How we interpret signs
When we want to communicate something, we use signs – words, gestures,
facial expressions, formulas, symbols or traffic signs – that the other
person has to translate into meaning. Semiotics is the study of signs; it is a
cross-section of sciences from the disciplines of psychology, philosophy,
sociology, linguistics, computer science, design, art and mathematics. The
bottom line is: we find signs everywhere we come across culture rather
than nature.
The key points in brief:
· Some signs – the swastika, a traffic light, the Nike swoosh – are easy to
spot and more legible than words. We see them and understand what is
meant. A story, a rating, a command or a message springs to mind.· Perception in most people proceeds from image to text. We remember
drawings better than words, recognize patterns in representations more
than in sentences.· Some of the most important semioticians believe that all the following
are signs: a Rolls-Royce in front of the door, a blue sky, a hundred-dollar
note, open shoelaces, a half-empty or half-full glass of water, a magic
formula, a traffic jam on the motorway, a sunset. Nothing can be
perceived merely as what it is. It will always (have to) be interpreted by
the viewer as a sign of something.‘The visual is like the political: everyone thinks they understand
something about it, and to an extent this is true.’ So says the German
Professor of Mass Communication, Marion G. Müller. She makes an
important point about the design of signs and symbols: they are complex
but need to be comprehensible, otherwise there can be no communication.
Most people understand complicated matter better through images than in
words. We remember pictures better than text and are more likely to
recognize patterns in images than in sentences.