PRINCESS DIANA AND ROLAND BARTH: A SEMIOTIC ANALYSIS OF THE SERIES THE CROWN

Abstract

The article examines the specifics of the perception of the historical series The Crown in general and, in particular, the presentation of the image of Princess Diana in the fourth season through the prism of semiotic analysis. The study is based on the concepts of Roland Barthes, particularly the photographic paradox and the three levels of analysis of video works: informational, symbolic and third meaning/obtuse meaning/filmic. To define filmic, the article compares it with the term punctum, which defines the emotional and personal perception of photography in Barth’s theory. The article applies the concept of photographic paradox to the fourth season of the series The Crown, based on which a contemporary visual strategy for creating authenticity in historical dramas was determined. It is indicated that this leads to an ethical paradox because, regardless of warnings, the audience begins to perceive fictional stories as real reality. The article pays special attention to how the image of Princess Diana in the fourth season of the series The Crown evoked empathy in the audience. It was determined that Princess Diana was shown as a romantic, defenceless, naive and shy person, a victim of the royal family. This image is created through the plot but also audiovisual techniques: selection of costumes, colour symbolism, soundtrack selection, and parallel editing. The quintessence of Princess Diana’s image is presented in filmic, a screenshot from the second episode of the series, which combines the beginning of Princess Diana’s royal life with the moment of her death in a car accident. It is indicated that the creation of the image at different levels of meaning significantly influenced the audience’s attention to the series and renewed interest in Princess Diana and her story, which caused a strong public resonance and demonstrated the potential influence that contemporary historical drama series can have.