Semiotics

The study of signs and

symbols and their use or
interpretation.

Semiotics
the study of signs.
The word semiotics comes from the
Greek root, seme, as in semeiotikos,
an interpreter of signs.
Semiotics as a discipline is simply the
analysis of signs and the study of the
functioning of sign systems.

Cobley, Paul. Introducing Semiotics. London: Icon, 2004. p. 4

Signs
According to
Ferdinand de
Sausurre, the
founder of
semiotics, a sign is
composed of:
The signifier the
form the sign takes
The signified the
concept the sign
Chandler,
Daniel. Semiotics for Beginners.
represents

http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Documents/S4B/semiotic.html

Meaning-Making
Humans seem to be driven by a desire
to make meaning; we are meaningmakers
Signs take the form of words, images,
sounds, odors, flavors, acts, or
objects.
These have no intrinsic meaning; they
become signs when we invest them
with meaning.
Chandler, Daniel. Semiotics for Beginners.
http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Documents/S4B/semiotic.html

According to
Charles Sanders Pierce . . .
We think only in signs.
Nothing is a sign unless it is
interpreted as a sign.
Anything can be a sign as long as
someone interprets it as signifying
something referring to or standing
in for something other than itself.
Chandler, Daniel. Semiotics for Beginners.
http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Documents/S4B/semiotic.html

Ceci nest pas une pipe

The famous pipe. How people
reproached me for it! And yet, could
you stuff my pipe? No, it's just a
representation, is it not? So if I had
written on my picture "This is a
pipe," I'd have been lying!
~Rene Magritte

What one must paint is the image of resemblance -- if thought is

to become visible to the world.
~Rene Magritte

The Arbitrary Nature of

Language
Central to Saussures understanding
of the linguistic sign is the arbitrary
nature of the bond between signifier
and signified.
A word is really just an arbitrary label
that weve been taught to use to
express a particular concept or idea.

Cobley, Paul. Introducing Semiotics. London: Icon, 2004. p. 13

Through the Looking-Glass,

Chapter VI: Humpty Dumpty
~Lewis Carroll

Dont stand chattering to yourself like that,

Humpty Dumpty said, looking at her for the
first time, but tell me your name and your
business.
My name is Alice, but
Its a stupid name enough! Humpty Dumpty
interrupted impatiently. What does it mean?
Must a name mean something? Alice asked
doubtfully.
Of course it must, Humpty Dumpty said
with a short laugh: my name means the
shape I amand a good handsome shape it
is, too. With a name like yours, you might be
any shape, almost.

There are three hundred and sixty-four days

when you might get un-birthday presents
Certainly, said Alice.
And only one for birthday presents, you know.
Theres glory for you!
I dont know what you mean by glory, Alice
said.
Humpty Dumpty smiled contemptuously. Of
course you donttill I tell you. I meant theres
a nice knock-down argument for you!
But glory doesnt mean a nice knock-down
argument, Alice objected.
When I use a word, Humpty Dumpty said, in
rather a scornful tone, it means just what I
choose it to meanneither more nor less.

The Arbitrary Nature of

Language
There is no inherent reason why the
word tree should indicate to the
concept of tree
The system only functions because
signs signify meaning by virtue of
their difference from other signs.
Jacques Derrida called this diffrance

Language and writing are two distinct systems of

signs;
the second exists for the sole purpose of
representing the first.

~Ferdinand de Sausurre

Diffrance
Both speech and writing are systems
of difference.
Diffrance.
Both words are pronounced the same
exact way (especially in French), but
the distinction between them can
only been seen in writing.

According to Jacques
Derrida . . .
Words and signs can never fully
articulate what they mean.
They can only be defined in relation
to other words, from which they
differ.
Meaning is perpetually deferred
through and endless chain of
signifiers.

Spectrum of Meaning
Experiment
Each word (sign) contains a relation
between a material substance
(signifier) and a mental concept
(signified).
Each word also contains a relation
between itself and a system of signs
outside itself.
This leads us to explore the notion of
connotation . . .

Spectrum of Meaning
Experiment
Find all the words that are synonyms
for said.
Place them on the spectrum from
Quietest Loudest

Do the same for synonyms for walk.

Slowest Fastest

Do the same for synonyms for happy,

sad, excited, angry, and funny.
Least Greatest

Denotation vs. Connotation

Denotation the basic meaning of a
word, independent of its emotional
coloration or associations
Connotation the emotional
implications and associations that
words may carry, as distinguished
from their denotative meanings.
Harmon, William and Hugh Holman. A Handbook to Literature, 9th ed. Prentice Hall,

Denotation vs. Connotation

Denotation = dictionary definition
Connotation = context, connections,
cultural

Connotations can be . . .
(1) private and personal, the result of
individual experience,
(2) group (national, linguistic, etc.),
or
(3) general universal, held by all or
most people.
Harmon, William and Hugh Holman. A Handbook to Literature, 9th ed. Prentice Hall,

Signs
According to
Ferdinand de
Sausurre, the
founder of
semiotics, a sign is
composed of:
The signifier the
form the sign takes
The signified the
concept the sign
Chandler,
Daniel. Semiotics for Beginners.
represents

http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Documents/S4B/semiotic.html

Self-Assessment Process
Rate your current understanding semiotics . . .
1 = I think it has something to do with signs
10 = I fondly remember the day when I taught
Monsieur Sausurre my new theory of semiotics.

Read the feedback on your work from yesterday.

Rate your understanding of semiotics again.
Discuss the image in your small group.
Rate your understanding of semiotics again.

Describe your work of art

Using all four key terms weve
covered:
The signifier is the form the sign
takes.
The signified is the concept the sign
represents.
The denotation is the surface or
literal meaning.
The connotation is the implied
meaning.

Sign

Signifier

Signified

Denotation
Connotation

Different Types of Signs

Match the two parts of each sign
together pair the signifier
(physical image or sound) with the
phrase that describes what is
signified (the concept being
represented)
Sort your sign pairs into groups see
if you can figure out what they have
in common with each other if you
need a hint, I will tell you how many

Three Types of Signs

Icon a sign that physically
resembles what it stands for a
literal sign
Index a sign which implies some
other object or event an implied
sign
Symbol a sign with a conventional
or arbitrary relation to the signified
a learned sign