Jiggy Derrida

How do you understand what images mean? The process in which Derrida talks about is that we can never understand an image for what it is, but rather it is part of an endless string of signifiers. This means that when we see something we are acually seeing the meaning attached to something else rahter than the purity of the image presented. The brain constructs images in our heads in order for mutual understanding can be seen throughout people in different cultures. An example of this is the "golden arches", to almost everyone in america this means "fast food" "mcdonalds" "hamburgers". That one image is read simularly amongst millions of people because of the representations that it carries in our everyday life. Imagine is the images we saw were pure to us every single time that we saw them, no signifiers and no preconceived notions. If this situation happened the fabric of our lives would be completely different, everything in our culture would be destroyed. The simple thought that people wouldnt know what red, green and yellow mean on the roads if they couldnt associate it with meaning would mean global chaos. I believe that the meanings and conclusions of Derrida are rooted in the fuctions of the brain that are arguably unique to humans, for the most part. Sign and signifiers are the faberic of our lives, without it words and language would almost be impossible. Words themselves are just representations of the actual image or thing. We need to understand the functions of our daily brain function in order to fully appritiate its complexities.