Linguistic Signs and the Communication Process

Linguistic Signs

Signs are realities that we perceive through the senses (sight, hearing, smell, etc.) that convey meaning. Linguistic signs are a specific type of signal used in the formation of messages within a language.

Elements of the Linguistic Sign

Linguistic signs consist of two primary elements:

• The Signifier (Significant): This is a fact perceived by the senses that is associated in the mind with another reality. Example: A person's high temperature (perceived by touch). It materializes in two dimensions: physical (the sounds we utter, transmitted through the air) and psychic (the mental image we have of such acoustic sounds, which allows us to recognize individual sounds).
• The Signified (Meaning): This is the concept that the signifier evokes. Example: Illness. It is concrete in two dimensions: reality and the concept. The meaning of a linguistic sign can be denotative (objective, reflecting the primary content) or connotative (signs placed in relation to feelings, ideas, or cultural events, such as a "Bear" connoting strength or greatness).

Significance vs. Meaning

There is a distinction between significance and meaning:

• Significance: What the sender intended to convey (non-encrypted, intentional, and pragmatically variable).
• Meaning: What the message says literally (encoded, literal, constant, and linguistic).

Classes of Signs

Signs are created by humans to communicate (words, numbers, etc.) and possess two main characteristics: they are conventional (the result of an agreement between users) and are coded according to specific rules of use.

• Icons: Signals that bear a relation of resemblance to the reality they represent (e.g., the silhouette of a woman on a restroom door).
• Symbols: Signals that represent social, cultural, or religious concepts (e.g., a national flag).
• Symptoms or Indices: Signs that refer to natural phenomena and have no intention of communicating anything, even if they provide information (e.g., smoke indicating fire).

The Communication Process

Communication is a process by which an issuer (sender) conveys a message to a receiver. This message is built in accordance with the signs of a code and is transmitted through a channel within a particular situation or context.

Elements of Communication

The essential elements of the communicative act include: code, transmitter, receiver, message, channel, and context.

Functions of Language

The functions of language correspond to the different elements of the communicative act:

• Representative Function: Reporting on reality (e.g., "The boys dived into the water").
• Expressive Function: Related to the issuer; expresses feelings and emotions (e.g., "Hopefully the sun comes up!").
• Phatic Function: Relates to the receiver and influences them (e.g., "Hi, do you understand?").
• Conative Function: Used to start or maintain contact (e.g., "I invite you to my house; would you like some coffee?").
• Metalinguistic Function: Refers to the code or the text itself (e.g., "David is tired" as a grammatical example).
• Poetic Function: Focuses on the message to embellish its form.