Symbols of Defiance: A Semiotic and Ethnolinguistic Analysis of the Jolly Roger in One Piece

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15826/csp.2026.10.2.387

Abstract

These past years have witnessed an increasing usage of symbols from imaginative entertainment in actual sociopolitical discourse. A good example is the Jolly Roger flag belonging to the One Piece franchise, which is frequently appropriated by Indonesian audiences across online and offline contexts. The current study adopts a qualitative multilayered semiotic-ethnolinguistic analysis to explore the sociocultural signification of the Jolly Roger flag in Indonesian contexts. Using the signification concept developed by Peirce and the associated modules of denotation, connotation, and myth developed by Barthes, the study investigates the representation of the flag both as a device used in the animation and as a transformed sign shaped by ethnolinguistic and sociopolitical interpretation. The study draws on data from 120 texts spread across different social networks, namely Instagram,* TikTok, YouTube, and X, and 15 photographic documentations of the flag’s offline public presence. The results show how the Jolly Roger is a complex symbol negotiating identity formation, social critique, and different levels of symbolic defiance. Audience reception indicates a co-mix of playfulness, fan practices, and local sociopolitical readings, thus supporting the understanding that symbolic defiance is always culturally mediated and context-dependent. This research adds to existing debates on the re-interpretation of transnational media symbols using qualitative approaches in semiotic research, ethnolinguistics, and sociopolitics, showing how evocative transnational media symbols can achieve ideological functions in a determined cultural context.

* Instagram™ is a trademark of Instagram Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. По решению Роскомнадзора, социальная сеть Instagram полностью заблокирована в России как экстремистская организация.

Author Biographies

Supian Supian, Universitas Padjadjaran, Bandung, Indonesia

Supian Supian completed his MA in Russian Literature and his PhD in Russian Linguistics from The Pushkin State Russian Language Institute, Moscow, Russia. He is a senior lecturer at the Department of Linguistics and at the Russian Language and Literature Study Program, a researcher at the Center for Language Studies and Head of the Russian Center of Faculty of Cultural Studies, Universitas Padjadjaran, Indonesia. His research interests are interdisciplinary linguistics, comparative discourse analysis, Russian Literature and Russian Linguistics.

Ladinata Ladinata, Universitas Padjadjaran, Bandung, Indonesia

Ladinata Ladinata pursued MA in Linguistics from Moscow State Pedagogical University, Russia. He currently is a lecturer at the Department of Linguistics and the Russian Language and Literature Study Program, Universitas Padjadjaran, Bandung, Indonesia. His research interests are pragmatics, sociolinguistics, and applied linguistics.

Ruswan Dallyono, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Bandung, Indonesia

Ruswan Dallyono completed his Doctoral degree in Linguistics from Universitas Katolik Atmajaya, Jakarta, Indonesia. He is a senior lecturer at the Linguistics Study Program, Postgraduate Studies Program, and the English Language and Literature Study Program, Faculty of Language and Literature Education; Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Bandung, Indonesia. His research interests are pragmatics, computational linguistics, mathematical linguistics, and applied linguistics. He is an editor and reviewer of The Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, which is a Scopus-indexed journal of Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia.

Lutfi Arief Noerjaman, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Bandung, Indonesia

Lutfi Arief Noerjaman pursued his Bachelor’s degree in English language and Literature from Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Bandung, Indonesia. He is a Junior Researcher at the English Language and Literature Study Program, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia. His research interests are ethnolinguistics, computational linguistics, and cultural studies.

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Published
2026-07-15
How to Cite
Supian, S., Ladinata, L., Dallyono, R., & Noerjaman, L. (2026). Symbols of Defiance: A Semiotic and Ethnolinguistic Analysis of the Jolly Roger in One Piece. Changing Societies & Personalities, 10(2), 333-351. doi:10.15826/csp.2026.10.2.387
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Vol. 10, No. 2 (2026)
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Articles
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