Roland Barthes was an educator, writer and one of the most influential theorists in the field of semiotics. Much of his theories are based on the founder of the science, Ferdinand de Saussure, who wanted to learn more about where signs came from and the effect they have on a society. Barthes focused his studies on interpreting visual signs, and "to explain how seemingly straightforward signs pick up ideological or connotative meaning and work to maintain the cultural status quo."(Griffin,98) Semiotics also relates to the study of meaning through senses, verbal and nonverbal codes.

Semiotics deals with signs, or "anything that can stand for something else."(Griffin,98) In order to create a sign there must be a signifier, an actual object, and a signified, which is how we relate to the object. Together they make a sign. A sign is interpreted by an individual but strongly influenced by that individual's culture, society, knowledge and surroundings.

When someone from the United States looks at the Coca-Cola Classic logo they do not just see a picture. Coca-Cola Classic intends for the viewer to have the image attached to the actual soda. They hope that the image will invoke remembered taste from the last Coke they drank. In this way they use the logo as the signifier and depend on the remembered taste of the soda as the signified. By doing this the company has created a sign that will be recognized by the American public. This sign can maintain the cultural status quo because it is a sign that is interpreted in the same way by almost all Americans. Whether or not one enjoys Coca-Cola Classic, they understand what the logo (sign) stands for a soda.

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Symbolic interactionism is another communication theory related to semiotics. It also looks at where meaning comes from. Click here to view this theory.

Griffin, Em. A First Look at Communication Theory. 3rd Ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1997