1. What is the significance of difference in semiotic structure?
The significance of difference in semiotic structure lies in the principle that meaning only exists and is created through difference. This concept is confirmed by showing that the negation of difference, particularly the rejection of diversity, leads to a loss of meaning and often results in a semantic void, or 'semiocide'. A paradoxical double discourse emerges, which may be a marketing strategy. The celebration of diversity has become a cliché in public discourse, and its celebration is now considered an ethical requirement in well-intentioned discourse. However, the aversion to the 'other' and the migrant, as seen in political voting patterns, is still prevalent worldwide, leading to discriminatory policies or assimilation strategies. Diversity is just as threatened as biodiversity. The section introduces a model and presents three studies on a specific case of diversity treatment in Brazil: full recognition of alterity and openness to the other, or negation of diversity. The conflict between these two incompatible options is analyzed by Paolo Demuru on the discourse level. The concept of alterity, coupled with identity, forms an elementary category of indeterminable elements at the base of the structure of meaning. Diversity, a relatively recent term in media vocabulary, refers to the empirically observable coexistence of multiple identity references within all societies, such as ethnic, religious, or gender differences. The semiotic approach to societal diversity addresses the general problem of alterity. This theme of reflection has been a concern for many semioticians since the 1990s. References include 'Essay on Exoticism: An Aesthetics of Diversity' by Victor Segalen, published in 1998.
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