Semantics is commonly defined as “the study of meaning.” Any subject that covers a wide and diverse subject matter, such as “meaning,” will not be merely understood with a single sentence explanation. To begin understanding semantics, one must have a grasp on its different branches, including, general, conceptual, and lexical semantics. While there are almost endless branches, these three primary examples embody the native elements of semantics.
Semantics is not defined by black and white rules, rather, it exists in a gray zone. Semantics, by nature, is intertwined with philosophy, which makes defining and in-depth review a challenge for those who are unfamiliar with it. First and foremost, we must look at semantics as we would look at the
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In General Semantics, focus is placed on what the implication of the word being defined is, and how to use it for better communication, via symbols and words. General Semantics looks at how every word carries its own unique set of implications, and how these implications can shift the determined meaning of what you say. The viewpoint of this branch of semantics is that every word carries with it certain images and feeling, which interpret differently to individual people. By clarifying and defining the meanings behind words, General Semantics hopes to lessen the conflict that can arise from misinterpretation. When practiced correctly, General Semantics can make communication more effective by avoiding the misinterpretation that can occur when two speakers do not have the same understanding of a word, term, or phrase. The “Father of General Semantics” is Alfred Korzybski. Korzybski tries to make the point that in General Semantics “the words are not the thing.” This type of thinking takes a step away from older, aristotleliana thinking, and moves toward modern scientific thinking. “Korzybski promoted the teaching of modern scientific thinking to resolve problems with human sanity, with implications for everyday behavior, emotions, thought, and language,” (Hauck). General Semantics is a tool used to develop positive mental attitudes, which are better equipped to deal with critical thinking. Despite its usefulness, General Semantics face many challenges in the intellectual field. “On a Practical level, perhaps the school system that ‘teaches to the test’ is the biggest hurdle.”(Hauck) Hauck makes the point, that if no one is teaching General Semantics its uses become obsolete, and few places of learning bother with it. Another drawback of General Semantics is its age. Although General Semantics faces the occasional dilemma, it is still useful in its employment and is a vital tool in communication.
First, a brief background in the three dimensions of language discussed throughout this paper. The functional, semantic, or thematic dimensions of language as previously mentioned are often used in parallel with each other. Due, to this fact it is important to be able to identify them as they take place and differentiate between these dimensions i...
Ivor Armstrong Richards, co-author of The Meaning of Meaning, a great communication theorist and rhetorician, could not effectively communicate. Richards never completely understood and he was never completely understood by others. I. A. Richards believed that there was a "proper meaning superstition," or a false belief that there was one, precise meaning for each word (Craig, 1998, internet). He argued that meaning did not exist in words, but in people as a result of their past experiences. He sought to explain his ideas through concepts such as the Semantic Triangle, Comparison Fields, and the terms "signs" and "symbols", which distinguished meaning. Richards even felt that people were so misunderstood, that he developed remedies to conquer these communicative misunderstandings. His remedies included the usage of: Definition, Metaphor, Feedforward, and Basic English. These remedies can effectively decrease, if not eliminate, various interpersonal communicative misunderstandings, primarily those resulting in conflict, that occur in today's society. Unfortunately, as a result of his liberal viewpoints, I. A. Richards received and currently receives challenges and critique.
At some point in our lives, we have wondered about the possibility of a computer being able to think. John Searle addresses this issue in his paper, “Can Computers Think?”, where he argues that computers cannot think because they are directed by formal information. This means that the information presented is only syntax with no semantics behind it. In this paper, I will elaborate more on Searle’s position and reasoning whilst critiquing his argument by saying that it is possible to derive semantics from syntax. Finally, I will analyze the significance of my criticism and present a possible response from Searle to defend his argument.
In “Defending Against the Indefensible” by Neil Postman, he proposes a different way of viewing the English language. He says that our civilization is being manipulated by the ambiguity in English, and students are most easily affected by the school environment. Thus, he proposes seven key ideas that students should remember in order to avoid the dangers and loopholes that twist the original meaning of statements.
Merriam-Webster, Inc. - Merriam- Web. The Web. The Web. 28 April 2014. URL: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/philosophy.
Computational linguistics is a discipline between linguistics and computer science which is concerned with the computational aspects of the human language. This area of computer science overlaps with the field of Artificial Intelligence. Basically, computational linguistics is a series of programs that interprets human speech into words and actions. There are a couple of different areas of computational linguistics and those areas are theoretical computational linguistics and applied computational linguistics. Each one of those areas are divided up into more areas.
Gottlob Frege (1) asserts that, in addition to the denotation of a sign (2), there is also a meaning attached. (3) The denotation is the specific thing that a sign refers to. The meaning, however, is the actual intention behind using the sign. It follows from this distinction that signs may be identical, but have different functions in a proposition. When it comes to meanings, it is not necessarily the case that the respective denotations of the same sign are equivalent. In fact, Frege argues, there may well be meaning without any denotation whatsoever. As an example, he uses 'the celestial body most distant from the Earth'. While this expression most likely has meaning, it is doubtful that it denotes anything. Frege concludes, "In grasping a (meaning), one is not certainly assured of (denoting) anything". (4) Yet, Frege admits, we must presuppose that there is, indeed a denotation, in order to grasp the meaning. He admits that while we may be mistaken in our assumption, the importance lies in the intention of the speaker, not in the existence of the denotation.
The Pragmatic Theory. Searle proposed an account of metaphor that takes Davidson’s theory even further than the Naïve theory and rejects the idea of linguistic ambiguity idea (Lycan 184). Metaphorical utterance is taken to be a linguistic communication and it posits a cognitive mechanism that computes something that could be called metaphorical meaning. This theory of metaphor is the most compelling because metaphor is seen as simply of species of Gricean communication. The problem of explaining how we understand metaphor is a case of explaining how speaker meaning and sentence meaning can be divergent. Gricean logic can provide an instructive way to break down the problem of metaphorical meaning. This theory is the most plausible and overcomes Davidson’s leading objections to metaphorical meaning.
Semantics can be defined as the study of "meaning" of lexical words and expressions independently of context. Where pragmatics is the process of recognising the "invisible meaning" of lexical items and expressions; taking into account the speaker's/ addressee's intention, the status of hearer/ receiver and the actual situation.
Prarthana,S. & Prema, K. (2012). Role of Semantics in the Organization of Mental Lexicon. Language in India.259-277.
Curzan, Anne and Adams, Michael. How English Works: A Linguistic Introduction. New York: Pearson Longman, 2006
Uexküll, Jakob Von, and Jakob Von Uexküll. "Theory of Meaning." A Foray into the Worlds of Animals and Humans: With A Theory of Meaning. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, 2010. 139-205. Print.
As the name suggests, linguistic learners most easily acquire information through words. They love to read, write, and tell stories. Memorizing names, places, dates, and trivia come naturally to these learners (Mantle, 2002). People with a linguistic preference have an awareness of the sounds, rhythms, and meaning of words. These students learn best by saying, hearing, and seeing words.
George Herbert Mead begins his discussion of symbolic interactionism (talking with others) by defining three core principles that deal with meaning, language, and thought. The theory states that meaning is the construction of social reality. Humans act toward people or things on the basis of the meanings they assign to those people or things.