The Greatest Generation: A Semiotic Analysis

The Greatest Generation, (2013) is the fourth studio album by Pennsylvanian pop-punk band The Wonder Years. With the albums lyrical content reflecting a struggle with anxiety and discovering self purpose, the story-telling elements repeatedly draw a relation between life now in modern days and growing up in America between the 1920’s and the 1960’s. By analysing the albums artwork with its lyrical content its apparent that a semiotic relationship exist within the albums artwork. The following discussion intends to demonstrate how individual codes help illustrate to the audience the albums concept of anxiety and self-purpose through the artworks characters, framing, colours, lyrical content and logo.

“People say The Greatest Generation grew
It’s used as a platform of sending information to a inevitable destination being the consumer. During this process of reaching it’s audience the source travels through a series of elements that are referred to as code’s. These codes are what determine the audiences response to the source and then re-enforce the intended message being delivered. “a code apportions the elements of a conveying system to the elements of a convoyed system, the former becomes the expression of the latter and the latter becomes the content of the former” ~ (Eco, U. (1979). A theory of semiotics). Codes furthermore have a unique ability to affect the individual’s in the mass audience differently based on their nature of being interpreted. Codes such as colour and framing are able to demonstrate particular theme easier, where based on cultural development and familiarity these elements can be much broader in their interpretations. Where codes such as symbols can bring upon a specific meaning based on historical context, ideologies and education. It’s these codes that have an ability to attach unique interpretations of individuals. The Wonder Years ‘The Greatest Generation’ album artwork offers a unique proposal where using broader methods of codes are used to dictate what specific interpretation is delivered through these more complexed semiotic codes such as symbols. With this, the artwork is able to
The Imagery of the devil on the solider is famous through old cartoons to more contemporary works however it’s meaning is based in the idea of self control and the battle of bad influences. Furthermore to this the imagery is all taking place within a arrow point downwards. The arrow works as semiotic relation to either the direction of hell or being dragged down by the devils presence. Not only does this semiotic relation between solider and devil give historical context but it leads back the concept argued by Dan campbell of catharihism. Where the purification of the well meaning solider is blurred by the influenced and the presence of the devils intent, This establishment of fictional characters allow for connection to be drawn around current generations struggles and the greatest generation. Other semitics codes the resemble this theme are the colours used in the