SEMIOTICS [2012] COURSE TOPICS 1.

Introduction to semiotics: the history of sign study; structural features of signs; semiosis and representation. 2. General features of signs; zero-signs; the distinctions token/type and denotation/designation; nvc. 3. Sign taxonomies; establishing taxonomic criteria. 4. Symptom (syndrome); signal; index. 5. Symbol; icon. 6. Name (linguistic sign). A revision of signs and of semiosis. SEMINAR TOPICS 1. The history of thinking about signs; structural features of signs; semiosis and representation; signs in paradigmatic, and in syntagmatic relationships, respectively. 2. General features of signs; distinctions; Saussure's theory and Peirce's, respectively, concerning the nature of the sign. Non-verbal communication; exo- and endo-semiosis. 3. Criteria for establishing sign typologies. Existing types and sub-types. 4. Symptom (syndrome); signal; index. 5. Symbol; icon. 6. Name (linguistic sign). A revision of concepts. BIBLIOGRAPHY Chandler, Daniel. Semiotics for Beginners. http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Documents/S4B/sem12.html Deely, John. Basics of Semiotics. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1990 Eco, Umberto. A Theory of Semiotics. Bloomington: Indiana U. Press, 1976 (transl. Tratat de semiotic general. Bucureti: Ed. tiinific i Enciclopedic, 1982; O teorie a semioticii. Ed. Trei, 2008) Goffman, Erving. The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life. New York: Anchor, 1959 Halliday, M. A. K. Language as Social Semiotic . The Social Interpretation of Language and Meaning . London: Edward Arnold, 1994 Locke, John (1690). An Essay Concerning Human Understanding. [selections] Chicago: Henry Regnery/Gateway, 1956 Lyons, John. Semantics. Volume I. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1977 [Chapters 1-4] Morris, Charles W. Foundations of the Theory of Signs. Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press, 1938 Ogden, C. K. and I. A. Richards (1923). The Meaning of Meaning. London: Ark (Routledge & Kegan Paul), 1985 Saussure, Ferdinand de. Cours de linguistique gnrale (1916) (transl. Course in General Linguistics and/or Curs de lingvistic general. Iai: Polirom, 1998) Sebeok, Thomas A. An Introduction to Semiotics. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1994 (transl. Semnele: O introducere n semiotic. Bucureti: Humanitas, 2002) semiotics. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semiotics sign. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sign_(semiotics) Symbols.com SEMIOTICS.1 Introduction to semiotics: the history of sign study; structural features of signs; semiosis and representation We live in a world full of signs: we perpetually produce, circulate, and interpret signs, and that is the most natural thing we only become aware of them when something unusual occurs. Virtually any object that stands for (or accounts for) something else is a sign of some sort. Signs come in quite a lot of types (although these may be grouped in less than a dozen basic categories), which are determined mainly by the way that signs are produced, including the material used or the physical medium where the sign is placed. The degree of arbitrariness defining a sign is another criterion. It is practical to think of signs in the broader context of communication; semiotics is, by and large, the study of communication. Let us remember that not only humans communicate, since information exchange is critical for all living systems in nature. From the level of micro-biotic simplicity all the way up to sentient beings, signs are needed to make sense of the world (a must-have for survival). All activities of sign production, processing, and interpretation count as semiosis. A brief history of sign study The term 'semiotics' was first used in English by Henry Stubbes in 1670, as 'semeiotics', a word he
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derived from the Greek term (semeiotikos, i.e. an interpreter of signs) and soon after by John Locke, 1690: Nor is there any thing to be relied upon in Physick but an exact knowledge of medicinal physiology (founded on observation, not principles), semiotics, method of curing, and tried (not excogitated, not commanding) medicines. (An Essay...). Throughout history, people have often wondered about the nature of signs and about the mechanisms of usage and of practicing representation. The first recorded attempts are those made by the founders of Western medicine: semiotics arose with Hippocrates (460-377 BC), who devised it as a branch of medicine dealing with symptoms. Much later, Galen of Pergamus (139-199 AD) furthered and intensified the study of signs in the human body as a part of medical science. An early thinker interested in signs was Aristotle (384-322 BC), who deemed them as consisting of three elements: i. the physical element (e.g. the sound, or the picture); ii. the referent (i.e. the object named); and iii. some significance associated (psychologically or socially) with the sign. St. Augustine (AD 354-430) discriminated between