THE SEMIOTICS OF RIFFATERRE: PEOPLE’S EXCRUCIATION IN THE AGE OF NAZI REGIME IN BERTOLT BRECHT’S “AN DIE NACHGEBORENEN”

Abstract

This study aims to describe the following aspects: (1) heuristic and hermeneutic reading, (2) indirection (3) matrix, variant, model and (4) hypogram of An die Nachgeborenen poem by Bertolt Brecht. Semiotics of Riffaterre approach was used in this study. Descriptive-qualitative analysis was used to analyse the data. The result of the study shows that: (1) heuristic reading is about the suffering of people in dark times. Hermeneutic reading shows the cruelty of the totalitarian state, when Germany was under the leadership of the NAZI regime, (2)Indirection is produced by displacing meaning, distorting meaning, and creating meaning. Displacing meaningare caused by metaphor, synecdoche, allegory, comparison, metonymy, epic parable, and personification.Distorting meaning are caused by ambiguity and contradiction. Creating meaningare caused by rhyme, enjambement, and typography, (3)The matrix in this poem is the suffering of the people in the time because of the cruelty of the ruler. An die Nachgeborenen poem has 13 variants.The model is the dark time. (4) The potential Hypogram of the poem is the suffering of the people because of the cruelty of the ruler. The actual Hypogram is the time of the Nazi regime.