gestures do the children interpret well in the episode of Loony Tic? 3. What types of the children‟s interpretation do have in the Episode of
Loony Tic?
1.3 The Objectives of the Study
The researcher intends to find out the understanding of “Shaun the Sheep” stop motion animated cartoon. The objectives of the research are:
1. To find out how the children interpret the film “Shaun the Sheep” in the episode of “Loony Tic”.
2. To find out the gestures that the children interpret well toward the Episode of Loony Tic.
3. To find out types of interpretations that the children have in the Episode of Loony Tic.
1.4.The Scope of the Study
There are so many wordless cartoons which are shown on many television programs such as Bernard Bear, Oasis, and many more. But in this research, the scope of the study is limited on the story of “Shaun the Sheep” in the episode of
“Loony Tic” because this cartoon had won Oscar Award because of the character
being played in more than 170 countries since 2007. It was based on BBC Network on April 25, 2013.
1.5 The Significances of the Study
The findings of the research are expected to be useful for the readers both theoretically and practically in some aspects.
Theoretically the finding can be useful for enriching the theories on semiotics particularly for:
Improving and widening the knowledge about semiotics and
interpretation.
Practically the finding can be useful for those who have focus on semiotics. Moreover, the ideas and the point of views of the finding can significantly be useful to be used for:
Researchers as their review of literature in analyzing semiotics and
interpretation with different object.
Students as their material references in understanding semiotics and
interpretation.
Movie Audiences as materials for helping people especially children in
CHAPTER V
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
5.1 Conclusion
Based on the discussion on chapter IV, the conclusions are drawn as the following:
1. There were 13.33% students could interpret the episode Loony Tic of Shaun the Sheep Film in the category of Skilled, 46.67% students were in the category of Developing and 40% students were in the category of need work.
2. From the students’ interpretations, there were 100% students could understand emblems, 40% students could understand affect display, 13.33% students could understand adaptor and 0% students could understand illustrator and regulator.
3. In writing the story, there were 73.33% students were included of Revelation Interpretation, and 26.67% students included of Art Interpretation for they interpreted based on the movements they understood or used in their social life.
5.2 Suggestion
Related to the conclusion, suggestions are stages as follow:
maker increase the verbal language so that the children in general are avoided from misinterpretation and they enjoy not only the funny things but also the lessons from the stories.
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