Abstract

The purpose of this thesis is to establish the extent of sign interpretation in Peirce's philosophical system. In order to achieve this aim, I discuss the concept of nature as it relates to the distinction between the semiotic and the extrasemiotic in Peirce. I focus upon three areas of Peirce's thought which have a central bearing upon this issue: his theory of the interpretant, the relation between his semiotic theory and metaphysical system, and his distinction between genuine and degenerate categories. ;With regard to the first area, I argue that Peirce's distinction of the emotional, energetic, and logical interpretant points to a concept of sign and sign interpretation that extends beyond the realm of reflective discourse and into the lifeworlds of nonhuman organisms. Since at least some sign users do not stipulate the meanings of the signs they use, the intelligibility of at least some signs is rooted in the metaphysical principles that govern natural processes. We must therefore turn to an examination of Peirce's metaphysics in order to answer the question of the scope of semiosis. When we do so, we see that there is for Peirce a strong connection between semiotic and metaphysical evolution, and also that Peirce's theory of inference encompasses natural processes as well as human inferences. In light of this, I argue that despite appearances to the contrary, Peirce does not view the realm of semiosis and the realm of nature as identical. I then turn to an examination of the genuine and degenerate forms of Peirce's categories in order to establish that the distinction between the semiotic and the extrasemiotic in Peirce's framework is a relative and not an absolute one