The Routledge Companion to Semiotics presents up-to-date information on the key questions within its subject area. It is designed to allow the reader to navigate the subject with ease, through cross-referencing within the volume and by means of indications for further enquiry.
The book is divided into two parts. Part I, ‘Understanding semiotics’, consists of an introduction and ten short chapters. Each of these chapters broadly addresses key themes in contemporary semiotics. Part II, ‘Key themes and major figures in semiotics’, consists of a dictionary of semiotics, containing a wealth of information on terms used in the subject area as well as biographical entries on influential individuals.
The cross-referencing procedure takes place throughout the volume. Any topic or name which has an entry in Part II of the volume will, on its initial appearance, be printed in bold type. This is the case for the chapters in Part I as it is for the entries in Part II. On those occasions when an entry does not explicitly mention a name or topic which nevertheless bears some relevant further information on the entry, it will be followed by ‘See also’ with the cross-reference printed in CAPITALS.
Cross-referencing from entries in Part II of the volume to chapters in Part I of the volume will occasionally take place. To avoid confusion, references to chapters in Part I are indicated by giving the author’s name in underlined type; for example, Hoffmeyer or Deely or Petrilli and Ponzio, and so on. Despite the cross-referencing in the volume, both Part I and Part II can, of course, be used on their own terms: as a free-standing collection of essays or as a far-reaching dictionary of semiotics.
The identity of the author of each entry in Part II is indicated by bold initials at the end of the entry (see, also, the notes on contributors).
Each of the chapters in Part I of the volume is followed by five recommendations for further reading.
Further reading recommendations continue into Part II. The entries in this section are of three different sizes (small, medium and large). Large entries such as code are followed by three recommendations for further reading; medium-sized entries such as arbitrariness are followed by one recommendation for further reading; and the smaller entries such as pragmaticism have none.
When reference is made to a published work, for example in the following fashion, ‘Halliday’s linguistic work has culminated in his extensive description of English in functional terms (1985)’ or ‘However, most sentences can only be understood against a set of background assumptions which effectively define a context (Searle 1978)’, the bibliographic reference for the work is to be found in the References at the end of the volume and not at the end of the specific chapter or entry. Note, however, that Recommendations for further reading are not reproduced in the References at the end of the volume.
One peculiarity of the subject area must be mentioned in respect of bibliographical references to semiotics’ major founding figures. In Peirce scholarship it has been customary to refer to the standard edition of his works, the eight-volume Collected Papers, which usually appears in bibliographies as follows:
Peirce, C. S. (1931–1935; 1958) Collected Papers of Charles Sanders Peirce, Vols 1–6 ed. C. Hartshorne and P. Weiss; Vols 7 and 8 ed. A. Burks, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
However, when scholars make reference to the Collected Papers they invariably use a short-hand method which consists of naming the number of the volume and the number of the section within the volume; thus, ‘The symbol is the sign “in consequence of a habit (which term I use as including a natural disposition)” (4.531).’ To make matters slightly easier and to help prevent any confusion in the process of cross-referencing, this book will retain the numbering of volume and section but will designate the Collected Papers by the initials, CP: thus, ‘The symbol is the sign “in consequence of a habit (which term I use as including a natural disposition)” (CP 4.531).’
Note that not all of Peirce’s work appears in the Collected Papers and that much of his work is also published elsewhere: this includes original places of publication (for example, journals such as The Monist), the chronological edition of his writings currently being published by the Peirce Edition Project, as well as other, shorter collections of Peirce’s essays, notes and letters. The other major publications containing Peirce’s writings are referenced as follows:
Peirce, C. S. (1975–1988) Charles Sanders Peirce: Contributions to the Nation, 4 vols, ed. K. L. Ketner and J. E. Cook, Lubbock, TX: Texas Tech University Press.
Referenced by volume and page, for example CN 3: 124.
Peirce, C. S. (1982–) The Writings of Charles S. Peirce: A Chronological Edition, ed. Peirce Edition Project, Vols 1–6, Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. Referenced by volume and page, for example W 2: 49.
Peirce, C. S. (1839–1914) The Charles S. Peirce Papers. Manuscript Collection in the Houghton Library, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University.
Manuscript numbers of the Houghton Library Collection of Peirce’s papers refer to the Richard Robin arrangement. The Robin Catalogue numbers are prefixed either with MS (sometimes R) or L, depending on whether they are ordinary writings or letters. The letters manuscripts are in a separate section in the Robin Catalogue and are numbered separately.
Peirce Edition Project (eds) (1998)The Essential Peirce, Vol. 2, Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.
Referenced by volume and page, for example EP 2: 28.
Semiotic discussion of Saussure’s work usually refers to his Cours de linguistique générale, published in three major editions since 1916:
Saussure, F. de (1916, 1922, 1972) Cours de linguistique générale, Paris: Payot.
Referenced as CLG with page number.
The preferred English translation of Saussure’s Cours is:
Saussure, F. de (1983) Course in General Linguistics, trans. R. Harris, London: Duckworth.
Referenced in the usual date and page style
(although an earlier translation by Wade Baskin – McGraw-Hill, 1959 – exists and introduced some misleading translations which are still in use in semiotics). The other editions of Saussure’s writings used by scholars and referenced in this volume are:
Saussure, F. de (1967–1974) Cours de linguistique générale, edition critique, Vols 1 and 2, ed. R. Engler, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz.
Referenced as CLG/E with page number.
Saussure, F. de (2002) Ecrits de linguistique générale, ed. R. Engler and S. Bouquet, Paris: Gallimard.
Referenced as ELG with page number.
Saussure, F. de (1986)Le leggende germaniche, ed. A. Marinetti and M. Meli, Este: Zielo.
Referenced as LEG with page number.
The majority of the works of Sebeok were published directly into English and are relatively unproblematic. However, many of Sebeok’s writings – including those specifically on semiotics from 1963 onwards – are published in numerous places as well as in his own collections. Sebeok was so prolific as an editor and general convener of the work of others that it is sometimes difficult to keep track of publications and activities, particularly his work in linguistics and Finno-Ugric studies. The following bibliographies are helpful:
Deely, J. (ed.) (1995) Thomas A. Sebeok Bibliography 1942–1995, fascicle 15 in the Arcada Bibliographica Virorum Eruditorum of Gyula Décsy, Bloomington, IN: Eurolingua.
Umiker-Sebeok, J. (2003) ‘Thomas A. Sebeok: A bibliography of his writings’, Semiotica, 147(1/4): 11–73.
the latter being necessarily more complete.
Whether you are standing in a bookstore and pondering whether to buy this or if you are using this book in a library, a brief word is necessary about the relation of this volume to its predecessor. This is not a new edition of The Routledge Companion to Semiotics and Linguistics (2001). It is a very different book. First, it is strictly focused on semiotics whereas the previous book was designed to give an overview of the relation of semiotics and post-Chomskyan linguistics. Second, it has ten new essays plus a new introduction. Third, while Part II has kept a few entries from the previous book, the majority have been excluded and replaced by many more entries which give a clearer picture of the breadth of contemporary semiotics. The newness of the book is a testimony to the publisher’s confidence in the readership as well as its desire to produce a volume that is focused and innovative.