TURN ME ON DEAD MAN

In the realm of artistic expression, the reversed text on the 45 RPM record invokes the seminal theories of Roland Barthes and Ferdinand de Saussure, inviting a semiotic reading that transcends mere visual perception. In his exploration of the plurality of text, Barthes would appreciate how reversal disrupts and multiplies the text's potential meanings. His concept of 'readerly' and 'writerly' texts in "S/Z" could be applied here, as the viewer is compelled to move from a passive consumer of a 'readerly' text to an active interpreter akin to encountering a 'writerly' text.

Saussure's structuralist approach further illuminates this artistic choice. His delineation between the signifier — the physical form of the word or image as we perceive it — and the signified — the conceptual meaning it represents — becomes a playground for inquiry when the signifier is manipulated through reversal. The viewer's expectation of a straightforward relationship between signifier and signified is challenged, prompting a deeper engagement with the underlying structures of meaning.