Posted: May 15th, 2015

Assignment 1

1. CONCEPTUAL ANALYSIS (Sowa)
Conceptual analysis is a human cognitive activity. Our aim is to identify the concepts “behind” the words. Look carefully at the Sowa-Sloman heuristic. Try it out with two or three concepts that are important to you, personally.
As an example, we looked at [SPEND] and [WORTH] in the lectures. Concepts that are important to you, personally, would not necessarily be the same. They may very well have something to do with your own sense of self, your own cognitive conceptual system.

2. PICTURES AND A THOUSAND WORDS (Hall)
If there are concepts “behind” words, then most certainly there are concepts “behind” the various images that we see.
Going from images (visual signs) to concepts is non-trivial. Pick two or three examples from Hall and review them critically.
What about non-visual signs, such as music, or space distribution, or the sense of smell?

3. EXPERIENTIALISM (Arieti)
This question refers to Page 92 of the Arieti handout.
Arieti states that “any normal human being uses and associates concepts in innumerable complex ways“. Do you? He also states that we can transmit these newly- formed combinations to others. Can we? How?
Arieti states that our acquired personal versions of the rigid concepts of others do not have to remain rigid and exact copies. We can “reacquire [… our] originality”. How? What have been some of your experiences?
Arieti further states that “clusters of concepts become the repositories of intangible feelings and values”. Have you had any experience with this phenomenon? Give some examples.

you can use these sources to help you:
A Sowa, John. Conceptual structures. (1984)
Hall, Sean. This means this and this means that: a user’s guide to semiotics,
2nd edition. (2012)
A Arieti, Silvano. Creativity: the magic synthesis. (1976)

You also may include pictures or diagrams where appropriate.