If the symbol is poorly represented because of inept draughtsmanship or if its significance is beyond the viewer's experience, then recognition fails. It can also fail even if the representation is good and the viewer knows what it is, if it is presented out of its usual context. The second type of symbol is the Ideograph . This is a graphic representation of an abstract idea - one that has no direct visual equivalent, because we can't see it. Love is often symbolised by a heart - because you can't draw love.
Danger is represented by a skull.
A cross can have many meanings, depending on its context. A cross on a child's school book means something entirely different from a cross on a ballot slip. A cross on a road sign has no relationship with a cross on a church. Chinese characters are based on ideographs because each has a meaning. If you have not been taught to read and write Chinese, the ideas behind the visual symbols are meaningless, as are the meanings of the symbols themselves.