natural signs and conventional signs. He also laid stress on interpretation as an essential part of representation. Much later, John Locke (16321704), in his 1690 book An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, sought an explanation for the way representation and knowledge relate to each other. Yet, semiotics proper only starts with the general advancement of science in modern times. The Swiss linguist and academic Ferdinand de Saussure (18571913) delivered lectures in linguistics at Geneva University; these were published posthumously in Paris in 1916 by several of his former students as Cours de linguistique gnrale. He created a system (which he called smiologie) for the study of mental structures that are (to some extent) universal and therefore mutually exchangeable in terms of using certain signs across cultures. He proposed a dyadic concept of signs: signifiant (i.e. signifier) and signifi (signified), as well as the diachronic and synchronic study of language, and the concepts of langue (abstract language) and parole (speech). Charles Sanders Peirce (1834-1914) was considered by many the most brilliant American mind of his time (yet the massive body of his scientific work is hardly ever 'reader-friendly' to grasp the intricacies of Peircean thought requires an amazing amount of effort). His conception regarding a doctrine of signs was inspired by John Lockes. In contrast to Saussures model of the sign as a selfcontained dyad, Peirce came up with a triadic model: representamen interpretant object. Saussure and Peirce, who developed their theories at the same time without apparently being aware of each others existence and activity, opened up wide the perspective on sign study: most of what has been said on the subject in the one century following their breakthroughs was inspired by their theories (although subsequent theories occasionally conflict with theirs). Charles W. Morris (1901-1979), influenced by Peirce, defined semiotics (itself needed to unify theories of the philosophy of language) as follows: syntax (describing relations occurring between signs) plus semantics (describing the relations between signs and the world they represent) plus pragmatics (describing the relations between signs and their users), in his work Foundations of the Theory of Signs (1938). More recent developments in the theory of signs come from Post-War theoreticians Roman Jakobson (1896-1982); Roland Barthes (1915-80); Thomas A. Sebeok (1920-2001); Umberto Eco and John Lyons (both b. 1932); or Romanians Solomon Marcus (b. 1925) and Mihai Nadin (b. 1938). Structural features of signs Signs are identified as such as they share certain universal structures, for instance, denotation (that which is signified, as in the dictionary definition of a word) and connotation (secondary, or figurative meaning). Another feature that signs share is that of paradigmatic relations vs syntagmatic relations (e.g. paradigm green blue brown etc; syntagms green door, blue skies). Semiosis and representation With regard to the scope of semiotics, a discrimination is essential the one between semiosis (the capacity of a given species to generate and comprehend signs), and representation (the activity based on semiosis that humans alone perform in order to produce knowledge). Semiosis is a matter of biological capacity, while representation is a deliberate and conscious use of signs. Seminar discussion topics: Make sure that you are fully aware of what the subject matter of semiotics is. Saussure's and Peirce's concept of sign, respectively. Structural features of signs (examples). Semiosis and representation. Create sets of signs (several different categories) featured in paradigmatic, and in syntagmatic relations, respectively. Questions and issues of your own choice:

SEMIOTICS.2 General features of signs; zero-signs; the distinctions token/type and denotation/designation; non-verbal communication (nvc) General features of signs There are two elements common to all signs, and one cannot do without the other: the perceptible aistheton (for the senses) and the intelligible noeton (for the reason). Therefore, different theories emerged naming the two parts of a sign signifier (it has an impact on the interpreter's senses) and signified (that is, the concept being represented which is absolutely not the object that the sign represents). At various times and in different places in the Western World, they have been named any of the following: in old Greek, semainon semainomenon; in the European Middle Ages, signans signatum; by Saussure, signifiant signifi (concepts so inextricable and abstract that in 1923, in their book The Meaning of Meaning, C. K. Ogden and I. A. Richards criticized Saussure for neglecting entirely the things for which signs stand); by Peirce, representamen interpretant; by Morris: sign vehicle designatum; and by certain German thinkers, der Signifikant das Signifikat. See also the selection of diagrams below:

Saussure's dyadic conception of signs.

Peirce's triadic conception.

Ogden & Richards' description.

