Barthes describes a text as a "galaxy of signifiers" with many possible meanings and interpretations rather than one fixed structure. He asserts that the number of possible interpretations is infinite because they are based on the infinite possibilities of language. Barthes developed five codes for analyzing different types of meanings or interpretations that can be derived from a text: the hermeneutic code relates to clues and mysteries; the proairetic code creates narrative tension; the semantic code refers to contextual meanings; the symbolic code organizes deeper semantic meanings; and the cultural code involves the audience's cultural knowledge and beliefs.

1. BARTHES
CODE THEORY

2. He describes a text as…
 “A galaxy of signifiers, not a structure of
signifieds; it has no beginning; it is
reversible; we gain access to it by
several entrances, none of which can
be authoritatively declared to be the
main one; the codes it mobilizes extend
as far as the eye can read, they are
indeterminable...the systems of
meaning can take over this absolutely
plural text, but their number is never
closed, based as it is on the infinity of
language..."

3. This means…
 The text is tangled and it has to be unravelled
 Once we have unravelled the text then we
come across a huge range of potential
meanings or messages
 You can start by looking at a narrative from one
viewpoint and create one meaning for that text
 You can then continue unravelling the narrative
from different angles and come up with
completely different meanings.
 Barthes said “texts can be ‘open’ or ‘closed’

4. He came up with 5 codes…
 The Hermeneutic Code (HER)
 The Enigma/ Proairetic Code (ACT)
 The Symbolic Code (SYM)
 The Cultural Code (REF)
 The Semantic Code (SEM)

5. The Hermeneutic Code (HER)
 This is the way the story avoids revealing all the facts or giving away the truth, clues are
dropped in to the story throughout to help create a sense of mystery.

6. The Enigma/Proairetic Code (ACT)
 This is where tension is built up and the audience is left guessing what is going
to happen next.

7. The Semantic Code (SEM)
 The semantic code points to any element in a text that suggests a
particular, often additional meaning by way of connotation which the story
suggests.
 Connotation= cultural/underlining meaning, what it symbolises.

8. The Symbolic Code (SYM)
 This is similar to the semantic code, but is on a wider scale. It
organises semantic meanings into more broad and in depth sets of
meaning. Usually this happens in the form of antithesis, which is
where new meanings come about from opposing and conflicting
ideas.

9. The Culture Code (REF)
 This code looks at the audiences wider cultural knowledge, morals and ideology.