Abstract
In “Image - Music - Text,” Roland Barthes posited that images and text often (or always) work in tandem, but result in differing messages. Proper context and coding of language is required for a reader’s understanding of meaning, but, according to Barthes, photographs have a “special status” as “message[s] without a code.” In this age of artificial intelligence, memes, and the image feed, the pairing of photographs and text is ubiquitous, and within every image we encounter, perception dictates a multitude of codes. In 1996, the rock band Pearl Jam released “No Code,” an album that featured a collage grid of Polaroid images as well as individual Polaroids within its packaging. Each image represented a song on the album, and the backs of the faux Polaroids were littered with text. “No Code” was a precursor to the media cycles and image saturation of contemporary culture and presents a fascinating case study of the combination of language and image in a literal compact package. My paper utilizes Barthe’s theories as well as those of Jacques Lacan and C.S. Peirce to dissect the pairing of text and image within “No Code” and the greater relationship between song lyrics and photography throughout music history.
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
2025 Special Focus—From Democratic Aesthetics to Digital Culture
KEYWORDS
Lacan, Peirce, Pearl Jam, Music, Photography, Polaroid, Semiotics, Signs
