CINXE.COM

<!DOCTYPE html> <html class="client-nojs vector-feature-language-in-header-enabled vector-feature-language-in-main-page-header-disabled vector-feature-sticky-header-disabled vector-feature-page-tools-pinned-disabled vector-feature-toc-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-main-menu-pinned-disabled vector-feature-limited-width-clientpref-1 vector-feature-limited-width-content-enabled vector-feature-custom-font-size-clientpref-1 vector-feature-appearance-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-night-mode-disabled skin-theme-clientpref-day vector-toc-available" lang="en" dir="ltr"> <head> <meta charset="UTF-8"> <title>Semiotics - Wikiquote</title> <script>(function(){var className="client-js vector-feature-language-in-header-enabled vector-feature-language-in-main-page-header-disabled vector-feature-sticky-header-disabled vector-feature-page-tools-pinned-disabled vector-feature-toc-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-main-menu-pinned-disabled vector-feature-limited-width-clientpref-1 vector-feature-limited-width-content-enabled vector-feature-custom-font-size-clientpref-1 vector-feature-appearance-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-night-mode-disabled skin-theme-clientpref-day vector-toc-available";var cookie=document.cookie.match(/(?:^|; )enwikiquotemwclientpreferences=([^;]+)/);if(cookie){cookie[1].split('%2C').forEach(function(pref){className=className.replace(new RegExp('(^| )'+pref.replace(/-clientpref-\w+$|[^\w-]+/g,'')+'-clientpref-\\w+( |$)'),'$1'+pref+'$2');});}document.documentElement.className=className;}());RLCONF={"wgBreakFrames":false,"wgSeparatorTransformTable":["",""],"wgDigitTransformTable":["",""],"wgDefaultDateFormat": "dmy","wgMonthNames":["","January","February","March","April","May","June","July","August","September","October","November","December"],"wgRequestId":"24c2b9c9-fe77-404d-a030-db881a575734","wgCanonicalNamespace":"","wgCanonicalSpecialPageName":false,"wgNamespaceNumber":0,"wgPageName":"Semiotics","wgTitle":"Semiotics","wgCurRevisionId":3157807,"wgRevisionId":3157807,"wgArticleId":132459,"wgIsArticle":true,"wgIsRedirect":false,"wgAction":"view","wgUserName":null,"wgUserGroups":["*"],"wgCategories":["Philosophy","Semiotics"],"wgPageViewLanguage":"en","wgPageContentLanguage":"en","wgPageContentModel":"wikitext","wgRelevantPageName":"Semiotics","wgRelevantArticleId":132459,"wgIsProbablyEditable":true,"wgRelevantPageIsProbablyEditable":true,"wgRestrictionEdit":[],"wgRestrictionMove":[],"wgNoticeProject":"wikiquote","wgCiteReferencePreviewsActive":true,"wgMediaViewerOnClick":true,"wgMediaViewerEnabledByDefault":true,"wgVisualEditor":{"pageLanguageCode":"en","pageLanguageDir":"ltr", "pageVariantFallbacks":"en"},"wgMFDisplayWikibaseDescriptions":{"search":true,"watchlist":true,"tagline":true,"nearby":true},"wgWMESchemaEditAttemptStepOversample":false,"wgWMEPageLength":10000,"wgCentralAuthMobileDomain":false,"wgEditSubmitButtonLabelPublish":true,"wgULSPosition":"interlanguage","wgULSisCompactLinksEnabled":false,"wgVector2022LanguageInHeader":true,"wgULSisLanguageSelectorEmpty":false,"wgWikibaseItemId":"Q60195","wgCheckUserClientHintsHeadersJsApi":["brands","architecture","bitness","fullVersionList","mobile","model","platform","platformVersion"],"wgSiteNoticeId":"2.3"};RLSTATE={"ext.globalCssJs.user.styles":"ready","site.styles":"ready","user.styles":"ready","ext.globalCssJs.user":"ready","user":"ready","user.options":"loading","skins.vector.search.codex.styles":"ready","skins.vector.styles":"ready","skins.vector.icons":"ready","ext.wikimediamessages.styles":"ready","ext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.noscript":"ready","ext.uls.interlanguage":"ready", "wikibase.client.init":"ready","ext.wikimediaBadges":"ready","ext.dismissableSiteNotice.styles":"ready"};RLPAGEMODULES=["mediawiki.page.media","site","mediawiki.page.ready","skins.vector.js","ext.centralNotice.geoIP","ext.centralNotice.startUp","ext.urlShortener.toolbar","ext.centralauth.centralautologin","mmv.bootstrap","ext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.init","ext.visualEditor.targetLoader","ext.echo.centralauth","ext.eventLogging","ext.wikimediaEvents","ext.navigationTiming","ext.uls.interface","wikibase.client.vector-2022","ext.checkUser.clientHints","wikibase.sidebar.tracking","ext.dismissableSiteNotice"];</script> <script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.loader.impl(function(){return["user.options@12s5i",function($,jQuery,require,module){mw.user.tokens.set({"patrolToken":"+\\","watchToken":"+\\","csrfToken":"+\\"}); }];});});</script> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=ext.dismissableSiteNotice.styles%7Cext.uls.interlanguage%7Cext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.noscript%7Cext.wikimediaBadges%7Cext.wikimediamessages.styles%7Cskins.vector.icons%2Cstyles%7Cskins.vector.search.codex.styles%7Cwikibase.client.init&only=styles&skin=vector-2022"> <script async="" src="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=startup&only=scripts&raw=1&skin=vector-2022"></script> <meta name="ResourceLoaderDynamicStyles" content=""> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=site.styles&only=styles&skin=vector-2022"> <meta name="generator" content="MediaWiki 1.44.0-wmf.4"> <meta name="referrer" content="origin"> <meta name="referrer" content="origin-when-cross-origin"> <meta name="robots" content="max-image-preview:standard"> <meta name="format-detection" content="telephone=no"> <meta property="og:image" content="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg/1200px-Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg"> <meta property="og:image:width" content="1200"> <meta property="og:image:height" content="1800"> <meta property="og:image" content="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg/800px-Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg"> <meta property="og:image:width" content="800"> <meta property="og:image:height" content="1200"> <meta property="og:image" content="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg/640px-Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg"> <meta property="og:image:width" content="640"> <meta property="og:image:height" content="960"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=1120"> <meta property="og:title" content="Semiotics - Wikiquote"> <meta property="og:type" content="website"> <link rel="preconnect" href="//upload.wikimedia.org"> <link rel="alternate" media="only screen and (max-width: 640px)" href="//en.m.wikiquote.org/wiki/Semiotics"> <link rel="alternate" type="application/x-wiki" title="Edit" href="/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&action=edit"> <link rel="icon" href="/static/favicon/wikiquote.ico"> <link rel="search" type="application/opensearchdescription+xml" href="/w/rest.php/v1/search" title="Wikiquote (en)"> <link rel="EditURI" type="application/rsd+xml" href="//en.wikiquote.org/w/api.php?action=rsd"> <link rel="canonical" href="https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Semiotics"> <link rel="license" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en"> <link rel="alternate" type="application/atom+xml" title="Wikiquote Atom feed" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:RecentChanges&feed=atom"> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//meta.wikimedia.org" /> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//login.wikimedia.org"> </head> <body class="skin--responsive skin-vector skin-vector-search-vue mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-0 ns-subject mw-editable page-Semiotics rootpage-Semiotics skin-vector-2022 action-view"><a class="mw-jump-link" href="#bodyContent">Jump to content</a> <div class="vector-header-container"> <header class="vector-header