A guided tour in the kingdom of signs

pp. 25-39

in: Yair Neuman, Processes and boundaries of the mind, Berlin, Springer, 2003

Abstract

This chapter presents two main conceptions of the sign: non-developmental and developmental. The ability to use signs is described in the Bible as a unique property of the human mind. This position does not confront developmental aspects of semiotic systems. Evolutionary theory confronts the symbol-grounding problem by locating the origins of our symbol system in simple communication systems of lower ordered organisms, and by explaining the emergence of the symbol system through Darwinian mechanisms. This perspective, too, fails to explain the emergence of the sign. This chapter concludes by pointing at the importance of adopting a social perspective for inquiry into semiotic systems.