Semiotics: Signifiers

Daniel Chandler's Questions:

• What is the system within which these signs make sense?

Daniel Chandler's notes on signifiers

Modes of signifiers:

Symbolic signifiers: signifier does not resemble the signified. Purely or highly conventional

Example: language, codes of various sorts, traffic lights.

Iconic signifiers: signifier resembles the signified. It imitates some sensory impression of the "real" object.

Example:

Indexical signifiers: the signifier is not arbitrary, but is directly connected in some way to the signified (but not by resemblance)

Example:

• Natural signs: smoke signifies fire, thunder signifies a storm
• Medical symptoms
• measuring tools (thermometers, weather vanes, oscilloscopes)
• "signals" (knocks on doors, telephone ringing)
• "pointers" (pointing finger)
• recordings (photographs, audio recordings, etc.)
• personal trademarks (handwriting)
• indexical words ("this", "that")

So, what are these?