mw-header"> <div class="vector-header-start"> <nav class="vector-main-menu-landmark" aria-label="Site"> <div id="vector-main-menu-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-main-menu-dropdown vector-button-flush-left vector-button-flush-right" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-main-menu-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-main-menu-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Main menu" > <label id="vector-main-menu-dropdown-label" for="vector-main-menu-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-menu mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-menu"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Main menu</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-main-menu-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> <div id="vector-main-menu" class="vector-main-menu vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-main-menu-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-unpinned" data-feature-name="main-menu-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-main-menu" data-pinned-container-id="vector-main-menu-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-main-menu-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Main menu</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-main-menu.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-main-menu.unpin">hide</button> </div> <div id="p-navigation" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-navigation" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Navigation </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="n-mainpage-description" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Main_Page" title="Visit the main page [z]" accesskey="z"><span>Main page</span></a></li><li id="n-portal" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikiquote:Community_Portal" title="About the project, what you can do, where to find things"><span>Community portal</span></a></li><li id="n-Village-pump" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikiquote:Village_pump"><span>Village pump</span></a></li><li id="n-recentchanges" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChanges" title="A list of recent changes in the wiki [r]" accesskey="r"><span>Recent changes</span></a></li><li id="n-randompage" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:Random" title="Load a random page [x]" accesskey="x"><span>Random page</span></a></li><li id="n-help" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Help:Contents" title="The place to find out"><span>Help</span></a></li><li id="n-Contact-Wikiquote" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikiquote:Contact_us"><span>Contact Wikiquote</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-Wikiquote_links" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-Wikiquote_links" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Wikiquote links </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="n-People" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/List_of_people_by_name"><span>People</span></a></li><li id="n-Literary-works" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/List_of_literary_works"><span>Literary works</span></a></li><li id="n-Proverbs" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Category:Proverbs"><span>Proverbs</span></a></li><li id="n-Films" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/List_of_films"><span>Films</span></a></li><li id="n-TV-shows" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/List_of_television_shows"><span>TV shows</span></a></li><li id="n-Themes" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Category:Themes"><span>Themes</span></a></li><li id="n-Categories" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Category:Categories"><span>Categories</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <a href="/wiki/Main_Page" class="mw-logo"> <img class="mw-logo-icon" src="/static/images/icons/wikiquote.svg" alt="" aria-hidden="true" height="50" width="50"> <span class="mw-logo-container skin-invert"> <img class="mw-logo-wordmark" alt="Wikiquote" src="/static/images/mobile/copyright/wikiquote-wordmark-fr.svg" style="width: 4.8125em; height: 2.5em;"> </span> </a> </div> <div class="vector-header-end"> <div id="p-search" role="search" class="vector-search-box-vue vector-search-box-collapses vector-search-box-show-thumbnail vector-search-box-auto-expand-width vector-search-box"> <a href="/wiki/Special:Search" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only search-toggle" title="Search Wikiquote [f]" accesskey="f"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-search mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-search"></span> <span>Search</span> </a> <div class="vector-typeahead-search-container"> <div class="cdx-typeahead-search cdx-typeahead-search--show-thumbnail cdx-typeahead-search--auto-expand-width"> <form action="/w/index.php" id="searchform" class="cdx-search-input cdx-search-input--has-end-button"> <div id="simpleSearch" class="cdx-search-input__input-wrapper" data-search-loc="header-moved"> <div class="cdx-text-input cdx-text-input--has-start-icon"> <input class="cdx-text-input__input" type="search" name="search" placeholder="Search Wikiquote" aria-label="Search Wikiquote" autocapitalize="sentences" title="Search Wikiquote [f]" accesskey="f" id="searchInput" > <span class="cdx-text-input__icon cdx-text-input__start-icon"></span> </div> <input type="hidden" name="title" value="Special:Search"> </div> <button class="cdx-button cdx-search-input__end-button">Search</button> </form> </div> </div> </div> <nav class="vector-user-links vector-user-links-wide" aria-label="Personal tools"> <div class="vector-user-links-main"> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-preferences" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-userpage" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <nav class="vector-appearance-landmark" aria-label="Appearance"> <div id="vector-appearance-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown " title="Change the appearance of the page's font size, width, and color" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-appearance-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-appearance-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Appearance" > <label id="vector-appearance-dropdown-label" for="vector-appearance-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-appearance mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-appearance"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Appearance</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-appearance-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-notifications" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-overflow" class="vector-menu mw-portlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-sitesupport-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="//donate.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FundraiserRedirector?utm_source=donate&utm_medium=sidebar&utm_campaign=C13_en.wikiquote.org&uselang=en" class=""><span>Donate</span></a> </li> <li id="pt-createaccount-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=Semiotics" title="You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory" class=""><span>Create account</span></a> </li> <li id="pt-login-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&returnto=Semiotics" title="You are encouraged to log in; however, it is not mandatory [o]" accesskey="o" class=""><span>Log in</span></a> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> <div id="vector-user-links-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-user-menu vector-button-flush-right vector-user-menu-logged-out" title="More options" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-user-links-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-user-links-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Personal tools" > <label id="vector-user-links-dropdown-label" for="vector-user-links-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-ellipsis mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-ellipsis"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Personal tools</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="p-personal" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-personal user-links-collapsible-item" title="User menu" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-sitesupport" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="//donate.