[Your own concept]

Zero-signs There are cases, in various sign systems but mostly in language, when a sign is used in absentia. It should be noted that either the signifier-element, or the signified-element can be missing, but not both. Examples can be a meaningful silence, or displaying signs without the usual/normal/expected coding, respectively. Token/type and denotation(/designation)/reference Token describes individual sign occurrence; type describes same-sign occurrence. (In the sentence
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before this, there are ten tokens, and eight types of linguistic signs.) The distinction is necessary for quantitative analysis in communication. Grasping, then, the true nature of signs depends on grasping the true nature of reference and denotation, which describe the relationship between signs and the world of experience they represent. Whereas denotation is the relationship established between sign and the whole class of objects represented by that sign, reference is established between sign and a particular portion of the world called referent. Denotation is dictionary meaning e.g. A textbook is a bunch of printed paper sheets of equal size bound together in a cover. Reference fails in the absence of a referent, e.g. My textbook on applied linguistics... this syntagm refers if and only if such a thing as my textbook on applied linguistics exists in reality. As such concepts like denotation, designation (to indicate or specify), and reference come from the realm of semantics (i.e. the study of meaning in language), it follows that semiotics itself relies to some extent on semantics. Furthermore, there is a distinction between linguistic semiotics (where the influence of the much more well-established linguistics is prominent), and non-linguistic semiotics: bio-semiotics, medical symptomatology, choreography, musicology and so forth. Non-verbal communication People alone can communicate both verbally (below, verbal communication = vc) and non-verbally (non-verbal communication = nvc). Nvc (which is the implicit way to communicate) takes place inside an individual's body (endosemiosis), or between distinct individuals or groups (exo-semiosis). Endosemiosis occurs on different levels: inside living cells, tissues, organs, or systems, which makes it critical for all metabolic processes and essential in regulating the dosage of hormones, the activity of nervous impulses etc. Endosemiosis is chemical, thermal, mechanical, or electric. Bacterial semiosis, considered dating at least one billion years back, is where all subsequent semiosis is believed to originate. Phyto-semiosis and zoo-semiosis (with the humans' contribution, anthroposemiosis) are part of the more general sign production and use in living beings, bio-semiosis. There are several different categories of exo-semiosis: sound-based communication is either somatic (e.g. buzzing, hissing, barking), or artificial (drumming, clapping, when authors are humans). Visual signs such as silverbacks (i.e. adult gorilla males) chest pounding (sounds present here as well), or predators hairs rising on their backs, or male peacocks display of the tail etc are forms of exo-semiosis meant to send relevant information into the environment. Chemo-semiosis is based on the use of pheromones and natural smells to indicate availability for mating; with humans, such forms of communication are limited now to artificial products like foods and cosmetics, employed to create some form of attraction or another. Artificial forms of non-verbal communication include: logos, emblems, numbers and punctuation, heraldry, astrological and magical signs, technical or scientific pictograms, road or rail traffic signs etc. In Chapter 3. Language as a semiotic system, sub-chapter 3.1 Verbal and non-verbal signalling, of his 1977 work Semantics, John Lyons defines the relation vc / nvc as a problematic one, since (i) nvc is not necessarily communicative (although it may still be informative); (ii) vc has a non-verbal component part. A distinction follows, that of vocal vs non-vocal, since languages are the most important and most highly developed semiotic systems developed by human beings, whereas speech we assume to be more basic or more natural than written language. Speech is more natural than writing since it appeared before writing (also because children naturally learn speech before writing). Finally, vocal reflexes (such as sneezing, yawning, coughing, snoring, hiccuping) are not linguistic, even if they may occur as para-linguistic means for communication (e.g. coughing for warning). Definition of semiosis: action, or influence, which is, or involves, a cooperation of three subjects, such as a sign, its object, and its interpretant, this tri-relative influence not being in any way resolvable into actions between pairs. (Peirce 1907) Seminar discussion topics: The nature of the sign as modeled by De Saussure; Peirce; Ogden and Richards. The vc/nvc relationship, as seen by John Lyons. Comment on Chandler's argument in favor of semiotics (in Semiotics for Beginners): Semiotics can be applied to anything which can be seen as signifying something in other words, to everything which has meaning within a culture. [...] Within the Saussurean tradition, the task of the semiotician is to look beyond the specific texts or practices to the systems of functional distinctions operating within them. The primary goal is to establish the underlying conventions, identifying significant differences and oppositions in an attempt to model the system of categories, relations (syntagmatic and paradigmatic), connotations, distinctions and rules of combination employed. For instance, 'What differentiates a polite from an impolite greeting, a fashionable from an unfashionable garment?' (Culler 1985, 93); the investigation of such practices involves trying to make explicit what is usually only implicit.

