Foundation Seminar 5

Dr John CrossleyHSFC FOUNDATION SEMINAR

#5

Week 5 - Semiotics 2

Symbol/symbolic: a mode in which the signifi-er does not resemble the signified but which is fundamentally arbitrary or purely conventional - so that the relationship must be learnt: e.g. language in general (plus specific languages, alphabetical letters, punctuation marks, words, phrases and sen http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_wlYDdZEKUec/SxTzsDSWtcI/AAAAAAAAAF8/Bii_7Nzu1V8/s1600/number-1-sign-756266.jpg tences), numbers, morse code, traffic lights, national flags;

Icon/iconic: a mode in which the signifier is perceived as resembling or imitating the signi-fied (recognizably looking, sounding, feeling, tasting or smelling like it) - being similar in possessing some of its qualities: e.g. a portrait, a cartoon, a scale-model, onomatopoeia, meta-phors, ‘realistic’ sounds in ‘programme music’,

sound effects in radio drama, a dubbed film soundtrack, imitative gestures;

Index/indexical: a mode in which the signi-fier is not arbitrary but is directly connected in some way (physically or causally) to the signi-fied - this link can be observed or inferred: e.g. ‘natural signs’ (smoke, thunder, footprints, ech-oes, non-synthetic odours and flavours), medi-cal symptoms (pain, a rash, pulse-rate), measur-ing instruments (weathercock, thermometer, clock, spirit-level), ‘signals’ (a knock on a door, a phone ringing), pointers (a pointing ‘index’ finger, a directional signpost), recordings (a photograph, a film, video or television shot, an audio-recorded voice), personal ‘trademarks’ (handwriting, catchphrase) and indexical words (‘that’, ‘this’, ‘here’, ‘there’).

PEIRCE: SYMBOL - ICON - INDEX

SYMBOLS are arbitraryThe arbitrary nature of symbols makes them both flexible buit also meaningless outside of an agree-ment between sign users about what they mean. In other owrds, sybols only work where a group of people agree to a conventional meaning htat should be attached to them.

ICONSIcons always involve some sort of physical re-semplance. In some ways they can be undersood without learning a particular language - but there can also be a learnt way of seeing tied up with decoding them

Lie detectors, smoke, speedometers, weathervanes are all signs that have a physical link with the signified. ie the direction of the wind is signified

Index

TaskIn Your Group try to analyse the meaning of your image, with reference to symbols, indexs and icons