LANGUAGE IN INDIA

Strength for Today and Bright Hope for Tomorrow

Volume 17:4 April 2017
ISSN 1930-2940

Managing Editor: M. S. Thirumalai, Ph.D.
Editors: B. Mallikarjun, Ph.D.
         Sam Mohanlal, Ph.D.
         B. A. Sharada, Ph.D.
         A. R. Fatihi, Ph.D.
         Lakhan Gusain, Ph.D.
         Jennifer Marie Bayer, Ph.D.
         G. Baskaran, Ph.D.
         L. Ramamoorthy, Ph.D.
         C. Subburaman, Ph.D. (Economics)
         N. Nadaraja Pillai, Ph.D.
         Renuga Devi, Ph.D.
         Soibam Rebika Devi, M.Sc., Ph.D.
Assistant Managing Editor: Swarna Thirumalai, M.A.

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Formation of a Word:
A Semiotic, Syntactic, and Semantic Analysis as Viewed by
Saussure, Lévi-Strauss, Heidegger, Fish, and Latour

Dr. S. Joseph Arul Jayraj

Abstract

The paper answers the questions: What is a word? What contributes to the formation of a word? What are the components of a word? What is the meaning of the word ‘word’? What is the meaning of the word ‘meaning’? How do words acquire meaning? It analyses the questions from Semiotic, Syntactic, and Semantic points of view and answers them in in the context of semantic analysis following Saussure, Strauss, Heidegger, Stanley Fish, and Latour. It introduces the readers to the meaning of the terms Semiotics and Semantics, the historical background in which these words are coined, Saussure’s contribution to the study of language, the basic elements of Semiology, a letter of the alphabet, a word, the use of an image of a thing, a hieroglyph, and a character as signs to convey the meaning in specific contexts which are essential to the interpretation and understanding of the meaning of words used in communication.

Keywords: semiotic, semantic, syntactic views, Saussure, Levi-Strauss, Heidegger, Fish, Latour

What is a Word? What Contributes to the Formation of a Word?
And what are the Components of a Word?

If one tries to understand the meanings of the terms ‘word’ and ‘meaning,’ one gets an indeterminate, equivocal, ambiguous definition and gets confused. In order to understand the meaning of the terms ‘word’ and ‘meaning,’ one has to patiently take steps to seek the help of lexicons of various kinds. Sometimes, such an effort may end in futility. Therefore, one has to refer to dictionaries of philosophical terms and resort to theoretical explanations rendered by many great thinkers of the world through various examples.

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.

Dr. S. Joseph Arul Jayraj
Head & Associate Professor of English
St. Joseph’s College (Autonomous)
Tiruchirappalli-620002
Tamil Nadu
India
6jayraj@gmail.com
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