Studies on the functions of the sign to date have been inadequate in that they leave unanswered a basic question of semiotics: What are the functions of a simple sign that consists essentially in the relation between two relata? The answer to this question is to be found in the phenomenon called “signize.” For intentional signs at least, all the mental entities can be signized, but only certain kinds of them have a strong signizing value. When these mental entities are (...) signized, they tend to be signized into certain kinds of images. The advantages of these images over those mental entities give rise to certain benefits that, in turn, result in the basic functions of simple intentional signs. These basic functions are the starting point of a systematic study of the hierarchy of functions of intentional sign. (shrink)

Name der Zeitschrift: Semiotica Jahrgang: 2016 Heft: 210 Seiten: 167-189.

Signic knowledge is a crucial link without which the sign as a phenomenon tumbles to the ground. This topic, however, can hardly be incorporated by any existing theory of semiotics. Under the framework of “the theory of intentional sign,” signic knowledge can find its proper niche as an element of the “context” of a sign process. This niche furnishes a good basis on which to investigate the various aspects of signic knowledge, like its role, nature, origin, and life. Signic knowledge (...) can also be automatized or externalized, whose end results tend to create delusions that obscure the nature of the sign and lead semiotics astray. (shrink)