Semiotics Semiotics Glossary S         Saussurean model of the sign [Chandler]    In Saussure' s model, the sign consisted of two elements: a signifier and a signified (though he insisted that these were inseparable other than for analytical purposes). This dyadic model makes no direct reference to a referent in the world, and can be seen as supporting the notion that language does not `reflect' reality but rather constructs it. It has been criticized as an idealist model. Saussure stressed that signs only made sense in terms of their relationships to other signs within the same signifying system (see Value).