A Semiotic Analysis of Kashan Historical Houses

Document Type : Original Article

Author

PhD, Associate Professor of English Literature, Shahid Beheshti University

Abstract

Kashan Historical Houses are unique complexes of Iranian historical architecture. The aim of this essay is to study these houses (Ameris, Tabatabaees, Borujerdees, and Abasis) from a semiotic (structuralist, cultural and poststructuralist) approach. The representation of cultural aspects (such as privacy, security, power, status, and respect) in the light of “introverted” and “veiled” architecture is the focus of this study. In the second part of the essay, I will pay attention to two major binary oppositions in semiotics: inside and outside, and culture and nature. The theses proposed for both binary oppositions could be considered as new in many respects and will result in some poststructuralist or deconstructive readings of these historical houses and some observations on the concept of “home”. All the pictures used for this research are taken by the researcher.
 
 

Keywords