Structuralism: Sign, signified, and signifier

As the name would imply, structuralism depends largely on one thing: structure. This structure can be seen in three simple steps that decode language. These steps would be the signifier, the signified, and the sign.

But what do those words mean?

Signifier is simple. Whenever a word is said, that is the signifier. Say, for instance, someone is discussing a tree. The words tree means nothing, but it's a signifier for what is actually being discussed.

This brings us to the next step, the signified. This would be the actual object that the signifier is referring to. So, say someone is discussing a tree. While the word tree is the signifier, the signified would be this:



However, even this:



cannot be considered a signified, because this picture is simply acting as yet another signifier. The only way to truly grasp the signified would be by going to the window and seeing this:



for yourself. That actual, tangible object (which comes to mind when someone uses the signifier 'tree') is the signified.

So then what's sign? Sign is simply the connection between both the signifier and the signified.

On the outside, the similar words can seem confusing. However, they mean no more than exactly what they sound like, and are no harder to grasp than the concept of:




Citations:
"Tree." Wikipedia. N.p., n.d. Web. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree>.