Research On The Cosmopolitan With The Perspective Of Semiotics

The pictorial is a medium that appeared from the late Qing Dynasty,and it's main form is "image" which was popular in the time of general low educational level.In the 1930 s,with the top of modern urban and consumer culture were represented in Shanghai,then various of magazines and pictorials also appeared continuously.The Cosmopolitan is one of the representative works.The rise of the media in return to promoted Chinese modernization process.The basic of the paper is Roland Bather's theory:semiotics theory.The pictures of the Cosmopolitan are analyzed by using the method of image analysis,stylistic analysis,historical research and statistical research to explore how to build modernize countries by the Cosmopolitan pictorials.As a modern media of the big city,the Cosmopolitan's background is Shanghai's modern culture.The Cosmopolitan is a comprehensive pictorial,its contents are all-embracing.In this paper,under the background of the Clarify publication,it begins to ascertain and classify the Cosmopolitan's contents.It's the basis of unscrambling the Cosmopolitan.This paper is according to two main lines that "the image and the construction of modern countries" and "the image and modern era of public life" to understand the Cosmopolitan's contents and its modernity.Firstly,for example,a total of 7 period Wang Xiaoting's " Journey in China" of the Cosmopolitan,and "Chinese Famous Mountain Album" in total of 7 series show the border areas and Chinese mountains are the integral part of territories in China.It uses the images to translate into the symbols to strengthen the self-identify of a country's territories.Secondly,the Cosmopolitan contains a large number of ethnic minority people's portrait and life in Western areas in China.China is a minority country,the Cosmopolitan strengthens the Chinese nations by observing minority people's life.Thirdly,a goal of the Cosmopolitan is journalism.The report contains domestic and foreign events.International news is a window for people to learn the world.In a large of meetings and diplomatic videos,people understand sovereignty deeply.Fourthly,it became an upsurge to save countries by aviation in the 1930 s,so the warships and airplanes were very hot for the Cosmopolitan.These four points show the necessary factors to build a modern national country.They are national identity,territorial limits,independent sovereignty,and powerful national defense guarantee.It will be exposed in the second chapter of the paper.The third chapter is begun in the level of public life.Under the "Modern" cultural background,the representative of the modern urban life in Shanghai began to launched a series of challenges to traditional life.On the one hand,people wanted to become more fashionable,the women kept new hair,wore new clothes,hold new weddings,and promoted free love.Women 's status are improved,and they weren't men 's subsidiary any more.These things that the pursuing of fitness and vitality became the symbol in the 1930 s.On the other hand,the Cosmopolitan is focus on finding and making beauty from daily life,then paid attention to improving people's aesthetic culture for facilitating becoming modern citizens.All in all,the Cosmopolitan responds the process of modernization by "image".At the same time,it always taught and lead people to become modern.The Cosmopolitan was published from 1933 to 1935.It was short,but its effort of the modernization is worthy of affirmation.It also gives us the revelation that modernization is a long trip,and it neither is accomplished overnight,nor is a problem which periodical office can solve.It requires the whole country,society,and even people to make great efforts.