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FundraiserRedirector?utm_source=donate&utm_medium=sidebar&utm_campaign=C13_en.wikiquote.org&uselang=en"><span>Donate</span></a></li><li id="pt-createaccount" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=Semiotics" title="You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-userAdd mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-userAdd"></span> <span>Create account</span></a></li><li id="pt-login" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&returnto=Semiotics" title="You are encouraged to log in; however, it is not mandatory [o]" accesskey="o"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-logIn mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-logIn"></span> <span>Log in</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-user-menu-anon-editor" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-user-menu-anon-editor" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Pages for logged out editors <a href="/wiki/Help:Introduction" aria-label="Learn more about editing"><span>learn more</span></a> </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-anoncontribs" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyContributions" title="A list of edits made from this IP address [y]" accesskey="y"><span>Contributions</span></a></li><li id="pt-anontalk" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyTalk" title="Discussion about edits from this IP address [n]" accesskey="n"><span>Talk</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </header> </div> <div class="mw-page-container"> <div class="mw-page-container-inner"> <div class="vector-sitenotice-container"> <div id="siteNotice"><div id="mw-dismissablenotice-anonplace"></div><script>(function(){var node=document.getElementById("mw-dismissablenotice-anonplace");if(node){node.outerHTML="\u003Cdiv class=\"mw-dismissable-notice\"\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\"mw-dismissable-notice-close\"\u003E[\u003Ca tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\"\u003Ehide\u003C/a\u003E]\u003C/div\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\"mw-dismissable-notice-body\"\u003E\u003C!-- CentralNotice --\u003E\u003Cdiv id=\"localNotice\" data-nosnippet=\"\"\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\"anonnotice\" lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"position:absolute; z-index:100; right:100px; top:-0px;\" class=\"metadata\" id=\"donate\"\u003E\n\u003Cdiv style=\"text-align:right; font-size:80%\"\u003E\u003Ci\u003EYour \u003Cb\u003E\u003Ca href=\"https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fundraising\" class=\"extiw\" title=\"wikimedia:Fundraising\"\u003Econtinued donations\u003C/a\u003E\u003C/b\u003E keep Wikiquote running!\u003C/i\u003E\n\u003C/div\u003E\u003C/div\u003E\n\u003C/div\u003E\u003C/div\u003E\u003C/div\u003E\u003C/div\u003E";}}());</script></div> </div> <div class="vector-column-start"> <div class="vector-main-menu-container"> <div id="mw-navigation"> <nav id="mw-panel" class="vector-main-menu-landmark" aria-label="Site"> <div id="vector-main-menu-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div class="vector-sticky-pinned-container"> <nav id="mw-panel-toc" aria-label="Contents" data-event-name="ui.sidebar-toc" class="mw-table-of-contents-container vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-toc-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> <div id="vector-toc" class="vector-toc vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-toc-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-pinned" data-feature-name="toc-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-toc" > <h2 class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Contents</h2> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-toc.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-toc.unpin">hide</button> </div> <ul class="vector-toc-contents" id="mw-panel-toc-list"> <li id="toc-mw-content-text" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a href="#" class="vector-toc-link"> <div class="vector-toc-text">Beginning</div> </a> </li> <li id="toc-Quotes" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Quotes"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1</span> <span>Quotes</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Quotes-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-External_links" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#External_links"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2</span> <span>External links</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-External_links-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div class="mw-content-container"> <main id="content" class="mw-body"> <header class="mw-body-header vector-page-titlebar"> <nav aria-label="Contents" class="vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-titlebar-toc vector-button-flush-left" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Toggle the table of contents" > <label id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-label" for="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-listBullet mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-listBullet"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Toggle the table of contents</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <h1 id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading mw-first-heading"><span class="mw-page-title-main">Semiotics</span></h1> <div id="p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown mw-portlet mw-portlet-lang" > <input type="checkbox" id="p-lang-btn-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox mw-interlanguage-selector" aria-label="Go to an article in another language. Available in 3 languages" > <label id="p-lang-btn-label" for="p-lang-btn-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--action-progressive mw-portlet-lang-heading-3" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-language-progressive mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-language-progressive"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">3 languages</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-et mw-list-item"><a href="https://et.wikiquote.org/wiki/Semiootika" title="Semiootika – Estonian" lang="et" hreflang="et" data-title="Semiootika" data-language-autonym="Eesti" data-language-local-name="Estonian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Eesti</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-it mw-list-item"><a href="https://it.wikiquote.org/wiki/Semiotica" title="Semiotica – Italian" lang="it" hreflang="it" data-title="Semiotica" data-language-autonym="Italiano" data-language-local-name="Italian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Italiano</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-pl mw-list-item"><a href="https://pl.wikiquote.org/wiki/Semiotyka" title="Semiotyka – Polish" lang="pl" hreflang="pl" data-title="Semiotyka" data-language-autonym="Polski" data-language-local-name="Polish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Polski</span></a></li> </ul> <div class="after-portlet after-portlet-lang"><span class="wb-langlinks-edit wb-langlinks-link"><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Special:EntityPage/Q60195#sitelinks-wikiquote" title="Edit interlanguage links" class="wbc-editpage">Edit links</a></span></div> </div> </div> </div> </header> <div class="vector-page-toolbar"> <div class="vector-page-toolbar-container"> <div id="left-navigation"> <nav aria-label="Namespaces"> <div id="p-associated-pages" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs mw-portlet mw-portlet-associated-pages" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-nstab-main" class="selected vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Semiotics" title="View the content page [c]" accesskey="c"><span>Page</span></a></li><li id="ca-talk" class="new vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Talk:Semiotics&action=edit&redlink=1" rel="discussion" class="new" title="Discussion about the content page (page does not exist) [t]" accesskey="t"><span>Discussion</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="vector-variants-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown emptyPortlet" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-variants-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-variants-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Change language variant" > <label id="vector-variants-dropdown-label" for="vector-variants-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">English</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="p-variants" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-variants emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> <div id="right-navigation" class="vector-collapsible"> <nav aria-label="Views"> <div id="p-views" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs mw-portlet mw-portlet-views" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-view" class="selected vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Semiotics"><span>Read</span></a></li><li id="ca-edit" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&action=edit" title="Edit this page [e]" accesskey="e"><span>Edit</span></a></li><li id="ca-history" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&action=history" title="Past revisions of this page [h]" accesskey="h"><span>View history</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> <nav class="vector-page-tools-landmark" aria-label="Page tools"> <div id="vector-page-tools-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-tools-dropdown" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-tools-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-tools-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Tools" > <label id="vector-page-tools-dropdown-label" for="vector-page-tools-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Tools</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-page-tools-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> <div id="vector-page-tools" class="vector-page-tools vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-page-tools-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-unpinned" data-feature-name="page-tools-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-page-tools" data-pinned-container-id="vector-page-tools-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-page-tools-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Tools</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-page-tools.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-page-tools.unpin">hide</button> </div> <div id="p-cactions" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-cactions emptyPortlet vector-has-collapsible-items" title="More options" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Actions </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-more-view" class="selected vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Semiotics"><span>Read</span></a></li><li id="ca-more-edit" class="vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&action=edit" title="Edit this page [e]" accesskey="e"><span>Edit</span></a></li><li id="ca-more-history" class="vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&action=history"><span>View history</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-tb" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-tb" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> General </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="t-whatlinkshere" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:WhatLinksHere/Semiotics" title="A list of all wiki pages that link here [j]" accesskey="j"><span>What links here</span></a></li><li id="t-recentchangeslinked" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChangesLinked/Semiotics" rel="nofollow" title="Recent changes in pages linked from this page [k]" accesskey="k"><span>Related changes</span></a></li><li id="t-upload" class="mw-list-item"><a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:UploadWizard" title="Upload files [u]" accesskey="u"><span>Upload file</span></a></li><li id="t-specialpages" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:SpecialPages" title="A list of all special pages [q]" accesskey="q"><span>Special pages</span></a></li><li id="t-permalink" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&oldid=3157807" title="Permanent link to this revision of this page"><span>Permanent link</span></a></li><li id="t-info" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&action=info" title="More information about this page"><span>Page information</span></a></li><li id="t-cite" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CiteThisPage&page=Semiotics&id=3157807&wpFormIdentifier=titleform" title="Information on how to cite this page"><span>Cite this page</span></a></li><li id="t-urlshortener" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UrlShortener&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikiquote.org%2Fwiki%2FSemiotics"><span>Get shortened URL</span></a></li><li id="t-urlshortener-qrcode" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:QrCode&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikiquote.org%2Fwiki%2FSemiotics"><span>Download QR code</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-coll-print_export" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-coll-print_export" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Print/export </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="coll-create_a_book" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:Book&bookcmd=book_creator&referer=Semiotics"><span>Create a book</span></a></li><li id="coll-download-as-rl" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:DownloadAsPdf&page=Semiotics&action=show-download-screen"><span>Download as PDF</span></a></li><li id="t-print" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&printable=yes" title="Printable version of this page [p]" accesskey="p"><span>Printable version</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-wikibase-otherprojects" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-wikibase-otherprojects" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> In other projects </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li class="wb-otherproject-link wb-otherproject-commons mw-list-item"><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Semiotics" hreflang="en"><span>Wikimedia Commons</span></a></li><li class="wb-otherproject-link wb-otherproject-wikipedia mw-list-item"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semiotics" hreflang="en"><span>Wikipedia</span></a></li><li