Abstract
The article discusses Kenneth Burke's theory of the symbol, which considers the use of the sign as a specifically human activity associated with the formation of meaning. As a meaning-making device, the symbol can influence human action and thoughts and therefore is for Burke the key to understand the nature of human communication.
The text focuses on comparing Burke's ideas with other sign-symbol theories, specifically the semiotics of U. Eco, and J.
M. Lotman, the philosophy of symbolic forms of E.
Cassirer, and Ch. S.
Peirce's semeiotics. Emphasis is placed primarily on the authors' comparisons in terms of defining the nature of the symbol, specifying the conventional nature of the symbol, the identification of the symbol by the individuals, and the characteristics of the symbolization process itself.