Umberto Eco views a code as a “correlation between the units of two different systems.” This perspective is influenced by the first semiotic classification introduced by Éric Buyssens.
4.2.1. Buyssens’ Classification
Buyssens calls semiotic systems “semias,” and in his theory, the sign is referred to as a “seme.” He distinguishes between:
- Direct systems (e.g., spoken language).
- Substitutive systems – replacing systems (e.g., written language). According to him, the relationship between the written signal and the meaning is indirect: “when we replace written signs with the sounds of speech, it is from the sounds of speech that we move towards meaning.”
- Substitutive systems of the second degree – those that replace substitutive systems (written systems). These are also called double substitutive systems. This category includes all types of ciphers, Morse code, Braille, shorthand, etc., which are created on the basis of written language.
His follower, Louis Prieto, introduces the concept of parallel systems for substitutive systems—systems that are interpreted through another system: “Spoken language and its corresponding written language are instances of what we will call ‘parallel’ systems, i.e., systems where each unit of one corresponds to an analogous unit of the other and vice versa.”
Parallel systems can also be non-linguistic. For example, in navigation, the water level in ports is signaled through a day and night code, respectively by buoys with different shapes during the day and different lights at night.
4.2.2. Other Classifications
Besides the classifications by Buyssens and Prieto, there have been many attempts at classification, none of which have led to any serious results. Most classifications are eclectic and do not merit attention. Those that do deserve attention only cover fragments of the entire diversity of semiotic systems.
Umberto Eco distinguishes between S-codes and true codes. S-codes are uniplanar systems, such as the phonetic subsystem of language, which has only an expression plane but no content plane. True codes are biplanar, with a correlation between the expression plane and the content plane.
Christian Metz distinguishes between codes and subcodes: for example, Westerns are a subcode of the cinema code. The terms are synonymous with system and subsystem.
Marcel Danesi refers to the same concepts as microcodes and macrocodes. He proposes that culture be defined as a macrocode composed of microcodes. Using a specific microcode in interpreting reality means “being a member of a particular culture.”
Donald Fiske distinguishes between widely distributed codes and narrowly distributed (restrictive) codes. Widely distributed codes are shared by the mass audience and are simpler and more banal—they are understood according to life experience. Narrowly distributed codes are aimed at a more limited audience and require intentional study and specialized knowledge. For example, pop music is a widely distributed code, while classical music is a narrowly distributed code.