id="t-wikibase" class="wb-otherproject-link wb-otherproject-wikibase-dataitem mw-list-item"><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Special:EntityPage/Q60195" title="Link to connected data repository item [g]" accesskey="g"><span>Wikidata item</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-column-end"> <div class="vector-sticky-pinned-container"> <nav class="vector-page-tools-landmark" aria-label="Page tools"> <div id="vector-page-tools-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> </div> </nav> <nav class="vector-appearance-landmark" aria-label="Appearance"> <div id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> <div id="vector-appearance" class="vector-appearance vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-appearance-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-pinned" data-feature-name="appearance-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-appearance" data-pinned-container-id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-appearance-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Appearance</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.unpin">hide</button> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div id="bodyContent" class="vector-body" aria-labelledby="firstHeading" data-mw-ve-target-container> <div class="vector-body-before-content"> <div class="mw-indicators"> </div> <div id="siteSub" class="noprint">From Wikiquote</div> </div> <div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle"></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><div class="mw-content-ltr mw-parser-output" lang="en" dir="ltr"><p><b><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semiotics" class="extiw" title="w:Semiotics">Semiotics</a></b>, also called <b>semiotic studies</b> (or in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_de_Saussure" class="extiw" title="w:Ferdinand de Saussure">Saussurean</a> tradition <b>semiology</b>), is the study of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sign_(semiotics)" class="extiw" title="w:Sign (semiotics)">signs</a> and sign processes (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/semiosis" class="extiw" title="w:semiosis">semiosis</a>), indication, designation, likeness, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/analogy" class="extiw" title="w:analogy">analogy</a>, <a href="/wiki/Metaphor" class="mw-redirect" title="Metaphor">metaphor</a>, <a href="/wiki/Symbol" class="mw-redirect" title="Symbol">symbolism</a>, signification, and <a href="/wiki/Communication" title="Communication">communication</a>. Semiotics is closely related to the field of <a href="/wiki/Linguistics" title="Linguistics">linguistics</a>, which, for its part, studies the structure and meaning of <a href="/wiki/Language" title="Language">language</a> more specifically. Semiotics is often divided into three branches: </p> <ul><li><b><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semantics" class="extiw" title="w:Semantics">Semantics</a></b>: Relation between signs and the things to which they refer; their <i>denotata</i>, or <a href="/wiki/Meaning" title="Meaning">meaning</a></li> <li><b><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syntax" class="extiw" title="w:Syntax">Syntactics</a></b>: Relations among signs in formal structures</li> <li><b><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pragmatics" class="extiw" title="w:Pragmatics">Pragmatics</a></b>: Relation between signs and the effects they have on the people who use them</li></ul> <dl><dd>See also: <dl><dd><b><a href="/wiki/Sign" title="Sign">Sign</a></b></dd> <dd><b><a href="/wiki/Meaning" title="Meaning">Meaning</a></b></dd> <dd><b><a href="/wiki/Irony" title="Irony">Irony</a></b></dd> <dd><a href="/wiki/Category:Semiotics" title="Category:Semiotics">Listing of other major concepts in <b>Semiotics</b></a></dd></dl></dd></dl> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Quotes">Quotes</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Quotes"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Liberty_Enlightening_the_World,_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg/220px-Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="330" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg/330px-Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg/440px-Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg 2x" data-file-width="2592" data-file-height="3888" /></a><figcaption>Perhaps we are, somewhere, the deep impulse which generates semiosis. And yet we recognize ourselves only as semiosis in <a href="/wiki/Progress" title="Progress">progress</a>, signifying <a href="/wiki/Systems" class="mw-redirect" title="Systems">systems</a> and <a href="/wiki/Communicational" class="mw-redirect" title="Communicational">communicational</a> processes. ~ <a href="/wiki/Umberto_Eco" title="Umberto Eco">Umberto Eco</a> </figcaption></figure> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Roerich_symbol_(bold,_red).svg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Roerich_symbol_%28bold%2C_red%29.svg/220px-Roerich_symbol_%28bold%2C_red%29.svg.png" decoding="async" width="220" height="220" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Roerich_symbol_%28bold%2C_red%29.svg/330px-Roerich_symbol_%28bold%2C_red%29.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Roerich_symbol_%28bold%2C_red%29.svg/440px-Roerich_symbol_%28bold%2C_red%29.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="16" data-file-height="16" /></a><figcaption>I do not recommend any legislative action against <a href="/wiki/Hermeneutics" title="Hermeneutics">hermeneutics</a>. ~ <a href="/wiki/Ernest_Gellner" title="Ernest Gellner">Ernest Gellner</a> </figcaption></figure> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Sahasrara.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Sahasrara.svg/220px-Sahasrara.svg.png" decoding="async" width="220" height="220" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Sahasrara.svg/330px-Sahasrara.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Sahasrara.svg/440px-Sahasrara.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="450" data-file-height="450" /></a><figcaption>All <a href="/wiki/Language" title="Language">language</a> can be considered as <a href="/wiki/Names" title="Names">names</a> for unspeakable <a href="/wiki/Entities" class="mw-redirect" title="Entities">entities</a> on the objective level, be it <a href="/wiki/Things" class="mw-redirect" title="Things">things</a> or <a href="/wiki/Feelings" title="Feelings">feelings</a>, or as <a href="/wiki/Names" title="Names">names</a> of relations. ~ <a href="/wiki/Alfred_Korzybski" title="Alfred Korzybski">Alfred Korzybski</a> </figcaption></figure> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Quark_structure_omega.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Quark_structure_omega.svg/220px-Quark_structure_omega.svg.png" decoding="async" width="220" height="220" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Quark_structure_omega.svg/330px-Quark_structure_omega.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Quark_structure_omega.svg/440px-Quark_structure_omega.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="420" data-file-height="420" /></a><figcaption>It is important to <a href="/wiki/Understand" class="mw-redirect" title="Understand">understand</a> what I mean by <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semiosis" class="extiw" title="w:Semiosis">semiosis</a></i>. ~ <a href="/wiki/Charles_Sanders_Peirce" title="Charles Sanders Peirce">Charles Sanders Peirce</a> </figcaption></figure> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Rainbow_droplet_630x441.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Rainbow_droplet_630x441.jpg/220px-Rainbow_droplet_630x441.