SEMIOTICS.3 Sign taxonomies; establishing taxonomic criteria Sign taxonomies Along with the general advance of semiotics as a science of signs came philosophers attempts to give a correct and accurate description of the mass of signs; a number of theories have been created to that purpose, the most subtle and detailed of which, it seems, was Peirces, who produced around sixty major types (actually, over 50,000 in all). Russian-born theoretician Roman Jakobson, as well as Hungarian-born Thomas A. Sebeok, were just two other scholars who had a major contribution in sign taxonomy. At present, there is common use in semiotics of about half a dozen types of signs (which is supposed to make things simpler for us). Fundamental in semiotics are the study of sign behavior, both synchronically (different instances at the same moment) and diachronically (along a time line). A general outlook is based then both on significance and communication relevance. The most common sign types are: symptom, index, icon, symbol, name; of these, only name is typically linguistic, and one other (index) has some connection to language, the remaining other three being basically extra-linguistic in nature (NB: Words are included under 'symbol', but some have argued against this judgement). Apart from these types, there are others: allegory, diagram, emblem, trade mark, metaphor, tag, signature, syndrome etc. Types of signs (Peirce): basic icon, index, symbol (for man); by applying further criteria, close to 60,000: ...Whilst Saussure did not offer a typology of signs, Charles Peirce was a compulsive taxonomist and he offered several logical typologies (Peirce 1931-58, 1.291, 2.243). However, his divisions and subdivisions of signs are extraordinarily elaborate: indeed, he offered the theoretical projection that there could be 59,049 types of signs! Peirce himself noted wryly that this calculation 'threatens a multitude of classes too great to be conveniently carried in one's head', adding that 'we shall, I think, do well to postpone preparation for further divisions until there be a prospect of such a thing being wanted'... (Chandler) What the taxonomy coming next describes is not the signs themselves, but their features. Somewhat strangely, a sign occurrence may often count as several different types (although there is just one sign out there), e.g. the Stars and Stripes (the American flag) which is part-emblem, part-icon. Sebeok suggests that eventually a sign should be regarded and attributed to one type according to its predominant features. Types of signs: Sebeoks description of six types goes well beyond language signs. Symptom (also syndrome). Jakob von Uexkll (1864-1944) studied sign processes with animals, and founded what is now called bio-semiotics. In his 1909 work Umwelt und Innenwelt der Tiere he indicated that symptoms are reflexes that occur in keeping with anatomical structure. The bodies of all species exhibit symptoms; they are normally typical for a given species. Signal. While symptoms are totally spontaneous and based on anatomy, signals are often voluntary (although the source of a signal may not be endowed with reasoning and conscience). Most signals are issued automatically, as a response to various stimuli. Icon. A sign devised to resemble, or to simulate a referent in some way or another. Examples: photographs, onomatopoeia, perfumes that feel like natural smells. Index. A sign indicating or pointing at somebody or something, such as smoke resulting from fire, fingerprints on white paper, or a hand with the index finger pointing, meaning go to. Symbol. A sign that stands for the referent in a most arbitrary way, making thus humans stand out among all sign-using creatures. Examples: a V[ictory]-sign, various colors used to illustrate moods, a heart-shape. Name. It is used to identify member among species, or species among class. Many factors determine and result into many types of names linguistic signs that may also differ from one language, variety, or even context, to another. It is because of its fundamentally arbitrary nature (exception: onomatopoeia) that it may be accepted as a sub-type of symbol. Establishing taxonomic criteria A preliminary as well as a basic rule in creating principles for a taxonomy is adequacy. This can mean virtually a whole lot of things in practice, as both the subject-matter and the context in which it is assessed may vary greatly. Obviously, when it comes to signs, adequacy should imply certain ways of adapting any form of theory to the particular subject-matter signs. Therefore, a set of criteria for making a taxonomy (signs or else) must include, apart from adequacy: cohesion (being consistent throughout your approach) and coherence (being logical in structure); relevance in the context (definitions, describing specific nature etc); a sense of the degree
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of complexity; a sense of integration perhaps in terms of medium or code used; etc. Here is an example of approach to signs, a descriptive structure trying to make use of the principles named above: Taxonomic Principles Intrinsic Nature of Sign (degree of arbitrariness) Size/Complexity of Sign Medium/Code Used etc... highest ... lowest simple compound writing (language) (all media) | | | | | | | | | | Taxonomy Proper symbol ... icon (any basic type) emblem, syndrome... words indices ...

Seminar discussion topics: How exactly do you think categories of signs should be constructed? Why so? Identify and place in correct categories signs as presented to you. Conversely, exemplify with signs according to categories given. Give examples of, and set in contrast: symptoms, signals, icons, indices, symbols, names. Types of signs (from Wikipedia) discuss each, and give examples for all stances of sign below, as appropriate: A sign can denote any of the following: Sign, in astrology: often used to mean the Sun sign Sign or signing, in communication: communicating via hand gestures, such as in sign language. Gang signal Sign, in Tracking (hunting): also known as Spoor (animal); trace evidence left on the ground after passage. A signboard. A sign, in common use, is an indication that a previously observed event is about to occur again Sign, in divination and religion: an omen, an event or occurrence believed to foretell the future Sign, in ontology and spirituality: a coincidence; see synchronicity Sign (linguistics): a combination of a concept and a sound-image described by Ferdinand de Saussure In mathematics, the sign of a number tells whether it is positive or negative. Also, the sign of a permutation tells whether it is the product of an even or odd number of transpositions. Signedness, in computing, is the property that a representation of a number has one bit, the sign bit, which denotes whether the number is non-negative or negative. A number is called signed if it contains a sign bit, otherwise unsigned. See also signed number representation Sign, in biology: an indication of some living thing's presence Medical sign, in medicine: objective evidence of the presence of a disease or disorder, as opposed to a symptom, which is subjective Sign (semiotics): the basic unit of meaning Information sign: a notice that instructs, advises, informs or warns people Traffic sign: a sign that instructs drivers; see also stop sign, speed limit sign, cross walk sign Sign, in a writing system: a basic unit. Similar terms which are more specific are character, letter or grapheme Commercial signage, including flashing signs, such as on a retail store, factory, or theatre Signature, in history: a handwritten depiction observed on a document to show authorship and will (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sign#Types)

