André Martinet/6 – Semiotics

Conversazione con André Martinet
André Martinet/1 Communication is our basic relevancy
André Martinet/2 Language articulates what we feel into a succession of items
André Martinet/3 How to describe a language
André Martinet/4 Choosing words
André Martinet/5 Amalgamations

From an interdisciplinary point of view, what is your opinion about the role of linguistics in the analysis of human communication?

After all, we start studying languages, but of course we have to remember that languages are not the only systems. There are other systems than languages for communication. It doesn’t say communication but that’s what it means. And, why not start from that? So, fine, but as a matter of fact, people started studying languages before they could imagine or think of other systems and usually it’s in relationship with linguistics, with languages, that they invent other systems. If, for example, people on a ship want to communicate with another ship, they would use language, but they can’t. So they have to find a way out with signals and flags, etc. There you have your semiotics.