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="154" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Rainbow_droplet_630x441.jpg/330px-Rainbow_droplet_630x441.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Rainbow_droplet_630x441.jpg/440px-Rainbow_droplet_630x441.jpg 2x" data-file-width="630" data-file-height="441" /></a><figcaption>The entire <a href="/wiki/Universe" title="Universe">universe</a> is perfused with <a href="/wiki/Signs" class="mw-disambig" title="Signs">signs</a>, if it is not composed exclusively of signs. ~ <a href="/wiki/Charles_Sanders_Peirce" title="Charles Sanders Peirce">Charles Sanders Peirce</a> </figcaption></figure> <ul><li><b>A <a href="/wiki/Symbol" class="mw-redirect" title="Symbol">symbol</a> is always in general and, however precise its translation, an <a href="/wiki/Artist" title="Artist">artist</a> can restore to it only its movement: there is no <a href="/wiki/Word" class="mw-redirect" title="Word">word</a>-for-word rendering.</b> Moreover, nothing is harder to understand than a symbolic work. <b>A symbol always transcends the one who makes use of it and makes him say in <a href="/wiki/Reality" title="Reality">reality</a> more than he is <a href="/wiki/Aware" class="mw-redirect" title="Aware">aware</a> of expressing.</b> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Albert_Camus" title="Albert Camus">Albert Camus</a>, in <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Myth_of_Sisyphus" class="extiw" title="w:The Myth of Sisyphus">The Myth of Sisyphus</a></i> (1942), Appendix: <a href="/wiki/Hope" title="Hope">Hope</a> and <a href="/wiki/Absurdism" title="Absurdism">the Absurd</a> in the work of <a href="/wiki/Franz_Kafka" title="Franz Kafka">Franz Kafka</a></li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li><b>Semiotics is in <a href="/wiki/Principle" class="mw-redirect" title="Principle">principle</a> the discipline studying <a href="/wiki/All" class="mw-redirect" title="All">everything</a> which can be used in order to <a href="/wiki/Lie" class="mw-redirect" title="Lie">lie</a>.</b> If something cannot be used to tell a lie, conversely it cannot be used to tell the <a href="/wiki/Truth" title="Truth">truth</a>: it cannot in fact be used "to tell" at all. <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Umberto_Eco" title="Umberto Eco">Umberto Eco</a>, in <i>Trattato di semiotica generale</i> (1975), translated as <i>A Theory of Semiotics</i> (1976)</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li>The <a href="/wiki/Sign" title="Sign">sign</a> is usually considered as a correlation between a signifier and a signified (or between expression and content) and therefore as an action between pairs.<b> Semiosis is, according to <a href="/wiki/Charles_Sanders_Peirce" title="Charles Sanders Peirce">Peirce</a>, "an action, or influence, which is, or involves, an operation of three subjects, such as a sign, its object, and its interpretant, this tri-relative influence not being in any way resolvable into an action between pairs".</b> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Umberto_Eco" title="Umberto Eco">Umberto Eco</a>, in <i>Semiotics and the Philosophy of Language</i> (1984), [O] : Introduction, O.I.</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li><b>The <a href="/wiki/Principle" class="mw-redirect" title="Principle">principle</a> of interpretation says that "a sign is something by knowing which we know something more" </b>( <a href="/wiki/Charles_Sanders_Peirce" title="Charles Sanders Peirce">Peirce</a>). <b>The Peircean idea of semiosis is the idea of an <a href="/wiki/Infinite" class="mw-redirect" title="Infinite">infinite</a> process of interpretation.</b> It seems that the <a href="/wiki/Symbolic" class="mw-redirect" title="Symbolic">symbolic</a> mode is the paramount example of this possibility. <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Umberto_Eco" title="Umberto Eco">Umberto Eco</a>, in <i>Semiotics and the Philosophy of Language</i> (1984), [O] : Introduction, 0.2</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li><b>When semiotics posits such concepts as 'sign', it does not act like a science; it acts like philosophy when it posits such abstractions as subject, good and evil, truth or revolution.</b> Now, a philosophy is not a science, because its assertions cannot be empirically tested … <b>Philosophical entities exist only insofar as they have been philosophically <i>posited</i>. Outside their philosophical framework, the empirical data that a philosophy organizes lose every possible unity and cohesion.</b> <br /> To walk, to make love, to sleep, to refrain from doing something, to give food to someone else, to eat roast beef on Friday — each is either a physical event or the absence of a physical event, or a relation between two or more physical events. However, each becomes an instance of good, bad, or neutral behavior <i>within a given philosophical framework</i>. Outside such a framework, to eat roast beef is radically different from making love, and making love is always the same sort of activity independent of the legal status of the partners. From a given philosophical point of view, both to eat roast beef on Friday and to make love to <i>x</i> can become instances of '<a href="/wiki/Sin" title="Sin">sin</a>', whereas both to give food to someone and to make love to <i>у</i> can become instances of <a href="/wiki/Virtuous" class="mw-redirect" title="Virtuous">virtuous</a> <a href="/wiki/Action" title="Action">action</a>. <br /> Good or bad are theoretical stipulations according to which, by a philosophical decision, many scattered instances of the most different facts or acts become <i>the same thing</i>. It is interesting to remark that also the notions of 'object', 'phenomenon', or 'natural kind', as used by the natural sciences, share the same philosophical nature. This is certainly not the case of specific semiotics or of a human science such as cultural anthropology. <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Umberto_Eco" title="Umberto Eco">Umberto Eco</a>, in <i>Semiotics and the Philosophy of Language</i> (1984), [O] : Introduction, 0.6</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li><b>As subjects, we are what the shape of the world produced by signs makes us become. <br /> Perhaps we are, somewhere, the deep impulse which generates semiosis. And yet we recognize ourselves only as semiosis in <a href="/wiki/Progress" title="Progress">progress</a>, signifying systems and communicational processes.</b> The map of semiosis, as defined at a given stage of historical development (with the debris carried over from previous semiosis), tells us who we are and what (or how) we think. <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Umberto_Eco" title="Umberto Eco">Umberto Eco</a>, in <i>Semiotics and the Philosophy of Language</i> (1984), [I] Signs, 1.13 : Sign and subject</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li><b>I do not recommend any <a href="/wiki/Law" title="Law">legislative</a> <a href="/wiki/Action" title="Action">action</a> against <a href="/wiki/Hermeneutics" title="Hermeneutics">hermeneutics</a>.</b> I am a <a href="/wiki/Liberal" class="mw-redirect" title="Liberal">liberal</a> person opposed to all unnecessary state limitation of individual <a href="/wiki/Liberty" title="Liberty">liberties</a>. <b>Hermeneutics between consenting adults should not, in my view, be the object of any statutory restrictions.