Filipinos are not "pasaway": A Look at 'Social Distancing' Public Signs in Times of Covid-19

  Abstract

One of the most reliable ways to examine signs in different spaces is through linguistic landscape research. Space is an important element in linguistics landscapes — how and where a certain object or sign is situated are few factors that affect the meaning that it bears. Moreover, linguistic landscape research shows the significance of the influence of multilingualism on the social life of the members of certain communities as they are tied not only to one's culture but also to different ideologies that affect their everyday living. Due to the Covid-19 outbreak, public spaces in the Philippines issued safety protocols to prevent the spread of the virus. Through the theories of Geosemiotics, Multimodal Discourse, and Multilingualism, this blog examines the function of "social distancing" public signs in different public spaces. The public signs were analyzed in terms of materials used, placement/location, and communicative function.

Keywords: Covid-19, linguistic landscape, physical distancing, public signs, social distancing 

  Introduction

Many places in the Philippines underwent lockdown by March of 2020 due to a virus that started from China named Covid-19. Few days before the lockdown, chaos broke out in and out of public spaces as people started panic buying. The streets were covered with people with and without masks as they run around the streets for their needs. To avoid the spread of the virus, different protective measures were given to the public such as staying at home, wearing face masks, washing hands, and practicing social distancing. According to polling from ABC News and Ipsos, in the United States, people have different attitudes in practicing social distancing and wearing masks, “while guidance on social distancing has largely been consistent and long-standing—staying 6 feet away from others to prevent the transmission of respiratory droplets, avoiding large gatherings, and staying home—wearing a mask has been much murkier” (Pereira, 2020), but this is not the case in the Philippines. Among all these safety precautionary measures against the spread of the virus, practicing social distancing is mostly flouted by the Filipinos.

What is social distancing and what makes it difficult for the public to practice this safety protocol? Van Bavel argues that “We are truly social animals,” … Our bodies and brains are designed for connection and the pandemic in many ways goes against our instincts to connect… That is partly why local outbreaks can crop up in bars and nightclubs, or religious ceremonies, weddings, and parties… People have a hard time resisting that tendency for social and group connection.”  In other words, our notion of "social" affects how we understand the term "social distancing". (qtd. in “Explainer: Why Some People Won’t Follow Social Distancing Rules or Mask Mandates During The Covid-19 Pandemic”). Moreover, just as the pandemic language helps us cope with the “new normal”— in online announcements, meetings, and warnings, may it be related to education, politics, or our job—we cannot deny the fact that the COVID-19 language also became a tool in adding more burden to direct sufferers of this crisis. In addition, COVID-19 language causes us more confusion than certainty, which leads people to panic and fear about what will happen next. For example, the terms ECQ, GCQ, and MGCQ lead many Filipinos into confusion since, generally, most of them are unfamiliar with these English terminologies.

Thus, this study aims to answer the following questions:

        1. How are the “social distancing” public signs indexed and placed in the material world?

        2. What do the modes (materials used, placement/location, and communicative function) reveal about these signs?

        3. How does our notion of "social'' affect our selection of action in actualizing the "social distancing" signs?

Review of Related Literature

The present study was anchored on three theoretical frameworks: Scollon and Scollon’s (2003) Geosemiotics, Kress and Van Leeweun’s (2002) Multimodality, and Gorter’s (2013) Multilingualism. Large cultural events such as the health crisis in history do not only affect society but also the language as a tool of communication. Through linguistic landscape research, which according to Landry and Bourhis, is “the visibility and salience of languages on public and commercial signs” (p. 25) and “any display of visible written language…” (Gorter, p. 190), the complications of multilingualism have long been discovered. The use of more than one language—multilingualism—is another aim of linguistic landscape research by centering on language choice and aspects of literacy. Multilingualism in public spaces provides a sustainable resource for communities to thrive (Doroja-Cadiente and Valdez p. 35). For instance, Doroja-Cadiente and Valdez’s study draws on the functions of public signs produced in two communities which were greatly affected by Typhoon Haiyan also known as Yolanda, in terms of a) materials used, b) location or placement, and c) its communicative function. (34). In their study, they revealed that the locals in the eastern region of Leyte, Tacloban City failed to comply with PAGASA’s call for evacuation because of the linguistic problem in discerning the English term “storm surge”. The media did not even acknowledge their ineptitude in providing a local term which could have been more understandable by the public. People's lack of awareness of the tropical storm’s destructive capacity resulted in a terrible dilemma such as numerous deaths and extensive property damage.

