This essay develops a framework for the application of semiotics to foreign language (FL) pedagogy. The state of the art and rationale of applied semiotics are discussed. The teacher will find that the semiotic approach aids in the teaching of languages by making the student aware of what is going on in a language act and thus, through redundancy, enhancing memory and insight into cross-cultural communication. As an example of how the semiotic approach may be brought to bear in a classroom situation, an exercise is described in which the symbols and graphics of the "Guide Michelin" are transformed into a narrative through a process of transcoding. Many types of semiotic systems are encountered in the FL classroom. However, since language is the only semiotic system into which all the others can be translated, an FL pedagogy based on applied semiotics can help to restore the balance among the systems, a balance that is necessary in order to master the means of communication used by a given culture. The synthesis of the scientific and creative aspects of a semiotic approach will be embodied in a process of material selection, semiotic analysis ("deconstruction"), and reconstruction along lines mapped out by the teacher. (JB)