Andreas Ventsel

"Semiootika" 3. trükk.Tähendustemaailm on keskkond, milles me möödapääsmatult iga päev elame ja osaleme. Semiootika ülesandeks pole mitte üksnes orienteeruda kõikvõimalikes tähendustasandites ja märgilisuse tüüpides, vaid ka tähendusloome praktikates, mis kultuuri ja kogu elu kujundavad. Käesolev raamat on esimesi eestikeelseid semiootika õpikuid, mis püüab pakkuda võimalikult terviklikku käsitlust.Raamatu sissejuhatavale peatükile, milles esitatakse lühidalt semiootika määratlus ja tähtsamad allikad, järgnevad neli osa. Esimene neist annab ülevaate semiootika ajaloost ja peamistest koolkondadest. Teine osa on pühendatud semiootika klassikutele: siinses valikus Charles S. Peirce, Ferdinand de Saussure, Jakob von Uexküll, Charles Morris, Roman Jakobson, Algirdas Greimas, Juri Lotman, Umberto Eco, Thomas Sebeok. Kolmas osa on ülevaade kolmest olulisest semiootika valdkonnast - kultuuri-, sotsio- ja biosemiootikast. Neljandas osas esitatakse sissejuhatused reasse semiootika harudesse ja rakendusaladesse.Oma nägemuse klassikutest ja semiootika kujunemisest vormis piltideks semiootikust kunstnik Rauno Thomas Moss. Opiku lõpus on toodud peamiste mõistete lühiseletused, samuti nimede ja terminite indeksid ning põhjalik bibliograafia. Kuigi raamat on eeskätt mõeldud abivahendiks semiootikatudengitele, on selle koostamisel ja kirjutamisel silmas peetud ka laiemat lugejaskonda.Raamatu väljaandmist toetas Sihtasutuse Archimedes eestikeelsete kõrgkooliõpikute väljaandmise programm

Through the Lens of Dread: Exploring the Meaning-Making of Fear in the Mediasphere uniquely emphasises a qualitative, meaning-oriented approach to the study of fear, offering a fresh perspective on how fear is constructed, communicated, and internalised within contemporary media landscapes. This collection seeks to illuminate and critically examine the complex interplay between media, society, and the affects that drive our engagement with the world. Drawing on diverse theoretical frameworks, contexts, and disciplinary perspectives, it explores the role that various forms of media play in fear-driven meaning-making processes at both individual and societal levels. Covering topics ranging from the semiotics of fear to media narratives of otherness, conspiracy, crisis, and technological uncertainty, this volume offers a nuanced understanding of fear as a semiotic and communicative phenomenon, providing a timely exploration of dread as a defining affect of our age. Rooted in international scholarly exchange, the volume will be of particular interest to researchers and students of media, communication, cultural studies, and anyone interested in how fear shapes our shared imaginaries today.

See raamat on esimene eestikeelne vandenõuteooriatele keskenduv monograafia, mille eesmärk on avada konspiratsiooniteooriate kirjut tähendusmaailma ja nende toimimismehhanisme. Seda tehes jõutakse järelduseni, et vandenõuteooriate teke ei ole juhus, vaid peaaegu paratamatus. Lugeja saab teada, millised on kultuurilised ja sotsiopsühholoogilised eeltingimused vandenõuteooriate tekkeks ja millised olid kuulsamad vandenõuteooriad alates Prantsuse revolutsioonist kuni tänapäevani.Raamatus selgitatakse, kuidas on vandenõuteooriatele omast saladuslikkuse atmosfääri ja "nakkavaid" seoseid kasutatud strateegilises kommunikatsioonis, muu hulgas riikidevahelises infomõjutustegevuses ning turunduses. Samuti näidatakse, kuidas on vandenõuteooriate tähendusloome kohandunud digitaalse meediumi ja sotsiaalmeediasuhtlusega. Arutluskäike illustreerivad näited nii Eestist kui mujalt maailmast.

Strategic Conspiracy Narratives proposes an innovative semiotic perspective for analysing how contemporary conspiracy theories are used for shaping interpretation paths and identities of a targeted audience.Conspiracy theories play a significant role in the viral spread of misinformation that has an impact on the formation of public opinion about certain topics. They allow the connecting of different events that have taken place in various times and places and involve several actors that seem incompatible to bystanders. This book focuses on strategic-function conspiracy narratives in the context of (social) media and information conflict. It explicates the strategic devices in how conspiracy theories can be used to evoke a hermeneutics of suspicion – a permanent scepticism and questioning of so-called mainstream media channels and dominant public authorities, delegitimisation of political opponents, and the ongoing search for hidden clues and coverups. The success of strategic dissemination of conspiracy narratives depends on the cultural context, specifics of the targeted audience and the semiotic construction of the message. This book proposes an innovative semiotic perspective for analysing contemporary strategic communication. The authors develop a theoretical framework that is based on semiotics of culture, the notions of strategic narrative and transmedia storytelling.This book is targeted to specialists and graduate students working on social theory, semiotics, journalism, strategic communication, social media and contemporary social problems in general.

This book introduces relational thinking to political analysis. Instead of merely providing an overview of possible trajectories for articulating a relational political analysis, Peeter Selg and Andreas Ventsel put forth a concrete relational theory of the political, which has implications for research methodology, culminating in a concrete method they call political form analysis. In addition, they sketch out several applications of this theory, methodology and method. They call their approach “political semiotics” and argue that it is a fruitful way of conducting research on power, governance and democracy – the core dimensions of the political – in a manner that is envisioned in numerous discussions of the “relational turn” in the social sciences. It is the first monograph that attempts to outline an approach to the political that would be relational throughout, from its meta theoretical and theoretical premises through to its methodological implications, methods and empirical applications.

This book introduces relational thinking to political analysis. Instead of merely providing an overview of possible trajectories for articulating a relational political analysis, Peeter Selg and Andreas Ventsel put forth a concrete relational theory of the political, which has implications for research methodology, culminating in a concrete method they call political form analysis. In addition, they sketch out several applications of this theory, methodology and method. They call their approach “political semiotics” and argue that it is a fruitful way of conducting research on power, governance and democracy – the core dimensions of the political – in a manner that is envisioned in numerous discussions of the “relational turn” in the social sciences. It is the first monograph that attempts to outline an approach to the political that would be relational throughout, from its meta theoretical and theoretical premises through to its methodological implications, methods and empirical applications.

Strategic Conspiracy Narratives proposes an innovative semiotic perspective for analysing how contemporary conspiracy theories are used for shaping interpretation paths and identities of a targeted audience.Conspiracy theories play a significant role in the viral spread of misinformation that has an impact on the formation of public opinion about certain topics. They allow the connecting of different events that have taken place in various times and places and involve several actors that seem incompatible to bystanders. This book focuses on strategic-function conspiracy narratives in the context of (social) media and information conflict. It explicates the strategic devices in how conspiracy theories can be used to evoke a hermeneutics of suspicion – a permanent scepticism and questioning of so-called mainstream media channels and dominant public authorities, delegitimisation of political opponents, and the ongoing search for hidden clues and coverups. The success of strategic dissemination of conspiracy narratives depends on the cultural context, specifics of the targeted audience and the semiotic construction of the message. This book proposes an innovative semiotic perspective for analysing contemporary strategic communication. The authors develop a theoretical framework that is based on semiotics of culture, the notions of strategic narrative and transmedia storytelling.This book is targeted to specialists and graduate students working on social theory, semiotics, journalism, strategic communication, social media and contemporary social problems in general.