</b> I know, only too well, what it would entail. Hermeneutic <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speakeasy" class="extiw" title="w:Speakeasy">speakeasies</a> would spring up all over the place, smuggled Thick Descriptions would be brought in by the lorry-load from Canada by the Mafia, blood and thick <a href="/wiki/Meaning" title="Meaning">meaning</a> would clot in the gutter as rival gangs of semiotic bootleggers slugged it out in a series of bloody shoot-outs and ambushes. Addicts would be subject to blackmail. <b>Consumption of deep meanings and its attendant psychic consequences would in no way diminsh, but the <a href="/wiki/Criminal" class="mw-redirect" title="Criminal">criminal</a> <a href="/wiki/World" title="World">world</a> would benefit, and the whole fabric of civil <a href="/wiki/Society" title="Society">society</a> would be put under severe strain.</b> Never! <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Ernest_Gellner" title="Ernest Gellner">Ernest Gellner</a>, in <i>Anthropology and Politics</i> (1995)</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li><b>The only link between the verbal and objective world is exclusively structural, necessitating the conclusion that the only content of all "<a href="/wiki/Knowledge" title="Knowledge">knowledge</a>" is structural. Now structure can be considered as a complex of <a href="/wiki/Relationship" title="Relationship">relations</a>, and ultimately as multi-dimensional <a href="/wiki/Order" title="Order">order</a>.</b> From this point of view, all <a href="/wiki/Language" title="Language">language</a> can be considered as <a href="/wiki/Names" title="Names">names</a> for unspeakable entities on the objective level, be it things or <a href="/wiki/Feelings" title="Feelings">feelings</a>, or as names of relations. In <a href="/wiki/Fact" title="Fact">fact</a>... we find that an object represents an abstraction of a low order produced by our nervous system as the result of a sub-microscopic events acting as stimuli upon the nervous <a href="/wiki/System" title="System">system</a>. <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Alfred_Korzybski" title="Alfred Korzybski">Alfred Korzybski</a>, in <i>Science and Sanity</i> (1933), p. 20</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li><b>A <a href="/wiki/Sign" title="Sign">sign</a> is in a conjoint relation to the thing denoted and to the <a href="/wiki/Mind" title="Mind">mind</a>.</b> If this triple relation is not of a degenerate species, the sign is related to its object only in consequence of a mental association, and depends upon a <a href="/wiki/Habit" class="mw-redirect" title="Habit">habit</a>. <b>Such signs are always abstract and general, because habits are general <a href="/wiki/Rules" title="Rules">rules</a> to which the organism has become subjected.</b> They are, for the most part, conventional or arbitrary. They include all general words, the main body of <a href="/wiki/Speech" title="Speech">speech</a>, and any mode of conveying a <a href="/wiki/Judgment" title="Judgment">judgment</a>. For the sake of brevity I will call them <i>tokens</i>. <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Charles_Sanders_Peirce" title="Charles Sanders Peirce">Charles Sanders Peirce</a>, in <i>On The Algebra of Logic</i> (1885)</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li><b>Tokens alone do not state what is the subject of discourse; and this can, in fact, not be described in general terms; it can only be indicated.</b> The actual world cannot be distinguished from a world of imagination by any description. Hence the need of pronoun and indices, and the more complicated the subject the greater the need of them. <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Charles_Sanders_Peirce" title="Charles Sanders Peirce">Charles Sanders Peirce</a>, in <i>On The Algebra of Logic</i> (1885)</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li><b>It is important to understand what I mean by <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semiosis" class="extiw" title="w:Semiosis">semiosis</a></i>.</b> All dynamic <a href="/wiki/Action" title="Action">action</a>, or action of brute <a href="/wiki/Force" title="Force">force</a>, physical or psychical, either takes place between two subjects, — whether they react equally upon each other, or one is agent and the other patient, entirely or partially, — or at any rate is a resultant of such actions between pairs. But by "semiosis" I mean, on the contrary, an action, or influence, which is, or involves, <b>a cooperation of <i>three</i> subjects, such as a <a href="/wiki/Sign" title="Sign">sign</a>, its object, and its interpretant, this tri-relative influence not being in any way resolvable into actions between pairs.</b> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Charles_Sanders_Peirce" title="Charles Sanders Peirce">Charles Sanders Peirce</a>, in "Pragmatism" (1907), also in <i>The Essential Peirce : Selected Philosophical Writings</i> (1998) edited by the Peirce Edition Project, Vol. 2, p. 411</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li>I define a <a href="/wiki/Sign" title="Sign">Sign</a> as anything which is so determined by something else, called its Object, and so determines an effect upon a <a href="/wiki/Person" class="mw-redirect" title="Person">person</a>, which effect I call its Interpretant, that the latter is thereby mediately determined by the former. <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Charles_Sanders_Peirce" title="Charles Sanders Peirce">Charles Sanders Peirce</a>, in a letter to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoria,_Lady_Welby" class="extiw" title="w:Victoria, Lady Welby">Victoria, Lady Welby</a> (1908) SS 80-81</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li>To say, therefore, that <a href="/wiki/Thought" title="Thought">thought</a> cannot happen in an instant, but requires a <a href="/wiki/Time" title="Time">time</a>, is but another way of saying that <b>every thought must be interpreted in another</b>, or that <b>all thought is in <a href="/wiki/Sign" title="Sign">signs</a></b>. <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Charles_Sanders_Peirce" title="Charles Sanders Peirce">Charles Sanders Peirce</a>, in <i>Collected Papers</i> (1931-1958), Vol. V, par. 254</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li><b>The entire <a href="/wiki/Universe" title="Universe">universe</a> is perfused with signs, if it is not composed exclusively of <a href="/wiki/Sign" title="Sign">signs</a>.</b> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Charles_Sanders_Peirce" title="Charles Sanders Peirce">Charles Sanders Peirce</a>, as quoted in <i>Essays in Zoosemiotics</i> (1990) by Thomas A. Sebeok</li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li>Not that I give a fuck about <a href="/wiki/Football" class="mw-disambig" title="Football">football</a>, or about your <a href="/wiki/Superstitions" class="mw-redirect" title="Superstitions">superstitions</a> — <b>but <i>if its me reading the <a href="/wiki/Sign" title="Sign">signs</a></i></b>, I don't send the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philadelphia_Eagles" class="extiw" title="w:Philadelphia Eagles">Eagles</a> guy whose personal motto is <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excelsior" class="extiw" title="w:Excelsior">Excelsior</a></i> to a fucking <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Giants" class="extiw" title="w:New York Giants">Giants</a> game, especially when he's already in a legal situation. <ul><li>"Tiffany Maxwell", in <i><a href="/wiki/Silver_Linings_Playbook" title="Silver Linings Playbook">Silver Linings Playbook</a></i> directed and written by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_O._Russell" class="extiw" title="w:David O. Russell">David O. Russell</a>, based on <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_Linings_Playbook_(novel)" class="extiw" title="w:Silver Linings Playbook (novel)">the novel</a> by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Quick" class="extiw" title="w:Matthew Quick">Matthew Quick</a></li></ul></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: External links"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="noprint" style="clear: right; border: solid #aaa 1px; margin: 0 0 1em 1em; font-size: 90%; background: #f9f9f9; width: 250px; padding: 4px; spacing: 0px; text-align: left; float: right;"> <div style="float: left;"><figure class="mw-halign-none" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Wikipedia-logo-v2.svg" class="mw-file-description" title="Wikipedia"><img alt="Wikipedia" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/Wikipedia-logo-v2.svg/50px-Wikipedia-logo-v2.