Class 3 - Language and Communication Flashcards
Who was Ferdinand de Saussure?
Ferdinand de Saussure is widely considered one of the founders of 20th-century linguistics and semiotics.
What is a sign?
A sign is something that can be interpreted as having a meaning which is something other than itself, and which is therefore able to communicate information to the one interpreting or decoding the sign.
Identify two parts of the binary model of the sign.
Binary model of the sign includes:
- signifier and signified
- referent
Who was Charles S. Peirce?
Charles S. Peirce (1839-1913) was one of the founders of modern semiotics. He argued that signs vary in level of arbitrariness.
What is a symbol?
A symbol is an arbitrary sign that stands for something else. Meaning is signified only through system of conventional understanding.
What is an icon?
An icon is a sign that signifies by means of similarity between sign and referent (e.g. a portrait, a map, onomatopoeia).
What is an index?
An Index is a sign that signifies by means of a direct relation or causality between sign and referent (e.g. a symptom). E.G. smoke is an index for fire.
Define denotation.
Denotation refers to the literal meaning of a sign/word.
Define connotation.
Connotation refers to the associations that are connected to a certain sign/word or the emotional suggestions related to that sign/word.
Define language.
Language is a system of cultural knowledge used to generate and interpret speech.
Define speech.
Speech refers to the behavior that produces vocal sounds.
Define phonology.
Phonology consists of the categories and rules for forming vocal symbols.
Define phoneme.
Phonemes are the minimal categories of speech sounds that serve to keep utterances apart.
Define morpheme.
Morphemes are the minimal units of meaning in any language.
Define lexicon.
Lexicon: (or vocabulary) is a dictionary containing all of its morphemes and their meanings.
Define grammar.
Grammar refers to the categories and rules for combining vocal symbols.
Define semantics.
Semantics refers to the categories and rules for relating vocal symbols to their referents.
What are sociolinguistic rules?
Sociolinguistic rules combine meaningful utterances with social situations into appropriate messages.
What are nonlinguistic symbols?
Nonlinguistic symbols are symbols outside of language that carry meaning for human beings.
Define focal vocabulary.
Focal vocabulary refers to specialized sets of terms and the distinctions that are important to certain groups (based on a foci of experience).
What is the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis?
Sapir-Whorf hypothesis is the idea that language influences thought and behaviour.
