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CBS319

Lecture 4

Lecture 3:Cultural signs: Types 1 – 2c icons

Lecture 4: Cultural signs: Type 3 icons, Indices & Symbols

Type 3 Cultural Iconic Signs

mostly icons in the form of places, events & personalities

via ‘genetic’ synonymy

‘Genetic’ SynonymyThe underpinning mechanisms

a. (What happened in) History

b. (family) pedigree

c. (social) pecking order

3. Genetic’ Synonymy

a. (What happened in) History

� Metropolises like Florence, Paris, Rome

� American, French Revolutions

� Cultural Revolution …

�Nanjing Massacre, Holocaust…

�Neda Āghā-Soltān, Mohamed Bouazizi, Malala Yousafzai…

Metropolises synonymous with

The Roman Empire

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The Financial Capital of the worldThe Renaissance

Fashion

The bottom of the pit of one-man rule

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The Holocaust

(ethnic cleansing)

Jasmine Revolution’s Mohamed Bouazizi

Malala

Iran student movement’s Neda

3. Genetic’ Synonymy

b. (family) pedigree

King Carlos of Spain

張道禎張道禎張道禎張道禎64代代代代道教道教道教道教天師天師天師天師

Icons of political dynasties

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The Nehru dynasty

Sonia, Rajiv Gandhi’s wife

Icons of the Indian Congress

Party

The Kennedys: iconsof a political dynasty

The Bush dynastyJeb Bush

3. Genetic’ Synonymy

c. by pecking order mostly via achievement

GS: vis-à-visthe signified

Founder Leader

Corporate Founders

Sony

C++

SOHOChina

Virgin

Body Shop

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GS: vis-à-visthe signified

Founder Leader

The Best GS

The Founder

The most well known

The Best

The best in Science

Carl Djerassi

Madam Curie

Isaac +ewton

楊振寧楊振寧楊振寧楊振寧

The famous & the infamous

in Politics

The Best in…

J.K. Rowling

3. ‘Genetic’ Synonymy

d. by profile matchi.e. 入形入格

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Fear of the Yellow Peril: The

Chinese (locusts) are coming!

The Cultural-Sign

Triad

Icons� Indices Symbols

Indexical Signs

• Indices are not icons because the mediation involved is not a matter of resemblance, analogy and ‘genetic’ association

• Instead the mediation work by way of providing indications about certain aspects of the referent via

• Its organic relationship with the referent

• Indices are ∴ not icons• The mediation involved is not a matter of

resemblance, analogy or ‘genetic’ synonymy• Instead the mechanisms provide a definitive

indication about the referent• ∴ the mediation between the representamen &

the referent is organic in nature, i.e.• Changes to the referent will lead to changes to

the indexical sign: neither icons nor symbolshave such qualities

When there’s fire,there’s smoke

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When there’s no fire,there’s no smoke

The arrival of the red-crested cranes in Japan indicates that autumn is here

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The nature of the mediation & its

underpinning mechanisms

• Any or any combination of these:–an integral extension &/or a

manifestation of (organic)–Co-relational (Statistical)–Co-relational (Non-statistical)–A matter of custom–A matter of design

Cultural Indices

‘An Integral &/or a Manifestation Extension of’

A Galileo thermometer

An index of ?

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Cultural Indices

Co-relational (Statistical)

Health (Medical) Indices

Benchmarks

Blood Pressure 120 (systolic) 80 (diastolic)

Cholesterol 5.2 (Overall) <0.91 (HDL) >3.4(LDL)

Hemoglobin 13-17 (Male) 12-15 (Female)

Triglycerides <2.26

IQ scores The connection’s correlational (statistical)

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Hang Seng: An index of ? Hong Kong’s GDP

GDP: An index of ? Consumer price Index (HK)

CPI: An index of ?

Intermission

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+umeric Indices of

Perfection

Perfect Numbers

6

28

496

8128

Perfect Numbers

a perfect number is a positive integer

that is the sum of its proper positive divisors

that is, the sum of the positive divisors excluding the number itself

The first perfect number is 6because 1, 2, and 3 are its proper

positive divisors, and 1 + 2 + 3 = 6.

Equivalently, a perfect number is a number that is half the sum of all of its positive divisors (including itself), e.g.

( 1 + 2 + 3 + 6 ) / 2 = 6

(1 + 2 + 4 + 7 + 14+ 28) = 28

1 + 2 + 4 + 8 + 16 + 31 + 62 + 124 + 248= 496 1 + 2 + 4 + 8 + 16

+ 32 + 64 + 127 + 254 + 508 + 1016 + 2032 + 4064 = 8128

The Perfect-+umber formula

• 2p−1(2p − 1):–for p = 2: 21(22 − 1) = 6

–for p = 3: 22(23 − 1) = 28

–for p = 5: 24(25 − 1) = 496

–for p = 7: 26(27 − 1) = 8128.

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Do perfect numbers provide an indication about the attributes of Perfection?