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="46" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/Wikipedia-logo-v2.svg/75px-Wikipedia-logo-v2.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/Wikipedia-logo-v2.svg/100px-Wikipedia-logo-v2.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="103" data-file-height="94" /></a><figcaption>Wikipedia</figcaption></figure></div> <div style="margin-left: 60px;"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia" title="Wikipedia">Wikipedia</a> has an article about: <div style="margin-left: 10px;"><i><b><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semiotics" class="extiw" title="wikipedia:Semiotics">Semiotics</a></b></i></div> </div> </div> <div class="noprint metadata" style="clear: right; border: solid #aaa 1px; margin: 0 0 1em 1em; font-size: 90%; background: #f9f9f9; width: 250px; padding: 4px; spacing: 0px; text-align: left; float: right;"> <div style="float: left;"><figure class="mw-halign-none" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Wiktionary-logo.svg" class="mw-file-description" title="Wiktionary"><img alt="Wiktionary" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/Wiktionary-logo.svg/50px-Wiktionary-logo.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="47" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/Wiktionary-logo.svg/75px-Wiktionary-logo.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/Wiktionary-logo.svg/100px-Wiktionary-logo.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="370" data-file-height="350" /></a><figcaption>Wiktionary</figcaption></figure></div> <div style="margin-left: 60px;">Look up <i><b><a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/semiotics" class="extiw" title="wiktionary:semiotics">semiotics</a></b></i> in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiktionary" class="extiw" title="w:Wiktionary">Wiktionary</a>, the free dictionary</div> </div>    </div><noscript><img src="https://login.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:CentralAutoLogin/start?type=1x1" alt="" width="1" height="1" style="border: none; position: absolute;"></noscript> <div class="printfooter" data-nosnippet="">Retrieved from "<a dir="ltr" href="https://en.wikiquote.org/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&oldid=3157807">https://en.wikiquote.org/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&oldid=3157807</a>"</div></div> <div id="catlinks" class="catlinks" data-mw="interface"><div id="mw-normal-catlinks" class="mw-normal-catlinks"><a href="/wiki/Special:Categories" title="Special:Categories">Categories</a>: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Philosophy" title="Category:Philosophy">Philosophy</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Semiotics" title="Category:Semiotics">Semiotics</a></li></ul></div></div> </div> </main> </div> <div class="mw-footer-container"> <footer id="footer" class="mw-footer" > <ul id="footer-info"> <li id="footer-info-lastmod"> This page was last edited on 25 August 2022, at 05:06.</li> <li id="footer-info-copyright">Text is available under the <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="//creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License</a>; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the <a class="external text" href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Terms_of_Use">Terms of Use</a> and <a class="external text" href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy_policy">Privacy Policy.</a></li> </ul> <ul id="footer-places"> <li id="footer-places-privacy"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy_policy">Privacy policy</a></li> <li id="footer-places-about"><a href="/wiki/Wikiquote:About">About Wikiquote</a></li> <li id="footer-places-disclaimers"><a href="/wiki/Wikiquote:General_disclaimer">Disclaimers</a></li> <li id="footer-places-wm-codeofconduct"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Universal_Code_of_Conduct">Code of Conduct</a></li> <li id="footer-places-developers"><a href="https://developer.wikimedia.org">Developers</a></li> <li id="footer-places-statslink"><a href="https://stats.wikimedia.org/#/en.wikiquote.org">Statistics</a></li> <li id="footer-places-cookiestatement"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Cookie_statement">Cookie statement</a></li> <li id="footer-places-mobileview"><a href="//en.m.wikiquote.org/w/index.php?title=Semiotics&mobileaction=toggle_view_mobile" class="noprint stopMobileRedirectToggle">Mobile view</a></li> </ul> <ul id="footer-icons" class="noprint"> <li id="footer-copyrightico"><a href="https://wikimediafoundation.org/" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--size-large cdx-button--fake-button--enabled"><img src="/static/images/footer/wikimedia-button.svg" width="84" height="29" alt="Wikimedia Foundation" loading="lazy"></a></li> <li id="footer-poweredbyico"><a href="https://www.mediawiki.org/" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--size-large cdx-button--fake-button--enabled"><img src="/w/resources/assets/poweredby_mediawiki.svg" alt="Powered by MediaWiki" width="88" height="31" loading="lazy"></a></li> </ul> </footer> </div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-settings" id="p-dock-bottom"> <ul></ul> </div><script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.config.set({"wgHostname":"mw-web.codfw.main-f69cdc8f6-n4k26","wgBackendResponseTime":141,"wgPageParseReport":{"limitreport":{"cputime":"0.038","walltime":"0.062","ppvisitednodes":{"value":152,"limit":1000000},"postexpandincludesize":{"value":1357,"limit":2097152},"templateargumentsize":{"value":110,"limit":2097152},"expansiondepth":{"value":5,"limit":100},"expensivefunctioncount":{"value":0,"limit":500},"unstrip-depth":{"value":0,"limit":20},"unstrip-size":{"value":0,"limit":5000000},"entityaccesscount":{"value":0,"limit":400},"timingprofile":["100.00% 7.384 1 -total"," 60.53% 4.470 1 Template:Wikipedia"," 38.29% 2.827 1 Template:Wiktionary"," 28.71% 2.120 1 Template:Sisterproject"]},"cachereport":{"origin":"mw-web.eqiad.canary-7584787d95-nvxfw","timestamp":"20241108134020","ttl":2592000,"transientcontent":false}}});});</script> <script type="application/ld+json">{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"Article","name":"Semiotics","url":"https:\/\/en.wikiquote.org\/wiki\/Semiotics","sameAs":"http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q60195","mainEntity":"http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q60195","author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Contributors to Wikimedia projects"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.wikimedia.org\/static\/images\/wmf-hor-googpub.png"}},"datePublished":"2012-01-02T22:22:23Z","dateModified":"2022-08-25T05:06:20Z","image":"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/4\/4d\/Liberty_Enlightening_the_World%2C_Paris_19_October_2011.jpg","headline":"the study of signs and symbols and sign processes, where the signs and symbols may include non-linguistic ones"}</script> </body> </html>