Semiotics Definition & Examples

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Semiotics Definition & Examples

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Maggie Franz, Diedra Taylor

What is semiot ics? Learn t he definit ion of semiot ics and it s t heoret ical concept s. Discover more about semiot ic
syst ems and analysis. See semiot ics examples. Updat ed: 11/21/2023
Frequent ly Asked Quest ions
What is an example of semiotics?
Semiot ics is t he st udy of signs. Art historians use semiot ics when t hey st udy t he use of religious iconography in
Renaissance paint ings. Everyday people use semiot ics when t hey t ry to underst and t he meaning of a movie or a
t v show by analyzing t he use of symbols.
What is the best definition of semiotics?
Semiot ics is t he st udy of how words and ot her symbolic syst ems of communicat ion make meaning. T he t erm
originat es from t he Greek word for sign, semeion , which means anyt hing t hat is used to represent or st and in for
somet hing.
What is the main purpose of semiotics?
Semiot ics t heory provides a framework for underst anding how humans use signs to make meaning of t he world
around t hem. An import ant assumpt ion of semiot ics is t hat signs do not convey a meaning t hat is inherent to t he
object being represent ed. For example, t he word "chair" does not have anyt hing to do wit h t he object 's nat ural
propert ies; t here is no innat e reason why "chair" describes t he t hing t hat people sit on. Inst ead, t hrough repeat ed
use in t he English language, "chair" has been made meaningful t hrough it s cont inued associat ion wit h t he concept
of a chair.
What are the three areas in semiotics?
Cognit ive Semiot ics st udies how individuals concept ualize meaning by using sign syst ems. Social and Cult ural
Semiot ics st udies how sign syst ems develop and are used in specific cult ures. Visual Semiot ics focuses on non-
linguist ic visual signs in art and design.
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Table of Contents
What Is Semiot ics?

History of Semiot ics
What Is Semiot ics T heory?
Semiot ic Syst ems
Semiot ics Examples
Lesson Summary
Show
What Is Semiotics?
Semiotics is t he st udy of how words and ot her symbolic syst ems of communicat ion make meaning . T he t erm
originat es from t he Greek word for sign, semeion , which means anyt hing t hat is used to represent or st and in for
somet hing. For example, t he word "chair" is t he sign t hat English speakers use to describe t he t hing wit h four legs
t hat people sit on.
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History of Semiotics
T hough philosophers have been st udying t he relat ionship bet ween t he world and t he symbols used to describe it
for t housands of years, t he t erm semiot ics was first used by early 20t h cent ury followers of t he American
pragmat ist philosopher Charles Sanders Peirce . Influenced by John Locke's st udy of semeiotics in An Essay
Concerning Human Understanding, Peirce out lined a formal met hod for how signs make meaning to people in
specific cont ext s. During t he early 20t h cent ury, Swiss linguist Ferdinand de Saussure also developed a syst em
for st udying signs t hat he called semiology, which similarly out lined a met hod for st udying how language makes
meaning inst ead of merely conveying an already exist ing meaning.

What Is Semiotics Theory?
Semiotics theory provides a framework for underst anding how humans use signs to make meaning of t he world
around t hem. An import ant assumpt ion of semiot ics t heory is t hat signs do not convey a meaning t hat is inherent
to t he object being represent ed. For example, t he word "chair" does not have anyt hing to do wit h t he object 's
nat ural propert ies; t here is no innat e reason why "chair" describes t he t hing t hat people sit on. Inst ead, t hrough
repeat ed use in t he English language, "chair" has been made meaningful t hrough it s cont inued associat ion wit h
t he concept of a chair. Bot h Peirce and Saussure have been influent ial in developing semiot ics t heory.
Peirce's Model of Semiot ics
As a pragmat ist philosopher, Peirce was especially int erest ed in how people use signs to make meaning in
everyday int eract ion. He creat ed a t hree-part schema for cat egorizing t he role t hat signs play in meaning making.
Peirce claimed t hat signs can play t he following roles:
Iconic
Signs t hat resemble what t hey represent . A map bears a graphical resemblance to t he t erritory t hat it
represent s.
Index
Signs t hat have a direct causal relat ionship to what t hey represent . A film might show a close-up image of
t he sun to represent heat . Film wat chers underst and t his meaning because sunny days t end to feel hot t er
t han cloudy days.
Symbolic
Signs t hat have an arbit rary relat ionship to what t hey represent . Except for onomatopoeia, words are
symbolic signs because t hey do not have an inherent relat ionship to what t hey represent .
An index is a sign t hat shows a

causal relat ionship bet ween
t he object and what it
represent s. For example, t he
sun is a sign t hat indexes, or
represent s a causal
relat ionship to, heat .
Saussure's Model of Semiot ics
T hough not in direct communicat ion wit h Peirce, Saussure's semiot ics t heory expands on what Peirce called
symbolic signs and t he arbit rary relat ionship t hat t hey have to what t hey represent . As a linguist , Saussure was
especially int erest ed in words, or linguist ic signs. T his is why Saussure is especially import ant to lit erary t heory.
Specifically, he explained t hat language does not just convey meaning, it makes meaning.

