An Investigation of Bts “Life Goes On” Song: A Consider of Denotative and Connotative Meaning (Semantic Analysis)

Abstract

emantics is a branch of linguistics that analyzes the meaning of sentences and language. Semantics are present not only in daily conversations but also in artistics works, such as songs. A song is a composition containing messages that the composer intends to communicate. Analyzing song lyrics means to find out the meanings that the creator specifically wants to convey. Each song lyrics can create a meaning depending on the listener’s imagination and perspective. This study aims to uncover the denotative and connotative meanings found in the lyrics of the BTS- song “Life Goes On” through semantic analysis, as outlined by the authors. The denotative meaning is literal and genuine definition of a word or phrase. Connotative meaning refers to a symbolic or abstract interpretation of meaning. The authors employed a qualitative descriptive method in study. The data were analyzed using qualitative descriptive methods based on Leech’s (1981) semantic analysis theory, which emphasizes denotative and connotative meanings. The data source is one of the song lyrics obtained through the website on internet. Fifteen phrases of the song BTS- Life Goes On were found to have both denotative and connotative interpretations also three types of connotative meaning in this research results. The lyrics of this song addressed the challenges and hardships experiences by individuals amid the Covid-19 pandemic.