SEMIOTICS.4 Symptom (syndrome); signal; index (a) Symptom (syndrome). All living organisms generate symptoms. The biologist Jakob von Uexkll (1864-1944) showed in 1909 that a symptom is a reflex conditioned by the anatomy of the individual ( The Concise Oxford Dictionary: a symptom is a feature which indicates a condition of disease, in particular one apparent to the patient); moreover, such signs concord with species, sex, age, individual build etc. Symptoms are compulsive, spontaneous, and rather non-arbitrary: here, the sign and object signified are connected by a natural bond: biological factor b results into symptom s. A coherent complex of symptoms is a syndrome (COD: a group of symptoms which consistently occur together); and, like symptoms, syndromes have a biological basis. Both 'symptom' (COD, secondary sense: an indication of an undesired situation) and 'syndrome' (COD, secondary sense: a characteristic combination of opinions, emotions, or behaviour) are used also to indicate social, intellectual, or cultural phenomena that are not exclusively, or not at all, related to biology or medicine. For instance, a particular event is deemed 'symptomatic' for a certain state of affairs; or what is known as 'the Stendhal syndrome', 'the Stockholm syndrome' etc. It is typical for symptoms to have different denotations for sender and receiver, as it can be seen resulting from the frequent contradiction between patients' self-administered diagnosis (and medication) versus a clinical specialist's diagnosis. In French theoretician Roland Barthes's terms, le symptme, ce serait le rel apparent, ou l'apparent rel. Early interpretation of symptoms by Greek physicians (such as, notably, Hippocrates) had a contribution in turning the interpretation of patient signs into a distinct branch of classical medicine, having three areas of relevance (and occurring in the exact order shown here): an investigation of relevant past history ( anamnesis); the determination of present status (diagnosis); and an estimation of future development (prognosis). Barthes, inspired by Michel Foucault, suggested caution in equating 'symptom' and 'sign' in the absence of a qualified physician ( COD definition of the medical term 'sign': an indication of a disease detectable by a medical practitioner even if not apparent to the patient different from sign-theuniversal-unit-of-meaning-studied-as-such-by-semiotics). In fact, first-hand interpretation of one's symptoms is often the assumed job of the patient, and is a matter of current practice as mistaken as it sometimes turns out to be (hence resulting into diagnostic inaccuracy and subsequent erroneous medication etc). Thomas A. Sebeok argued against the idea that symptoms are necessarily associated with bad health. (In fact, he wrote, even a 'perfect' state of health has its specific symptomatology your body 'radiates' health, as it were). Like all signs, he noted further, symptoms can be observed and analyzed both by virtue of their paradigmatic and syntagmatic properties. From a paradigmatic standpoint, all symptoms that are associated (in a pathology that is typical for a given illness) form up a class and its subclasses. From a syntagmatic standpoint, there are noticeable symptom associations (such as fever and cough in the common flu); in a clinical context such as preparations for surgery, that implies monitoring the patient either for local/personal diagnostic syntagms (e.g. the assembled readings of heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature etc on the individual chart), or temporal syntagms (such as successive recorded values of blood pressure). Symptoms and associated phenomena such as syndromes and the trio anamnesis diagnosis prognosis give all such semiosis special characteristics, in what the sender (patient) is acting spontaneously, while the receiver (physician) voluntarily; also noteworthy is the distinction and the workings of a peculiar relation between patient and physician in terms of the relevant Innenwelt and, respectively, Umwelt. (Although he was vastly trained in the medical sciences, Charles Sanders Peirce did not deal extensively in his theory with the distinctions symptom (syndrome) diagnosis prognosis. To him, the symptom was simply a sign one of very many types.) Semiosis in illness conditions can be paradoxical and deceiving. A disease of the coronary blood vessels may give pain in the shoulders, arms, back of the head, and jaw of the patient. An amputated limb often 'feels' like a normal one moreover, it may seem to enjoy a full life of sensations. Subjective pain occurring in a missing limb is considered to arise in the memory centers of the brain where such sensations were stored prior to losing that limb. Given that endo-semiosis is a permanent process, a 'semiotic self' is integral part of everybody's endowment, whose job is to manage symptoms as diverse as hunger, thirst, and various types of pain in different ways. In crisis circumstances, the annihilation of such symptoms is achieved, for instance in allowing the crossing of the limit for physical exhaustion, beyond which symptoms typical for fatigue are diminished, or even nullified for a period of time. One doesn't necessarily have to be a physician to realize the importance of correct diagnosis (which is always based on symptoms and signs) all it takes is to be the occasional patient in a difficult condition. In Lord Horder's (a distinguished English diagnostician, early c. 20) judgment, In medicine, the most important thing is diagnosis, the second most important thing is diagnosis, and the third most important thing is diagnosis.
