Scaffolding
Scaffolding

Summary/Abstract: Semiotic scaffolding has been one of the central concepts and themes in Jesper Hoffmeyer’s work, particularly in his writings after 2005. It is a concept used already in Lev Vygotsky’s works, and later developed by Jerome Bruner (Vygotsky 1986 [1934]; Wood et al. 1976; see also Foley 1994), Andy Clark, and others. For instance, Clark (2008) speaks about language as scaffolding. Jesper Hoffmeyer’s role here has been: (1) to observe that scaffolding in this sense is always a semiotic scaffolding, and (2) to demonstrate that semiotic scaffolding is at work on all levels of semiosis, from the origin of life forward. This entails something very important and fundamental for the whole of semiotic theory.

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