A particular relationship between the icon on the desktop and the programming language

抄録

This paper examines a relationship between the icon on the desktop and the programming language, in order to examine the iconユs significance in the Graphical User Interface. In order to explore this relationship, my paper regards the icon as a pictorial sign and the programming language as a linguistic sign. I can then consider this relationship as a special case of battle between the pictorial sign and the linguistic sign throughout cultural history. I then focus on David. C. Smith's doctoral thesis PYGMALION, which introduced the icon concept for the computer, and the programming language for PYGMALION, Smalltalk, in order to investigate what the icon brings to the computer and why the icon is even possible. Next, I analyze why the linguistic sign becomes the pictorial sign from the viewpoint of analogy and allegory. Finally, my paper shows what is concealed by the desktop icon. Through these analyses, we can say that the relationship between the icon and the programming language is one of allegory and complementariness. This means that the icon is a pictorial sign, restricted metaphorically by the linguistic signムthe computer program.