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(b) Signal. What uni-directional signals (traffic and orientation signs, basically) and bi-directional signals (all other signals to which a reply may well follow) have in common is the kinds of object-sign associations intended that sometimes tend to elude the basic arbitrariness principle. For instance, an index-signal such as smoke from a fire, seen happening on a secluded island may be interpreted by a sailor out at sea as a distress signal made by a castaway, or just a fire made by campers... Of course, the uncertainty of the interpreter of the sign cannot (can it?) alter the nature of the sign, but if a sign is a sign just as long as it is interpreted as such by somebody or something, arbitrariness is somewhat different, compared against such clearly-cut instances found with symbols (total) or icons (absent). Signals are produced voluntarily, whether based on intelligence or not; as a rule, they are also issued automatically, in response to various stimuli; when intellect is involved, premeditation may be the case. The message is transmitted and expected to be received, decoded, and some reaction to follow shortly. Virtually any basic type of sign can work as a signal, triggering a reaction on cue (as in acting). It is the context and the intention rather than the intrinsic nature that makes a sign a signal. (c) Index. An index is a sign that refers to a phenomenon or to an entity by pointing at it in three possible ways: referring to its location, time, or class membership (paradigm). For instance, smoke is an index of fire, cough is an index of choking (a symptom). Indices are spontaneous and natural, but they can also be artificial and purposeful, as they are used in language (see the pragmatic category of deixis, which comprises specific categories dealing with time, space, person, and discourse). Deixis is a device for orientation in a system of reference which is permanently re-created in terms of proximity vs. distance against a so-called origo (or 'deictic center' the now, here, or myself of any reference). Examples of linguistic indices (or indexicals): now, today, at present, sometime in April, then, yesterday, tomorrow; tense use with verbs (temporal categories); here, round here, this, these; there, out there, that, those, to come, to go (spatial); me, mine, ourselves; you, your, your Honor; he, she, their Majesties (person); page 7, top of this page, endnote 6, appendix A, above/below this point etc (discourse). It is said that a sign is an index if its signifier and signified (NB: the material one) are contiguous, or the former is a sample of the latter. The reading of signs left by animals is a good skill to have for the hunter or the biologist (not to mention wild animals themselves). The birds Indicator indicator (the greater honeyguide of Mozambique) leading monkeys and humans to a source of honey, and the dance of bees (indicative of a new pollen source) are other examples of non-linguistic indices. Sebeok acknowledges Peirce's originality and substance in the treatment of this type of signs: indices are both irreplaceable and irreducible. Peirce held in this sense that, in discourse, nothing can be stated in the absence of some index. He granted indices a special status among signs, as in their case an interpreter is not absolutely necessary e.g. an index such as an object with a bullet hole in it, where the hole is an indication of the shot, whether somebody cares to make the logical connection or not. Peirce considered an index affected by the object it represents and this is what the two have in common, a certain quality (such as the bullet hole), which is a dynamic quality. It appears, with respect to the way indices work in the minds of people, that the 'here and now' of all cultures lasts 2-3 seconds a semiotic property speculated by some writers when they make pauses in their texts. Anthropometrics, and more specifically, the individual DNA print, are also indexical expressions. Other types of exo-semiosis are even used to an artistic end, such as chemosemiosis (a description of it, actually) by writer Patrick Sskind in his novel Das Parfm... Here is the Peirce-inspired description of indices by John Lyons, in Volume I of his Semantics: Index. Peirce's third main category of signs is even more heterogeneous than the other two [i.e. (i) Symbol and (ii) Icon]. The explicit definitions which he gives of the term index* runs as follows: An index is a sign which would, at once, lose the character which makes it a sign if its object were removed, but would not lose that character if there were no interpretant. (1940: 104). This definition, it will be observed, is so phrased as to make symbols, icons and indices, in theory at least, non-intersecting categories. Peirce goes on to say, by way of illustration, that a piece of mould with a bullet-hole in it is an index . . . . Just how his definition applies to other examples that he gives is, however, unclear: a man's rolling gait is a probable indication that he is a sailor; a sundial or a clock indicates the time of day; a rap on the door is an index and, in general, anything which focuses the attention or startles us is an index (1940:108). So too are demonstrative pronouns, because they call upon the hearer to use his powers of observation, and so establish a real connection between his mind and the object (1940: 110). (Lyons: 105) Seminar discussion topics: Discuss the nature of symptoms/signals/indices in contrastive terms (consider arbitrariness). Identify symptoms/signals/indices in material presented; exemplify symptoms/signals/indices.