Delving on the theory of Multilingualism, Geosemiotics is also vital in analyzing the indexicality of public signs. Scollon and Scollon (2003) argue that the meaning of a sign depends on its situatedness or placement (how and where they are placed) in the physical world. They also claim that signs are not confined to pictures, photographs, road signs, etc., they define a sign as any material object that refers to something other than itself such as language and human actions. Geosemiotics is centered on the context-dependency of signs in the material world or also known as indexicality, aggregate operations of signs or dialogicality—which also implies double indexicality attached to the sign through its placement and interaction with other signs— and finally, the principle of selection of action which positions an actor as a particular kind of person. (p. 23). This simply reveals that, aside from conveying communicative content, signs also show connections between communities, as well as the relationship between the member of a certain language group. Besides, linguistic landscape study should not be confined to the analysis of language and its users alone, but also “the materials in which these are used, the placement of these signs for access, as well as the wider contexts in which these messages are produced and received” (Kress and Van Leeuwen 2001). Additionally, the interaction order theory asserts that apart from signs, our human body also indexes the world.  Hall’s work introduces the concept of four crucial distances which separates people in face-to-face communication, namely: intimate distance (touch to 18 inches), personal distance (18 inches to 4 feet), social distance (4 feet to 12 feet), and public distance (12 feet to 25 feet). These crucial distances indicate various social and interpersonal relationships. “Because we express our relationships to others in part by where (and how) we stand or sit or touch, those postures can be ‘read’ by others to be signaling those interpersonal relationships. Interpersonal distances become, then, a crucial resource by which we geosemiotically embody significant meanings about ourselves and about others and about our relationships.” (p. 53). Focusing on the term “social distancing”, our idea of “pakikipagkapwa” also influences how we follow social distancing protocol. As stated by Enriquez, the concept of “kapwa” (shared identity) is at the core of Filipino social psychology, “which is at the heart of the structure of Filipino values” (qtd. in Pe-Pua, Rogelia, and Protacio-Marcelino, Elizabeth). It means that Filipinos are always concerned not only with having an interpersonal relationship with other people, but also with “pakikipagkapwa” or treating others as a human being, or someone that belongs to us. In relation to this, we are also sensitive to non-verbal cues, because we are concerned with how the other people would feel if, for example, we cover our nose when they are around, or we keep a meter away from them. The propensity for indirect communication such as the things mentioned affects how Filipinos interact and follow "social distancing” protocols in times of pandemic.

Data and Methodology

            The public signs used in this study were taken from public spaces in communities such as streets, malls, restaurants, carinderias, and bookstores. Over 9 photographs were taken between the months of October-December 2020 after most of the areas in the country were placed under modified general community quarantine or MGCQ. The social distancing public signs were analyzed in terms of three criteria: (1) materials used; (2) location/placement of the signs; and (3) communicative function.

Analysis

The succeeding sections discuss the results of the data analysis. Specifically, the social distancing public signs in terms of materials used, placement or location, and communicative intent are described here.

Materials Used

After many places in the Philippines have been placed under lockdown, public spaces started posting health and safety guidelines which serve as protective measures against the spread of the virus. Many establishments used different modes in presenting social distancing public signs. In the 5 photographs below, the English code “PLEASE FOLLOW/OBSERVE/PRACTICE/KEEP SOCIAL DISTANCING” was used to express a transactional function. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the signs were only printed on bond paper with a simple font which read: “PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING”. Figure 2 bear labels of ownership since the restaurant’s logo is included in the sign. The use of black and white color is also essential in the signs; color is a symbolic system that includes a set of features and elements or semiotic resources such as hue, saturation, differentiation, modulation, and purity. This means that "color itself is metafunctional, in a way that it is used to convey ideational, interpersonal, and textual meaning" ("Glossary of Multimodal Terms”). The use of a simple public sign printed on a bond paper is a timid way of ordering people —hence just following the protocol of the establishment to post safety guidelines in the restaurant.

Figure 1: Social distancing sign at Wood Ranch Antipolo

Figure 2: Social distancing sign at Romantic Baboy Ayala Feliz

        In Figure 3, the social distancing sign is created by hand. The material used is plywood painted in white and a red-colored font without any picture or icon. The sign is large enough to get the customer’s attention.

Figure 3: Social distancing sign at Paresan along Sumulong Hiway

            In Figure 4, the materials used are produced by a machine. The social distancing sign is printed in a tarpaulin, with white background and red-colored font, wide enough to be seen by customers of the carinderia with English code “OBSERVE SOCIAL DISTANCING… PLEASE WEAR FACE MASK”.

Figure 4: Social distancing sign at Esot Bulaluhan along Sumulong Hi-way

In Figure 5, the material used is a red sticker with the English code “SO SORRY THIS SEAT IS NOT AVAILABLE. THANK YOU FOR PRACTICING SOCIAL DISTANCING”. This sign also bears labels of ownership since the restaurant’s logo is included in the sign. Moreover, it also performed a hybridized communicative function which shows purpose aside from the core objective the message wants to entail.

        Beside the logo, the English codes “KFC CARES Health and Safety Guides” were written, which indicates that the sign is not merely a public sign but also an act of promoting the restaurant by explicitly saying that they care for the customers by implementing protective measures and guidelines against the COVID-19.

