Semiotics of the Euthanasia in Iranian and international Cinema A Comparative Study of the Four Movies: "Euthanasia", "You Don't Know Jack", "The Long Goodbye" and "Sea inside"

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Mohadeseh Zahedsamimi 1
Seyed Jamaledin Aknarzadeh Jahromi 2
1 social communication sciences, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran
2 Assistant Professor, Allameh Tabataba'i University.
10.22034/jcsc.2020.119225.2059
Abstract
"Euthanasia" is an emerging problem in the world that has been less addressed by the mass media. Euthanasia is considered a cultural and social taboo. People who call for euthanasia are facing problems such as depression and terminal illness, and difficult personal and social conditions. In this article, we use a semiotic approach to compare the way in which "euthanasia" is represented in Iranian and international cinema. The sampling method is purposive and the selected movies are: “Euthanasia” and "The Long Goodbye” from Iran; “You don’t know Jack” from the United States and “sea inside” from Spain. And we have reviewed the selected sequences of films where the theme of Euthanasia is prominent. The findings of the article suggest that in Iran, America, and Spain, "euthanasia" is forbidden religiously and legally, however, in these four films, Euthanasia is represented in four different ways. In the Iranian film "Euthanasia", euthanasia is completely negative. On the opposite side, the American film "You Don't Know Jack" views the subject of "euthanasia" as a fundamental right; and tries to draw a human face from defenders of euthanasia. The Iranian film "The Long Goodbye", by changing its approach to the film "Euthanasia", in a gray look, represents this concept as both positive and negative at the same time, to a large extent subtilize the consonance of rejecting this concept. The Spanish film "sea inside" displays the issue of euthanasia with a humanist and secularist approach and represents it quite positively.

Keywords

 
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Cultural Studies & Communication
Volume 16, Issue 60
Autumn 2020
Pages 297-330