Signified

From Geography

Signs take various forms such as words, images, sounds, odours, flavours, acts or objects. A sign is a unit of meaning in semiotics Swiss linguistFerdinand de Saussure whose ideas laid a foundation for many significant developments in linguistics in the 20th century, offered a dyadic model of the sign saying that it was composed of two parts, the Signifier and the Signified. The Signifier is the form the sign takes, the material or physical form of the sign, such as the word that is said, the odour that is smelt, the feeling when you touch. The signified is the concept or meaning indicated by the signifier. Saussure argued that the signifier and signified are not fixed as words shift in meaning. words also vary in meaning from person to person, culture to culture etc, therefore the signified is internal and varies. A geographical example of this would be a flag of a country e.g the Netherlands flag. When this flag is viewed or is spoken off, each person will have a concept of what it means to them, what it looks like, how it flies etc. These signified thoughts can be negative or positive depending on the individual and their own experiences regarding the signifier.

Quotes from Saussure regarding this topic

"A sign is the basic unit of language (a given language at a given time). Every language is a complete system of signs. Parole (the speech of an individual) is an external manifestation of language."

"A linguistic system is a series of differences of sounds combined with a series of differences of ideas."

"The connection between the signifier and the signified is arbitrary."

References

Hall, S. (1997). Representation: cultural representations and signifying practices. London: Sage publications.

Gibson, Graham, J.K. (2000). Poststructural Interventions. Oxford: Blackwell.

Unknown Author (2002-2011) accessed 12 Septemeber 2011, Signifier and Signified, http://changingminds.org/explanations/critical_theory/concepts/signifier_signified.htm

Published By: SamanthaHazlett 12 Septemeber 2011--SamanthaHazlett 21:16, 12 September 2011 (UTC)