Semiotization of power in the French kings’ ceremonial portraits: linguophilosophical approach

Abstract

The purpose of the present article is to prove that the royal gala portrait makes a semiotic space, the signs of which form the image of supreme power. External symbols of monarchical power serve as the means of power semiotization in the ceremonial royal portrait. The linguophilosophical approach to the power allowed us to identify and describe the semantic characteristic of the symbolic side of power. The sword, the scepter, the Hand of Justice, and the crown symbolize three branches of power that the king received from God, particularly, religious, political, and judicial power. The methodological basis of the work is a systematic approach, which includes interdisciplinary research as well as linguo-cultural and historiographic analysis. By interpreting the signs presented in the J. Clouet’s portrait of François I, in the T. de Leu’s engraving of Henry IV, king of France and Navarre, and in the G. Rigo’s portrait of Louis XIV in the coronation costume, the authors reveal the pragmatic dimension of the semiosis of power and the court culture. The research results in the emphasis of the idea that the state destination of the symbolic representation of the monarch is to visualize the power institution.