Jung distinguishes between a sign (Zeichen) and a symbol (Symbol).
Sign
A sign denotes something already known. Its meaning can be explained. For example:
- a road sign;
- a mathematical sign;
- the designation of a chemical element.
A sign is a substitute for known content.
Symbol
By contrast, a symbol is an expression of something that cannot yet be fully expressed in concepts.
Jung writes:
“Every psychological expression is a symbol if we assume that it states or signifies something more and other than itself which eludes our present knowledge.”
“An expression that stands for a known thing remains a mere sign and is never a symbol.”
“A symbol is alive only as long as it is pregnant with meaning.”
When its meaning becomes fully known, the symbol ceases to be a symbol and becomes a sign.
Jung defines a symbol as something undifferentiated. Strictly speaking, Jung himself does not use the word undifferentiated in his definition of a symbol. He speaks of something that:
- is still unknown;
- cannot yet be expressed;
- cannot yet be exhausted by concepts;
- unites opposites;
- is pregnant with meaning.
But all of this can indeed be understood as a description of undifferentiated content of consciousness.