Semiotic Systems
Signs are not int elligible in isolat ion, which is why semiot icians st udy semiotic systems . A syst em is a set of
t hings or procedures t hat organize a framework or a met hod for doing somet hing. A semiot ic syst em is a set of
rules and procedures for making meaning from signs. Scholars have out lined five cat egories of semiot ic syst ems:
Linguist ic Syst ems

T he grammat ical and pragmat ic rules for underst anding words. (i.e., Spanish is a linguist ic semiot ic syst em
and so is somet hing like albur, which is a syst em of word play and double ent endres in Spanish).

Semiotics Examples
Even t hough semiot ics sounds like somet hing t hat only academics care about , t he st udy of signs is a part of
everyday life. For example, people use semiot ics whenever t hey do any of t he following act ivit ies.

Lesson Summary
Semiotics is t he st udy of signs . Semiot ics is useful in a wide range of fields, such as cognit ive science,
ant hropology, and art and design. Semiot ics was first developed in t he early 20t h cent ury by followers of Charles
Sanders Peirce and by Ferdinand de Saussure , bot h of whom out lined syst ems for st udying how signs become
meaningful in specific cont ext s. Saussure explained t he symbolic nat ure of signs by dividing t hem into t wo
st ruct ural component s:

Video Transcript
Defining Semiotics
Have you ever t hought about why cert ain words mean what t hey do? In an age when 'mouse' can mean a lit t le
rodent or a comput er device, it 's easy to quest ion exact ly what words mean and how we make sense of t hem.
T his quest ion of meaning is at t he heart of semiot ics.
Semiotics is t he st udy of sign syst ems. It explores how words and ot her signs make meaning. In semiot ics, a sign
is anyt hing t hat st ands in for somet hing ot her t han it self. T his lesson focuses primarily on linguist ic signs.
T he word 'semiot ics' dat es back to ancient Greece, but it s use in modern linguist ics was propelled in t he 19t h
cent ury wit h t he research of Ferdinand de Saussure. Saussure was a Swiss linguist who cont ribut ed great ly to t he
st udy of semiot ics, also somet imes referred to as semiology.
Scholars of modern linguist ics underst and t hat words do not have innat e meanings. T hat is, when we say t he
word 'rabbit ', it is not because t hose sounds or let t er symbols have anyt hing to do wit h t he qualit ies of a small,
furry herbivore. In fact , t he word, sounds, and let t ers are all unrelat ed to t he creat ure we call rabbit , except t hat
humans have assigned a value to t hem.
Because people have developed t he abilit y to assign meaning wit h words, we are able to describe abst ract
meanings. T his means we have words for t hings t hat we may not be able to act ually see in front of us.
Furt hermore, t he history of a word may not direct ly influence what it means to someone. As an example, we can
use t he word 'cool' wit hout any t hought or reference to t emperat ure. T he usage is separat e from it s history.
For Saussure, language it self makes meaning rat her t han simply conveying meaning. T herefore, our experience is
influenced by t he language we use to describe it . T his meaning-making is why t he t heories of Saussure have
become import ant to lit erary t heory. When we underst and t hat language is a sign syst em and not just a naming of
object s, we read and discuss lit erary works different ly. We are able to analyze t he various meanings embedded in
a t ext and how one t ext influences anot her.
Understanding Meaning-Making
Saussure developed a widely used model of semiot ics. In order to underst and his model, one must recognize t he
difference bet ween what he called la langue (language) and la parole (speech). La langue is t he set of language
rules t hat every speaker underst ands, including how to make sounds into words and words into sent ences. La
parole is t he act ual ut t erance made by a person.
You can t hink of communicat ion like swimming. La langue is t he swimming pool, and la parole is t he wat er. To be
conducive to swimming, wat er needs a st ruct ure to hold it toget her, like speech needs t he st ruct ure of our
language syst em (la langue). T he words we speak (la parole) make sense based only on t he st ruct ure t hat holds
t hem toget her, just like wat er can only be used for swimming if somet hing cont ains it .

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English Courses / Course

Maggie Franz, Diedra Taylor

What is an example of semiotics?

What is the best definition of semiotics?

What is the main purpose of semiotics?

What are the three areas in semiotics?

What Is Semiot ics?

To unlock t his lesson you must be a St udy.com Member.

To unlock t his lesson you must be a St udy.com Member.

What Is Semiotics Theory?

Peirce's Model of Semiot ics

Peirce claimed t hat signs can play t he following roles:

An index is a sign t hat shows a

Saussure's Model of Semiot ics

To unlock t his lesson you must be a St udy.com Member.

Linguist ic Syst ems

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Ch 1. St udy.com ACT ® Test Prep - About ...

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