A Semiotic Analysis of cultural symbolism presented in Paris in June, 2015, at Semiofest - the commercial semiotics conference. Author: Sarah Jane Johnson of Athena Brand Wisdom

1. SUMMONING
MEANING
EVANGELICALS, HIPSTERS,
AND
THE SYMBOLOGY
OF THE
OCCULT IN AMERICA

2. • Occult: “kept secret, esoteric, recondite, mysterious, beyond the range of
ordinary knowledge, involving the supernatural, mystical, magical.”
2
Source: OED
Occult:
“Kept secret, esoteric,
recondite, mysterious,
beyond the range of
ordinary knowledge,
involving the supernatural,
mystical, magical.”

3. 3
“Occultists
seek the
"Light in the
Darkness"
and the Cause of causes;
what is REALLY
happening as opposed to
what you are told is
happening, and to see the
world without perspective
(Gnosis).”
•
3
Source: urbandictionary.com

4. Fringe Evangelicals
4
Millennial Hipsters
TWO GROUPS IN OPPOSITION

5. UNITED BY
COMMON ANXIETIES
Economic UNCERTAINTY
DISTRUST of mainstream institutions
ALIENATION from post-industrial consumer capitalism
BREAKDOWN of the american dream
SENSE of a world spinning out of control
5

6. BOTH SEE THE OCCULT
AS A SOURCE OF POWER
For Fringe Evangelicals,
naming and identifying
is a means of subduing
it, and of signalling their
separation from society’s
dominant values and
forces
For Millennial Hipsters,
leveraging it is a means
of accessing their own
spiritual power, and of
signalling their separation
from society’s dominant
values and forces
6

7. BUT FIRST, SOME BACKGROUND
7
Fringe Evangelicals’
obsession with the Occult
derives from a belief
that Modern Society is
secretly controlled by
“The Illuminati.”
Source: Wikipedia

8. Freemasonry
Influenced
America’s Founding
Fathers
THE TRUTH BEHIND THE FEAR
8

9. Freemasonry was
a driver in
America’s
Founding Belief
in Religious
Tolerance
9
Source: Mitch Horowittz, author of Occult
America: The Secret History of How
Mysticism Shaped our Nation
v
THE TRUTH BEHIND THE FEAR

10. FREEMASONRY
MAKES
CONSCIOUS
AND
DELIBERATE
USE OF
SYMBOLISM
10
Source: Freemason Grand Lodge Website
“It is a beautiful
system of
morality, veiled
in allegory and
illustrated by
symbols.”

11. TYPICAL OCCULT
SYMBOLS
PYRAMIDS
TORCHES
ALL-SEEING
EYES
SUN
MOON
STARS
PENTAGRAMS
CIRCLES
GODDESSES
Occult symbols come from a range
of traditions:
EGYPTIAN, CELTIC,
DRUIDIC, NATIVE
AMERICAN, ANCIENT
GREEK
11

12. 12
OCCULT
IMAGERY IS
WOVEN INTO
THE FABRIC
OF
AMERICAN
SYMBOLISM
Circle of
stars
suggests
eternity
Eye on the Pyramid. “God
Smiles on Our New Order of
the Ages."
Torch, Star
Tiara,
Goddess-
like figure

13. 13
FOR FRINGE EVANGELICALS,
AMERICA’S FREE-THINKING ROOTS
ARE A SIGN OF SATANIC CONSPIRACY
13
“Since 1776, our leadership
(U.S. Government) has been
consistently moving us
toward the Luciferic New
World Order. This
leadership has always been
working through Secret
Societies, misleading us as
to their true intentions.”

14. 14
AMERICA IS SEEN AS A
LOST, DAMNED NATION.
14
“America no longer has God’s blessing.
What we have is the leftover vapor trail
of God’s blessing on America from
previous generations, but we are too
stupefied to be able to discern the
difference. We’ve become a nation of
braying goats eating garbage where
there used to be sheep following a
Shepherd, and drinking from pools of
living waters.”
Source: exposingsatanism.org

15. 15
Source: exposingsatanism.org
AND ITS MASONIC ROOTS ARE SEEN AS
THE GUIDING FORCE BEHIND AMERICA’S
PERCEIVED CURRENT MORAL DECAY.
“We are seeing an unprecedented rise in demonic
symbols and signs because the Wicked One is about to
take the stage. Everywhere you look, there he is. The All-
Seeing Eye Of Horus staring back at you from pop soda
cans, sporting equipment, movies, television, radio,
clothing. Even on the very dollar bill in your pocket. Our
money says “In God We Trust”, and you know that’s not
true. It’s not even close to true. The things that America
truly trusts in – its power, might and wealth – are the
very things that the bible says is a witness against us in
these end times.

