[Postponed] The semiotic modalities of media reconsidered: A Colloquium at Linnaeus University Centre of Intermedial and Multimodal Studies

About:

Recent developments in media studies suggest that the very meaning of
meaning has been transformed in course of the past century. This raises
questions such as: Is the triad indexicality, iconicity, and symbolicity
universally valid? Can new media technologies bring about new semiotic
modalities? Or is it the other way around that the semiotic modalities
determine and constrict the uses of new media technologies?

To address these basic questions, this colloquium proposes a return to
the doctrine of signs as formulated by C.S. Peirce, the American
polymath and founder of modern semiotics and a key reference in
intermedial studies. The aim is to identify and explore new avenues for
theoretical work in intermediality, especially with respect to the
semiotic modalities, by re-connecting with Peirce and the developments
both within and without semiotics proper that was and still is pursued
in the wake of his work. Among these developments we find such prominent
semioticians as Thomas A. Sebeok and Umberto Eco, but also
indisciplinary writers such as Félix Guattari and Maurizio
Lazzarato. Peirce is a pathway by which intermedial studies can tap into
a wide range of approaches, disciplines, and theoretical perspectives in
the human sciences at large.

The colloquium is set up to initiate a conversation that we can continue
by other means in the future. We have selected three thematic points of
entry, ''Aesthetic communicative action'', ''Meanings and environments'',
and ''Signs and media products''. Each theme will be introduced by
a short intervention, but the colloquium is first and foremost a space
for discussions. Therefore, we kindly ask the participants to read the
proposed texts for each theme in advance.

Send an e-mail to Erik Erlanson (erik.erlanson@lnu.se) if you need a
copy of the texts.

Programme

13:15    Aesthetic communicative action
         Chiel Kattenbelt
         Proposed reading: Peirce, C.S. (1992) Chapter 1: Trichotomy
            of 'A Guess at the Riddle', in N. Houser and C.J.W. Kloesel (eds) The                   essential Peirce vol. 1. Bloomington (Ind.): Indiana university press.

14:30    Meanings and environments
         Erik Erlanson   
         Proposed reading: Elleström, L. (2022) ”Symbolicity, language,
            and mediality”, Semiotica (247).

15:45    Signs and media products
         Beate Schirrmacher
         Proposed reading: Eco, Umberto. ''0. Introduction: Toward a
           Logic of Culture'', in A Theory of Semiotics Bloomington (Ind.): Indiana                 University Press.

18:00    Dinner at Café de Luxe

If you plan to join us for dinner in the evening, please let Erik know by email (erik.erlanson@lnu.se).