SEMIOTICS.5 Symbol; icon (d) Symbol. A symbol is a sign used to replace its referent in an arbitrary, conventional way (actually, it is the most arbitrary of the five types discussed in this presentation). It is generally agreed that the use of symbols singles out humans among all living beings; our exclusive realm of words is fundamentally made of symbols. Nevertheless, 'symbol'/'symbolic'/'symbolism' are terms that experts from many fields of expertise (arts, maths and psychology particularly included) use actively in their professional jargons but not necessarily in their strictly semiotic sense. Although symbolic semiosis is highly characteristic for our species, it may occur with other species as well, for instance certain tail movements with cats, dogs, horses, cattle etc. Peirce's definition of symbol rests upon the conventionality or arbitrariness of the relationship between the sign and its signification. writes Lyons (1977). Saussure also made the arbitrariness of the linguistic sign a basic principle of his theory. Onomatopoeia being an exception to arbitrariness, they are still to some extent marked by convention, given that a particular natural sound is expressed in different languages in slightly different ways, in accordance with the phonological and orthographic conventions of those languages (compare, for instance, Eng. cuckoo; Fr. coucou; Ger. Kuckuck; Rom. cucu etc). Semioticians tend to over-emphasize the linguistic side of symbolic semiosis, under the influence of Saussure and Peirce; from a linguistic standpoint, symbols (whether words or not) have a rather arbitrary nature: no apparent relationship can be established between the written form 'tree' and the spoken form |tri:| on the one hand, and the concept of 'tree', or trees in general, or a particular tree, on the other. Consequently, in the case of most languages, the alphabet, the vocabulary, punctuation, and numbers must be learnt by heart. In Dan Brown's novel The Da Vinci Code (2003), protagonist Robert Langdon is 'Professor of Religious Symbology, Harvard University' a non-existent field of study, either at Harvard or elsewhere. But symbol use, as well as study, has indeed been revived worldwide. In recent years, the discussion has accumulated tremendous weight, stirred by the revival of symbolism associated with social and cultural developments such as the coming of the Millennium, or the commencing of the 'age of Aquarius', or with cultural phenomena as the fiction of Dan Brown and others. Below are some common symbols of international relevance:

Source: http://www.symbols.com/ (e) Icon. An icon is a sign made in such a way as to resemble/simulate, or to directly represent its referent; e.g. onomatopoeia, photographs, artificial smells imitating natural ones. If the symbol is the most arbitrary of signs, the icon is the least so (coincidence or conformity with the referent is only a technical matter, namely of accuracy). Along with indices and symbols, icons are one of the three basic types of signs proposed by Peirce in his paper On a New List of Categories (presented in 1867, published in 1868). There are three sub-types of icons: images, diagrams, and metaphors. Some arguments have been presented in favor of a non-symmetric relationship between icon and its object, based on the pre-eminence of the object over the sign. Sebeok's objection is based on the kind of situation when somebody enjoying fame (based exclusively on pictures) meets his or her fans: who/what is whose (iconic) representation now? [Write an account of such an encounter here:

] Regarding the particular aspect of regression in representation, Sebeok mentions a child who resembles his/her parent of the same sex very well iconically well. But there is also a resemblance to the other parent; also to next-of-kin, to relatives that are more and more distant, . . . and eventually to all humanity, and then why not? to all of existence, in a regression similar to that expressed by hyponymy and semantic fields (see paradigmatic relations); regression can create the sense of infinity in expanse, where the common element, in a progression from one stage to the next, tends to 0, yet never to actually reach that value. Iconic representations also occur in the most natural of manners, with animals and plants; for
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instance certain species of fish/snakes/amphibians/insects resembling (skin, or wing pattern etc) other species that are feared predators (a device meant to ensure protection for the imitator). Such natural forms of mimesis (mimicry) may even cross realm borders (animals plants rocks), as the case is with some insects whose morphology imitates plant tissue, or certain sea animals resembling the appearance of the ocean floor. Masquerades rely on similar imitation principles. Peirce's concept of icon is similar to Plato's (in the sense that the sign imitates the signified), which was explained as mimesis. Iconic signs have been, in recorded history, powerful means used to signify virtually anything their powers are so special that they left indelible marks in the cultures of all places and all times. The diagram subtype may occur in the relation between location/position and social hierarchy, e.g. 'big' people live in big houses (consider also the opposite of this); the head of the family (or director of the board etc) sits at the head of the table and so forth, as the physical positioning of the members of a group in relation to one another is an expression of the relationships established in the group; even a round table is a symbol of a special type of relationship at work in a group of people. Not only communication/perception is based on iconicity, but also reproduction. As a universal rule, a living entity L is duplicated into a new entity L', its offspring. Similarly, in endosemiosis, stem cells are duplicated in order to create some specialized type or another, according to instructions passed on in the genetic code of the individual. Mirror images also create icons; standing between parallel mirrors makes regression tend toward infinity. Duplication is an ongoing process taking place all throughout nature. Seminar topics: discuss specifics of symbols and icons; exemplify; comment on samples. Semiotics.6 Name (f) Name. A name is a linguistic sign (spoken or written) used to identify or to single out a member of a class. Its nature is fundamentally arbitrary: there is no direct, logical connection of the sign to what it denotes or what it