 Figure 5: Social distancing sign on a table at KFC SM Masinag

Location/Placement of Signs

The meaning of a sign depends on its situatedness or placement (how and where they are placed) in the physical world. All the figures above employ double indexicality, “each sign indexes a discourse that authorizes its placement” (Scollon and Scollon p. 23). Double indexicality here refers to the discourses which produce the sign and the discourses we produced in giving meaning to the sign. In Figures 6 and 7 for example, English codes “SOCIAL DISTANCING PLEASE” and “KEEP SOCIAL DISTANCING” are placed in the main hallway at SM Masinag. These signs are generally placed in the center of hallways to draw public attention and remind people about the health and safety measures the shopping mall is implementing. This also explicitly indicates that the sign is located in the mall hallway because it is the place where people usually do not follow social distancing.

 Figures 6 and 7: Social distancing signs at SM Masinag

        In figure 8, the sign says, “OBSERVE SOCIAL DISTANCING” “CASH TRANSACTION ONLY”, although the sign of the Café is posted on the glass door which could be read by everyone passing by, this sign explicitly addresses not the people walking outside the Café but the customers that will enter inside. 

 Figure 8: Social distancing sign at Tosh Café Ayala Feliz

        In figure 9, the social distancing sign is placed on the table. The sign says “SOCIAL DISTANCING, PLEASE. WE GOT A BETTER SEAT JUST FOR YOU, BUT IT’S NOT THIS ONE”. This sign is placed on the table to get the attention of the customers who are either dining-in or waiting for their orders. This also indicates that the sign is located on the table because before the sign's placement there, people usually do not follow social distancing when dining in.

Figure 9: Social distancing sign at Burger King Marcos Hiway

Communicative Functions

The social distancing signs produced by different establishments expressed a transactional function indicating a command and a reminder to the people reading the sign. All signs used as data were written in the English language. English being one of the official languages in the Philippines, is justifiably aligned with the context of Covid-19 as a global pandemic. The use of the English language in these signs functions as a language of broader communication that sought to address not only the multilingual people of the Philippines but also the foreign people in our country. While the use of the English language allows foreign people to understand these signs, and the establishments to use it as a formal way of reminding people, many Filipinos have a linguistic problem in grasping the term “social distancing”. Based on the online article “Should we say “physical” distancing instead of “social” distancing?”, "it is essential to stay socially connected while maintaining physical distance during this global pandemic. “Social distancing” blurs the critical distinction between physical and social proximity… They go on to recommend a change to “physical distancing, social connection” as a solution to differentiate social activities that maintain physical distance while fostering social connectivity.” (Bonsall 2020). Moreover, colors used in the signs function as a communicational resource and it is used to convey interpersonal and textual meaning. The colors black, red, purple, orange, and blue used in the “social distancing” public signs were used “to warn [people] against obstructions and other hazards by painting them orange, or even to subdue people” (Kress and Van Leeuwen 2002, p. 348). Finally, the verbs “follow”, “observe”, “keep”, and “practice” used in the signs include beckoning, warning, encouraging, instructing, informing, and advising people to follow such health protocol.

Conclusions

In March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) held a press conference that highlighted using the phrase “physical distancing” instead of “social distancing. Our notion of the term “social” as mentioned above, and the term “virus” as an infection or disease that can be transmitted to other people affect how we materialize the phrase ‘social distancing’. This term [social distancing] had a negative connotation of socially isolating oneself and cutting out of connection from others. But staying connected during this time is very important. What the term “social distancing” is supposed to mean is to “keep six feet of distance from people other than those who you live with—but this doesn’t mean you need to stop interacting with those you care about” (“What is the difference between social distancing and physical distancing?”). Given the materials used, “social distancing” public signs are either timidly ordering the public to observe social distancing or focusing more on promoting the establishment by including logos and labels. The signs above are either in plain text or, if there is an icon or symbol, it is the logo of the establishment itself, but none of these signs represents what the term “social distancing” means. Despite using English codes in signs in these establishments, signs on wearing a face mask and washing hands can easily be understood even the mode used is just plain text. However, a precise representation of what social distancing means—for instance, a symbol of two people 6 feet away from each other—could have helped the public in comprehending what it means. Where these signs are located also employ double indexicality, that is, signs are assigned on places where people in the past, do not usually follow social distancing (mall hallways, dining table, bookstore, etc.), and where these signs can easily be indexed. Finally, although the use of English code—instead of Filipino, or English and Filipino—serves as a resource in communicating to all members of the community, this also happens to be the reason why these signs became not accessible to some people who do not have adequate knowledge about the English language and the sign themselves. Thus, using public signs with symbols and language that are accessible to members of the community must be utilized to prevent the spread of the virus in this time of the global pandemic.

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Patricia Angelique L. Lorica, MA English Studies: Language