Islamic Art Studies

Islamic Art Studies

Aesthetic Analysis of the Semiotic-Semantic Approach: Semantic Matrix and Hypogram in the Latent Strata of Poetic Meaning Based on Michael Riffaterre's Model

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Mohsen Mohammadi Kordiani 1
Mahyar Alavi Moghadam 2
Ebrahim Estaji 1
Abolfazl Horri 3
1 Department of Persian Language and Literature, Hakim Sabzevari University, Sabzevar, Iran
2 Department of Persian Language and Literature, Torbat Heydariyeh Branch, Islamic Azad University, Torbat Heydariyeh, Iran
3 Department of English Language and Literature, Arak University, Arak, Iran
10.22034/ias.2022.351221.2023
Abstract
Interpreting poetry through a semiotic-semantic lens, leveraging the aesthetic tenets of poetic art, assists the reader in elucidating the latent strata and hitherto undiscovered significations of the poem. Meaning in poetry can every now and then represent an unexplored realm, wherein the semantic nucleus engenders a structural matrix. The poem's significance is thus constructed via the interplay of the reader, the paradigm of meaning reception, and the hermeneutic process. The matrix may be a discrete lexical item or encompass a more expansive sentential unit; each poem is connected to its matrix through specific narratives manifested as conventional associations, termed hypograms. Hypograms are instrumental in establishing the poem's cohesive unity. In this research, we undertake an aesthetic analysis of the semiotic-semantics inherent within Ahmad Shamlou's poem, "The Road Beyond the Bridge," grounded in Michael Riffaterre's semiotic framework. The poem's tripartite thematic structure—"the Poet," "the Village," and "the Immobility and Stasis of Society"—serves to clarify the overarching meaning, while ancillary poetic elements explicate the semantic kernel: "I no longer possess the impetus to travel." Within the poem, the poet finds himself ensnared by society, meticulously evaluating all avenues for escape; however, he gradually perceives that all entities and his circumambient milieu are pervaded by stagnation and quiescence. Devoid of any viable recourse to transcend this inertia, the poet is summoned to his sanctuary of solitude. A salient contribution of this research lies in its demonstration of Michael Riffaterre's utilization of the semiotic approach to uncover the text's latent strata. Consequently, his methodology can be appropriately situated within the purview of semiotic-semantics. In summation, it can be posited that the constitutive elements of this poem precipitate the emergence of three thematic structures. Within the initial constellation, six configurations; in the second, ten configurations; and in the third, nine configurations, respectively, explicate the core, thereby forging a cogent pathway toward attaining a profound comprehension and discerning the encrypted message and codes embedded within the poem.
Research Objectives:

To investigate the structural aesthetics underpinning meaning in poetry.
To resolve the hermeneutic enigma presented by Shamlou's poetry.

Research Questions:

How can Ahmad Shamlou's poetry be subjected to aesthetic and semiotic analysis, considering Michael Riffaterre's model?
What utility does Michael Riffaterre's semiotic-semantic approach offer in the unveiling of the latent strata of contemporary poetry?

 
Keywords
Aesthetic Analysis
Semiotics
Semantic Matrix
Hypogram
The Road Beyond the Bridge
Michael Riffaterre
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