The Function of Food System as a Semiotic System The Case Study of 10 Iranian Films

This study is conducted to analyze and show the similarities between the functions of two semiotic systems: food system and language system. In order to achieve the aim of the research¡ ten movies have been selected and studied¡ including White Nights (Motamen¡ 2003)¡ Bāgh-e Ferdows¡ 5 O’clock in the Afternoon (Shayeghi¡ 2005)¡ Havoo (Davoodnejad¡ 2006)¡ The Fish Fall in Love (Rafie¡ 2006)¡ The Book of Law (Miri¡ 2008)¡ Felicity Land (Miri¡ 2011)¡ Agha Yousef (Rafie¡ 2011)¡ The Painting Pool (Miri¡ 2012)¡ Good to Be Back (Mehrjui¡ 2012) and The Wedlock (Hejazi¡ 2013). Roland Barthes (1915-1980) and Yuri Lotman (1922- 1993) are ones whose thoughts and ideas have developed the framework of this paper. The idea of existing resemblance between food system and language system was first developed by Barthes¡ French philosopher¡ linguist¡ and semiotician. He believed that food system is a signifier system¡ just like language system. There are different functions assumed to be of language system¡ functions like interactional and transactional ones¡ but this research is undertaken based on Lotman’s theory. Lotman¡ the founder of the Tartu-Moscow Semiotic School¡ defined the key functions of language (or text) as 1) transferring the message; 2) the creative function; and 3) the function of memory. To fulfill the first function addressee and addresser need a wholly identical code¡ to fulfill the second one the system must have the capability to generate new messages and finally¡ to fulfill the third one the system should have the capability to serve as a condenser of cultural memory. This study showed that the food system can fulfill the functions of the language system adequately. The most prominent role of this system in the films which have been studied is transferring a message. There is always a message which an addresser puts it into dishes¡ instead of words¡ and sends it to an addressee. In these films¡ this message is almost always “love” and “kindness”. The Fish Fall in Love¡ White Nights¡ Bāgh-e Ferdows¡ 5 O’clock in the Afternoon¡ Havoo¡ Agha Yousef and Good to Be Back are the films we can see this function in them obviously. The food system has the creative function when its appearance seems novel¡ beautiful and colorful¡ just like a poem¡ and it generate a new message¡ “craft”. In the Fish Fall in Love¡ the Book of Law (Miri¡ 2008) and Felicity Land the food system serves the purpose of the directors to show creativity. Finally¡ it has memory function when it shows its capacity to preserve the memory of its previous contexts¡ contexts such as Yalda and Haft-Sin¡ Havoo and the Book of Law show this capacity. In addition¡ based on the results of this study¡ food system has other functions: showing social convergence and gender and also national differences¡ as sojoodi mentioned.