Semiotics of Ritual Gestures: Some Observations on the Research Method Cover Image

Semiotyka gestów rytualnych - kilka uwag o metodzie badawczej
Semiotics of Ritual Gestures: Some Observations on the Research Method

Author(s): Katarzyna Kraczoń
Subject(s): Cultural Essay, Political Essay, Societal Essay
Published by: Towarzystwo Naukowe KUL & Katolicki Uniwersytet Lubelski Jana Pawła II
Keywords: ritual gesture; culture; ritual; semiotics; text of culture

Summary/Abstract: The present paper proposes a semiotic description, analysis and interpretation of the (extraliturgical) ritual gestures, attested in the traditional Polish family and year-cycle rituals. Basing on the principles outlined by the Tartu-Moscow school of semiotics, the author builds a framework for the description of a ritual gesture. The structure of such gestures is defined on three levels of semiotic description: syntactic, semantic and pragmatic. The research method applied in the study allows for building a comprehensive explication of individual gestures by extracting meaningful aspects of their structure, indicating relationships between them and putting them against the symbolic, cultural context.

  • Issue Year: 4/2013
  • Issue No: 4
  • Page Range: 89-103
  • Page Count: 15
  • Language: Polish
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