Semiotics

The link between organizational theory and its application in practice is explored in this research through the lens of Peircian semiotics. An investigation is conducted of how organizations convey their culture through mission and vision statements and the reflection of these statements within New Institutionalism. Through the use of a novel computational model that merges quantitative analysis with traditional qualitative methods, this study evaluates the relevance and effectiveness of institutional theories. The three main schools of New Institutionalism—rational choice, historical, and sociological institutionalism —are examined to determine how well municipal mission and vision statements align with the theories' principles. The analysis interprets organizational communications identifying similarities or differences between theoretical concepts and the expressions of found organizational culture. The findings produced by the analyses offer insights into the relationship between theory and practice. It highlights the challenges in interpreting the intended meanings behind organizational communications, as well as, the practical utility of theoretical models for organizational behavior. This study contributes to the organizational theory library by introducing a new methodological approach to examine and compare institutional theories and the communicative strategies.

This is a study of the polysemous language in John Milton's Paradise Lost. Unlike some of his seventeenth-century contemporaries, Milton did not harbor a mistrust of highly symbolic and interpretable language, and the fact that he did not has deep repercussions in Milton's great epic. I examine the porous and mutable nature of Edenic language, and how it challenges the idea of prelapsarian language as devoid of polysemous gloss. Prior to the Fall, Adam and Eve's perfect acquisition of knowledge is not undermined by the symbolism of language. Nevertheless, Satan cleverly exploits the polysemy of Edenic language in order to effectuate Adam and Eve's transgression. Ultimately, Milton's Paradise Lost departs from common seventeenth-century theories about language and knowledge. Milton's view is unique in that it retains a positive view of symbolic language and suggests that postlapsarian humanity is bereft of divine guidance and left to struggle for knowledge through experience.

This thesis examines the duality of meaning conveyed by John Milton's use of language in the epic poem, Paradise Lost, specifically repetition, pairing, alliteration and puns. Following a long tradition of close readings, especially critics RA. Shoaf and Christopher Ricks, I argue that Milton conceives the Fall of Adam and Eve as a falling into polysemy, or multiplicity of signification. Very few critics have undertaken a close reading of words that signal coupling in the poem, and their relationship to pairs and oppositions relevant to Genesis. Shoaf identifies pairs and oppositions in the poem as duals and duels, and connects them to binaries in the theology. However, he overlooks a great deal of evidence which supports his theory of the dual and the duel, and also disregards many significant examples of duality in Milton's wordplay that other critics identify, including alliterative pairs and words that convey ancient etymologies.