Reflecting from a Text: Chico Buarque’s Songs in Tatit’s Introductory and Intermediate Semiotic Analyses

Abstract

Tatit’s semiotics of song cannot be understood as a mere application of a ready-made and complete theory to any new object of study. On the contrary, as with every text analyzed by the author, the object of analysis must be conceived as a starting point for reflection, in which the theoretical frameworks adopted may be reworked throughout the investigation. In the case of Brazilian popular song, this principle is intensified by the very nature of the object, which, for part of the Brazilian audience, constitutes an already structured way of seeing, listening to, and feeling the world. This is why the author himself refers to Chico Buarque’s songs, which he analyzes, as genuine essays on different aspects of the meaning-making process. In this sense, the articulation between semiotics and song assumes a didactic dimension, perceiving in its object a strategically structured process of signification for teaching not only a theory, but also the very practice of scientific inquiry, insofar as the analysis of songs enables reflection on the theoretical framework itself. To demonstrate this, we highlight how Tatit’s work: 1) theoretically points to this didactic dimension; and 2) shows, through his introductory and intermediate analytical texts—respectively “A abordagem do texto” (“Approaching the Text”) and Análise semiótica através das letras (Semiotic Analysis through Lyrics) – that semiotic theory and song analysis are articulated in order to fulfill this didactic purpose.