The Semiotics of Environmental Crises: Symbols of Extinction

Abstract

Environmental crises have gone beyond being merely ecological problems and have become
global concerns that need to be examined in cultural, political and semiotic dimensions. This study aims
to examine how environmental extinction and ecological destruction are symbolized by focusing on the
semiotic analysis of environmental crises. In particular, how are natural disasters, climate change and
environmental collapse represented in media, art, literature and political discourses? Which images,
metaphors and narratives shape the perception of environmental disasters? In this context, the research
investigates how environmental crises are embedded in social memory, through which symbols they gain
meaning and how these signs affect political-ecological discourses. The main research questions of the
study are as follows: How are environmental crises visualized? Through which semiotic markers are these
crises presented? How do the resulting signs shape individual and social perceptions? The study is
evaluated within the theoretical framework of Peirce and Barthes' semiotic theories. In the research, the
representations, linguistic expressions and symbolic elements of the visuals associated with
environmental disasters are analyzed from a semiotic perspective. The findings reveal that certain
symbols and narratives are frequently repeated in the depiction of environmental crises and reinforce
ecological concerns. This study reveals that the crises that lead to environmental problems do not only
have a scientific aspect, but these environmental crises are also created culturally and semiotically. In
addition, the socio-political structure of environmental crises and the structure of meaning they gain
within the context of discourse are closely related to semiotics.