refers to (onomatopoeia are exceptions, so they will not actually count in defining word-type signs). By means of extension (based on having the same sign-properties), names can normally be equated with words. Identification via human names is based on variables such as ethnicity, gender, or some form of affiliation. A sign with a unique denotation is a singular sign what Charles Morris called a namor ('linguistic sign'). Along with indicators and descriptors, namors are a type of identifiors. Humans are identified with the help of namors such as an individual (though seldom unique) combination of names (such as your own personal name), or social indices as SSN ('social security number', in use in the US since 1935) or CNP ('cod numeric personal', in use in Romania since ca. 1978), as well as other expressions. But apart from names proper, the vocabulary of a language includes many words that lack a meaning per se; this is basically the distinction content words v. instrument words (articles, prepositions, conjunctions). The idea that words are arbitrary and conventional has assumed forms of scientific expression, as well as artisitc: What's in a name?..., asks Juliet. ...That which we call a rose / By any other name would smell as sweet. (William Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet, II, ii, 1-2). A remarkable idea for a liberal understanding of words is that of John L. Austin (in his ground-breaking book How to Do Things with Words, 1962), who realized that words do not just describe reality, but sometimes they create reality. For Austin, word structures (as 'performatives') have a part in performing events, named 'speech acts' consider the following examples: I now pronounce you man and wife.; I sentence you to one week in jail.; I apologize.; or "Pass me the vinegar, will you?" etc. All animals give off identifiors continuously, thus describing and defining themselves in terms of species, sex and reproductive status, ranking in a hierarchy, mood (which is temporary) etc. Living beings belong to one class or another and consequently make a statement of it this is the differentiating element in identification. The background for expression of identity may vary greatly; the social organization of insects such as bees and ants (the well-being of the group is paramount and so the individual's life is utterly impersonal) differs greatly from that of vertebrates, especially birds and mammals (individuals distinguish themselves, relate to one another, and are given some form of recognition as distinct entities in a hierarchy). Indicators are supposedly incorporated in all messages produced by living entities. An understanding of the relationship signs/names presupposes an understanding of the relationship semiotics/linguistics. Three different cases have been discussed, whereby: the former includes the latter; or viceversa; or, they are more or less the same. The subject matter of semiotics is communication of any kind of message (Jakobson, 1974), or exchange of any type of message and the sign system on which it is based (Sebeok, 1985); as well as the sequence message generating coding transmitting decoding interpreting ; finally, the relevance in semiosis of the context in
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which it takes place. Charles Morris was cautious in connecting semiotics and linguistics; he suggested that the former was supposed to supply the metalanguage that the latter needs. Before him, Ferdinand de Saussure, in the famous introductory passage to his Cours de linguistique gnrale describes linguistics as a part of the general science of signs, 'semiology'. Conversely, the American Charles Sanders Peirce, in a letter written in 1908, testifies to the all-around importance of semiotics; there, he confesses, from the age of 12 or 13 (when he read a treatise of logic and realized the substance of the world of signs) onwards, he could never again read or observe anything in life and society except as a matter of semiosis. Most philosophers agree on the pre-eminence of semiotics over linguistics. The production of verbal and non-verbal signs There are two distinct semiotic modes to humans: one is zoo-semiotic, and the other anthroposemiotic. Sebeok suggests that the beginning of life ca. 3.5 billion years ago coincides with the beginning of semiosis on earth. He also holds that language emerged as a modeling, rather than a communication system; and that language did not replace non-verbal semiosis (did not even diminish its role), but had a contribution to its development (in the life of our species in particular). Any individual is endowed with receptors in such a way as to have access to a certain part of the world by means of specialized perception that is a typical one for any species. Then the Umwelt (outer world) and the Innenwelt (inner world) must be in concord for the individual to survive and thrive (see also exo- and endo-semiosis). A minimal model of semiosis that covers all species of animals is that (see Schneirla, 1965) named 'approach/withdrawal' (A/W), whose function is to make it possible for the individual to have access to food and sex partners (A), and, respectively, to escape in case of danger (W). Such a model connects Innenwelt and Umwelt. In other words, milieu interieur and milieu extrieur as well as their mutual feedback are created and sustained by behavior patterns described by such models. People of genius may have ways of perceiving reality that are out of the ordinary. Albert Einstein declared that his mode of reasoning was fundamentally visual and that language was pretty much irrelevant in his conceptualization; he only used words to be able to pass his theory to the world. Great minds such as Isaac Newton, W. A. Mozart, and Pablo Picasso also created worlds of representation in their minds that were, apparently, more or less devoid of words/language. But for the great majority of people, words and thinking, as well as words and communication are a selfdefining characteristic. Seminar topics: the specifics of names (linguistic signs); what is now your understanding of signs and semiosis? GENERAL SEMINAR AND EXAM TOPICS The subject matter and scope of semiotics Theoreticians and their contributions The sign definition, nature Semiosis and representation The study of signs; characteristic traits Non-verbal communication Types of signs; taxonomic criteria Symptom (syndrome) Signal Index Symbol Icon Name The production of signs

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