Cultural Indices

co-relational (non statistical, a matter of custom)

+on-statistical, social, customary

• Accent

• Resume, including–The hobbies you keep

–The sports you play

–The rhetoric you have (言談舉止)

–The table manners you show…

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Cultural Indices

A matter of design

Doomsday Clock

The Cultural-Sign

Triad

Icons� Indices� Symbols

Symbolic Signs

Cultural Symbols

• Symbolic signs are considered different from icons and indices because:

• There is no necessary connection between the referent and the representamen

• The nature of the mediation between the referent & its representamen is largely arbitrary

• Otherwise the representamen won’t be a symbol

• ∴ more than icons and indices, symbols require interpretation, they need an interpreter

• However an interpreter may be able to tell us how A is a symbol of Z

• But s/he is usually unable to explain why ∵ the workings of the underpinning mechanisms are often not conducive to rational explication

• The mediation could be a matter of random, customary association

• Also, symbolic signs tend to have a relatively higher level of abstraction

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Colour Signs: Indices OR

Symbols?

Psychological Studies of Colour

Relevant reading available at Lib

• Gage, John (1999). Colour and meaning : art,

science and symbolism. Thames and Hudson , ( ND1488 .G344)

• Jalil, N. et al. (2012) “Environmental Colour Impact upon Human Behaviour: A Review” Procedia: social & behavioral sciences.

Vol:35 pp. 54 -62

HOT →→→→ COOL

LOUD →→→→ QUIET

Colour symbolism

Hinduism

• Black = The Earth

• White = Water

• Red = Fire

Colours of

the Christian Trilogy Knot

• Red

• Blue

• Yellow

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Funeral Colours

Modern Revolutions & their colour

labelsOrange Revolution (Ukraine)

Green Revolution (Iran)Pink (Tulip) Revolution

(Kyrgyzstan)

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Red Revolution (China)

Sound Symbols

e.g. onomatopoeia: underpinning mechanism: mimicry (∴ not

entirely arbitrary)

onomatopoeia

• Refers to a word that imitates or suggests the source of the sound that it describes OR

• The naming of a thing or action by a vocal imitation of the sound associated with it (such as buzz or hiss), i.e.

• The use of words whose sound suggests the sense. This occurs frequently in poetry, where a line of verse can express a characteristic of the thing being portrayed:

onomatopoeia

I chatter over stony ways,

In little sharps and trebles,

I bubble into eddying bays,

I babble on the pebbles.“The Brook” Alfred, Lord Tennyson

唧唧復唧唧，木蘭當戶織。不聞機杼聲，惟聞女嘆息…旦辭爺娘去，暮宿黃河邊，不聞爺娘喚女聲，但聞黃河流水鳴濺濺。

旦辭黃河去，暮至蒙特內格羅頭，不聞爺娘喚女聲，但聞燕山胡騎鳴啾啾。

Sound Symbols

e.g. Mantras 真言

underpinning mechanism:

Unknown to the public

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Mantras• In Hinduism and Buddhism, a sacred utterance

(syllable, word, or verse) that is considered to possess mystical or spiritual efficacy

• Various mantras are either spoken aloud or merely sounded internally in one's thoughts, and they are either repeated continuously for some time or just sounded once.

• Most mantras are without any apparent verbal meaning, but they are thought to have a profound underlying significance and are in effect distillations of spiritual wisdom.

• A repetition of or meditation on a particular mantra can induce a trancelike state， & lead a higher level of spiritual awareness.

• One of the most powerful and widely used mantras in Hinduism is the sacred syllable om.

• The principal mantra in Buddhism is om maṇipadme hūṃ.

• 南無南無南無南無阿彌陀阿彌陀阿彌陀阿彌陀佛佛佛佛 : 「南無」“�amo” 是跟梵语的“�amaste”的意思一樣，表示恭敬恭敬恭敬恭敬的問候

• 「阿彌陀佛=name of Amitabha Buddha;• 「阿彌陀」amita是「無量無量無量無量」的意思

‘Om’ (Aum): a major sacred sound

• in Sanskrit, a & u coalesce → o & as a triad =

• Earth, atmosphere, & heaven

• Brahmā, Vishnu, & Śiva;

• The three sacred Vedic scriptures,

• embodies the essence of the entire universe.

+umeric Symbolism

Underpinning mechanism: mimicry, random association (i.e. no intrinsic connection

between the referent & the representamen)

What’s special about these numbers?

3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13…

Linguistic symbols

• The alphabet as cultural symbols, e.g.

• The periodic table of the elements

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Hand & Finger

(Symbolic) Signs

Semui_in (施無畏印施無畏印施無畏印施無畏印)

& Yogan_in（（（（願印願印願印願印）））） Raigo_in來迎印來迎印來迎印來迎印Semui_in (施無畏印施無畏印施無畏印施無畏印)

& Yogan_in（（（（願印願印願印願印））））Raigo_in來迎印來迎印來迎印來迎印

Other cultural symbols

€ £ ¥ $

αχδπσ

?!��%

Chevron: symbolic Signs of

Rank

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End of Lecture 4

Lecture 5 will start with Quiz 1