Symmetry-Asymmetry in Semiosphere of Culture: The Case of Authenticity/Inauthenticity Opposition

This chapter is dedicated to the investigation of the concepts of symmetry-asymmetry in Juri Lotman’s idea of the semiosphere. The first part aims to (1) describe the history of the appearance of the terms symmetry, asymmetry, dissymmetry, and enantiomorphism in the characterization of the features of “semiosphere,” as well as to (2) explain why Lotman describes symmetry-asymmetry opposition to be the fundamental feature of the semiosphere. In the second part, I aim to describe whether authenticity/inauthenticity opposition can be seen as a case of symmetry-asymmetry and what new questions provoke the idea of the universality of symmetry-asymmetry in culture. Finally, I conclude that symmetry/asymmetry can be considered a fundamental feature of the semiosphere; however, it does not presuppose that the meanings that the dichotomy has are necessarily universal for all semiospheres of culture.