Sociolinguistics Symposium 19
Freie Universität Berlin | August 21-24, 2012
Programme: accepted abstracts
Abstract ID: 693
Part of General Paper Session (Other abstracts in this session)
Unraveling the myth of legendary violins: Linguistic construction of the mythical value of Stradivari and Guarneri del Gesu
Authors: Kubota, Mitsuo
Submitted by: Kubota, Mitsuo (Doshisha University, Japan)
In this presentation I will unravel the linguistic construction of the myth surrounding certain exquisite violins, specifically those made by Stradivari and Guarneri del Gesu. As an analytical framework I draw on Roland Barthes' construct presented in Myth Today. Additionally, I incorporated more recent frameworks in the discipline of critical discourse analysis that shed light on processes where the ideological power of myth is at work.
The proper nouns Stradivari and Guarneri del Gesu are the names of violin makers who were actively producing string instruments about 300 years ago in Cremona, Italy; the names are also used to refer to the instruments made by the makers. Their violins are widely believed to be the finest ever made. It is often said that the reasons for their excellence are not scientifically identifiable, hence their preeminence has remained a mystery. However, numerous blind tests have failed to demonstrate their acoustic superiority. Even violinists with extensive experience playing these violins failed to differentiate Stradivari and Guarneri del Gesu from other instruments. The test results suggest the value of the instruments is not solely due to their sound quality.
The present study, under the assumption that the value has to a great degree been constructed through language, began analyzing how Stradivari and Guarneri del Gesu are narrated during interviews when the violinists were asked to describe their violin. The main data source came from interviews of renowned violinists that appeared on the web site violinist.com. Additionally, interviews in magazines and television programs were incorporated as supplemental data.
Saussure states that denotative meanings are created through the relationship between the signifier and the signified, forming what is known as the sign. Once the sign is established, the signifier and the signified become inseparable and the sign becomes natural. In the present study, the relationship between the signifier Stradivari and the signified maker of instruments becomes a sign; the aforementioned signifier and the signified instrument becomes another sign. Barthes, drawing on Saussure's linguistic theory, demonstrates that myth is constructed in a process that goes beyond denotative meaning, starting with the sign. In the creation of myth the first sign functions as another signifier of various signified while generating complex connotations. Barthes refers to this process as second order signification, and shows that myth is constructed through a linguistic process involving these two layers. In this sense, Stradivari and Guarneri del Gesu are not merely the signifiers that refer to an instrument, but are also signifiers that include rich layers of signified.
The analyses show that the multiplicity of signified include a destined partnership, a teacher who inspired the violinist, as well as a time machine that takes the violinist to past heroic composers and legendary violinists who engaged the particular instrument, among others. Consequently, the names Stradivari and Guarneri del Gesu signify not only the instrument itself but also various factors that produce mythical value.