Präsentative Symbole

Following Ernst Cassirer, Susanne Langer demonstrated that symbolic articulation is not limited to discursive language but has to be supplemented by a presentational modality. From this perspective it becomes apparent that thinking about language in the West has always been accompanied by references to presentational symbols. On the other hand forms of culture are disclosed, which show an orientation towards the presentational, such as Japanese culture. Presentational symbols are dealt with here from the perspective of the philosophy of the symbol, combining aspects of cultural philosophy, semiotics and japanology.