16. 16
AMERICA
ITSELF IS
THEREFORE
SEEN AS
SATANIC
16

17. 17
FRINGE EVANGELICALS
FEVERISHLY LABEL
AND ANALYZE OCCULT
MANIFESTATIONS IN U.S.
GOVERNMENT SYMBOLISM
TO PROVE ITS
CORRUPTION AND INIQUITY

18. LINKED TO THIS
CONSPIRACY THEORY
IS A PREOCCUPATION
WITH HIDDEN OCCULT
AND
SATANIC SYMBOLISM
IN CORPORATE
MESSAGING
18
“Studies have reported that an average person is
exposed to about a thousand logos a day. Few
people however ponder on the symbolic meaning
of these marketing tools and their occult origins.
Logos are one of the results of extensive studies
(funded by the Rockefeller’s “Chicago School”) in
cognitive sciences, neuropsychology and biology.
Those studies constitute the core of “marketing”,
a heavily funded field which keeps its findings
totally secret from the general public. Why are
the findings secret? Well, if you knew why
marketing worked on you, you wouldn’t fall for
it anymore.
The huge visibility of corporate logos is also an
opportunity for the elite to showcase their beliefs
and their power. The same way occult symbols
are inserted on buildings and sites they are
hidden in plain view on corporate logos.”

19. 19
CORPORATE LOGOS
ARE SCRUTINIZED
FOR SECRET PATTERNS AND
HIDDEN SYMBOLS
CONVEYING SATANIC,
OCCULT OR ZIONIST
MESSAGES.
19

20. 20
EVEN
“CHRISTIAN ROCK”
IS NOT EXEMPT
20
“The following so-
called “Christian”
singers and bands
are OF THE DEVIL.
They have sold their
souls for worldly
fame, fortune and
success.”

21. 21
WHILE FRINGE
EVANGELICALS FEAR THE OCCULT,
SOME HIPSTER MILLENNIALS
EMBRACE IT.
Social and Economic forces
undermining sense of personal
control
Alienation from Organized religion
Growing interest in ecology and
nature
Seeking unmediated spirituality
and a sense of wonder and enchantment
in a hyper-rationalized world
Youthful resentment of “The
Establishment” and desire to shock

22. 22
UNCERTAINTY DRIVES
NIHILISM:
POPULARITY
OF “UNDEAD”
ENTERTAINMENT

23. 23
SEEKING KNOWLEDGE
OF THE FUTURE
FOR CONTROL
OF THE
PRESENT

24. 24
ALIENATION AND YEARNING FOR MEANING:
IRONIC EVOCATIONS OF PARANORMAL

25. 25
UNMEDIATED PAGAN SPIRITUALITY:
RECONNECTING
WITH
NATURE AND ANCIENT
WISDOM

26. 26
WICCAN WISDOM
Source: Wiccan Pamela J. Grossman
“Honoring the earth and our bodies; shifting away from mass-
market medicines and agri-business toward natural healing and
whole foods; sharing our resources rather than focusing on
mere accumulation of goods; collaborating and communicating
more openly; helping to elevate women and girls to equality all
over the world: these are all grand workings of feminine magic
that we are manifesting together.
So for the rest of 2013 and beyond, I wish you more witching,
more opportunities to claim your power, to slough off old skin,
to ritualize your life. May your year have you feeling more
attuned to the rhythms of nature, more connected to one
another, and more plugged into planet and purpose.”

27. 27
SEARCHING FOR
SACREDNESS AND MYSTERY

28. 28
SATIRE
AND
YOUTHFUL
REBELLION
28

29. 29
FRINGE
EVANGELICALS
Knowledge is Corrupt
Searching for
Salvation
Seeking Protection
MILLENNIAL
HIPSTERS
Knowledge is a
commodity
Searching for
Enchantment
Seeking Escape
TO SUM UP
For Fringe Evangelicals and Millennial Hipsters, Occult invocations are
driven by similar anxieties but used to achieve strikingly different ends.
THE SACRED POWER OF
MYSTERY
THE SACRED POWER OF
NAMING

30. 30
PLOTTING
PERSPECTIVES
Knowledge
“What We Know”
Ignorance
“What We Don’t Know”
Paranoia
“What We Think We Know”
Wonder
“What We Know We Don’t Know”
MYSTERY ILLUSION
FACTS
THEORIES
FRINGE
EVANGELICALS
MILLENNIAL
HIPSTERS

31. 31
IMPLICATIONS
FOR
BRANDS
In a time when institutions and corporations
are increasingly distrusted, consumers
will develop their own strategies for
managing their anxieties
Brands can respond to these anxieties by
either challenging them or embracing
them
Many are already countering perceptions of
black box corporate behaviour by
emphasizing transparency, social
responsibility and dialogue
But another approach could be to actively
embrace the sense of Magic and
Mystery that many consumers seek...