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Semiotics: Lesson 6 - Part 3

Semiotics is the study of signs and symbols and how they are used to communicate and develop interpretations. It allows us to break down messages into their components and examine patterns across different forms of communication. Famous theorists who contributed to semiotics include Ferdinand de Saussure, who distinguished between the signifier and signified, and Charles Pierce, who argued that every thought is a sign and that signs function to mediate our understanding of the external world. There are three main forms of signs: icons resemble what they signify, indexes indicate their referents without directly representing them, and symbols have arbitrary relationships to their meanings established by social convention.

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Angeline Layco Nebres
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129 views17 pages

Semiotics: Lesson 6 - Part 3

Semiotics is the study of signs and symbols and how they are used to communicate and develop interpretations. It allows us to break down messages into their components and examine patterns across different forms of communication. Famous theorists who contributed to semiotics include Ferdinand de Saussure, who distinguished between the signifier and signified, and Charles Pierce, who argued that every thought is a sign and that signs function to mediate our understanding of the external world. There are three main forms of signs: icons resemble what they signify, indexes indicate their referents without directly representing them, and symbols have arbitrary relationships to their meanings established by social convention.

Uploaded by

Angeline Layco Nebres
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Semiotics

Lesson 6 – Part 3

EDEL J. VARGAS, LPT


Definition of semiotics
• It is the study of signs and symbols.
• It looks how signs and symbols are
used to communicate and develop
interpretations.
• Derived from the Greek word
“semeiotikos” which means an
observant of signs.
Advantages of semiotics
• Allows us to break down a
message into its component and
examine them separately and in
relationship to one another.
• Allows us to look for patterns
across different forms of
communication.
Advantages of semiotics
• Helps us to understand how our
cultural and social conventions
relate to the communication we
create and consume.
• Helps us to get beyond the obvious
which may not be obvious after all.
Famous theorists

• Ferdinand de Saussure
• Roland Barthes
• Charles Pierce
Ferdinand De Saussure
• He was a Swiss linguist who
created the term “semiotics”.
• He distinguished between signifier
and signified.
Signifier and Signified
• Sign is made up of:
SIGNIFIER
• The image or sound that gives a meaning
e.g. blue color
SIGNIFIED
• The concept or meaning that the sign
refers to
e.g. blue color is often associated with
sadness or the sea.
Signifier And Signified In
Camera Movement
• These messages are established in
two ways through:
Denotation
• The literal meaning of the sign.
Connotation
• The suggested meaning of the sign
and the cultural conventions
associated with the sign.
Charles Pierce

• He was born on
September 10, 1839.
• He followed a career in Math ,
Philosophy and was a logician.
Pierce argument
• Every thought is a sign and every act or
reasoning of the interpretation of signs
• Signs function as mediators between
the external world of objects and the
internal world or ideas.
• Semiotics is the process of co-
operation between signs, their objects
and their interpretants.
Forms of Sign
ICON
The signifier is perceived as resembling the
signified. A pictorial representation , a
photograph, an architect’s model of a
building are all icons because they imitate
or copy aspects of their subjects.
INDEX
• An index is a sign which is related to the
object it represents but not directly or in
a concrete way.
• For example, a knock on the door – an
index of arrival. The knock is not
ARRIVAL, it is not a direct representation
of arrival, but it indicates arrival and is
connected to that event.
INDEX
• Most facial expressions work in an
indexical way – because you cannot
represent an emotion, we look for
signs which indicate them e.g a smile
is an index (or sign) of happiness.
The smile isn’t a direct representation
of happiness.
SYMBOL
• A symbol has an arbitrary relationship
between the signifier and the signified.
• The interpreter understands the
symbol through previous knowledge
and experience.
• Spoken or written words are symbols.
• For example, flags, state emblems,
company logos.

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