Second Trichotomy: Icon, Index, Symbol

Table 1: Peirces Trichotomies of Signs 4.4 Ten Principal Classes of Signs Since every sign is determined by its three correlates, and there are three ways in which every correlate may be characterized, as summarized in table 1. However, some of the possible combinations are semiotically impossible. For example, a qualisign can be only iconic and rhematic and an index cannot be an argument. 32 The semiotically superfluous characterizations are placed in parentheses: 1. Rhematic Iconic Qualisign, for example: a feeling of red. 2. Rhematic Iconic Sinsign: an individual diagram. 3. Rhematic Indexical Sinsign: a spontaneous cry. 4. Dicent Indexical Sinsign: a weathercock. 5. Rhematic Iconic Legisign: a diagram, apart from its factual individuality. 32 Ibid. 6. Rhematic Indexical Legisign: a demonstrative pronoun. 7. Dicent Indexical Legisign: traffic signs, commands. ” 8. Rhematic Symbolic Legisign: a common noun. 9. Dicent Symbolic Legisign: an ordinary proposition. 10. Argument Symbolic Legisign: a syllogism. 33

5. Typology Signs Charles Sanders Peirce

Classification effort which made by Peirce to the sign has the distinctive way, although it was not quite simple. Peirce distinguished the types of signs to be: Icon, index and symbol based on the relation between representamen and object. 34

1. Icon

Icon is a sign which denotes and have the character of the Object, whether the Object actually exists or not. In the icon, the relationship between representamen and object is materialized as similarities in some quality. 35 For example, the map of Yogyakarta is an icon of the Yogyakarta area which depicted in the map.

2. Index

Index is the sign which is connected with the object because of the cause and effect connection. 36 The example is a footprint above the ground. 33 Ibid. 34 Indiawan Seto Wahyu Wibowo, Op.Cit., p.18. 35 Charles Sanders Peirce, The Collected Paper of Charles Sanders Peirce, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1931 – 1935, p. 367. 36 Ibid.