Human beings exist and interact in a reality which they define themselves. Inside of this
reality they make use of social objects, that is, anything used between to actors in social
situations that have meaning and function in that social environment (Charon 46). Many social
objects are used to represent something else and are interpreted to convey more meaning. These
social objects are known as symbols and it is the core of the symbolic interactionist perspective.
Simply defined, a symbol is something that stands for something else. In Sociology, a symbol
is classified as a social object that the members of a society have agreed represents a concept, an
object, or an ideal that is not present. They are used to communicate, express intentions,
represent objects and groups and define the reality that surrounds us (Charon 46-48). They can be
separated into the categories of referential, expressive, and mixed symbols which can be
interrupted as both of the previous mentioned types.
Referential symbols are used to define and classify parts of reality. They can be used to
represent an object in its absence. The word "pencil" is immediately interpreted a shaft of wood
with a graphite core used for writing or a mechanical device with the same purpose. Now while
the pencil itself is just a social object with a simple function, the word "pencil" acts as a symbol
in that it represents the physical object. On a larger scale referential symbols are used to represent
entire groups. A red star can be used to represent a political party or philosophy (Charon 50).
Referential symbols can also be used to classify groups such as gender. Diana Kendall gives the
example of dressing infants in certain colours, blue and red for males and pink and yellow for
females, to convey immediately communicate the sex of the child (Kendall 70). These symbols
are used as labels and divisions in society.
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