Semiotics - The Study of Symbols

DENOTATION: what the audience sees e.g. a cross
CONNOTAION: what something symbolises e.g. symbolises religion, belief, jesus etc.

For example in this picture you can see a few young adults at a party (denotation). This then connotes that they could be troubled youths, on drugs that have a party lifestyle, which then can coincide with crime and deviance this links with the media representation of AGE and the sterotypes that come with this representation.