Structural linguistics

Structural linguistics, or structuralism, in linguistics, denotes schools or theories in which language is conceived as a self-contained, self-regulating semiotic system whose elements are defined by their relationship to other elements within the system.^[1]^[2] It is derived from the work of Swiss linguist Ferdinand de Saussure and is part of the overall approach of structuralism. Saussure's Course in General Linguistics, published posthumously in 1916, stressed examining language as a dynamic system of interconnected units. Saussure is also known for introducing several basic dimensions of semiotic analysis that are still important today. Two of these are his key methods of syntagmatic and paradigmatic analysis,^[3] which define units syntactically and lexically, respectively, according to their contrast with the other units in the system. Other key features of structuralism are the focus on systematic phenomena, the primacy of an idealized form over actual speech data, the priority of linguistic form over meaning, the marginalization of written language, and the connection of linguistic structure to broader social, behavioral, or cognitive phenomena.^[4]

Structuralism as a term, however, was not used by Saussure, who called the approach semiology. The term structuralism is derived from sociologist Émile Durkheim's anti-Darwinian modification of Herbert Spencer's organic analogy which draws a parallel between social structures and the organs of an organism which have different functions or purposes.^[5] Similar analogies and metaphors were used in the historical-comparative linguistics that Saussure was part of.^[6]^[7] Saussure himself made a modification of August Schleicher's language–species analogy, based on William Dwight Whitney's critical writings, to turn focus to the internal elements of the language organism, or system.^[8] Nonetheless, structural linguistics became mainly associated with Saussure's notion of language as a dual interactive system of symbols and concepts. The term structuralism was adopted to linguistics after Saussure's death by the Prague school linguists Roman Jakobson and Nikolai Trubetzkoy; while the term structural linguistics was coined by Louis Hjelmslev.^[9]

^ Martinet, André (1989). "Linguistique générale, linguistique structurale, linguistique fonctionnelle". La Linguistique. 25 (1): 145–154.
^ Matthews, P. H. (2014). "Structural linguistics". The Concise Dictionary of Linguistics (3rd ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780191753060.
^ de Saussure, Ferdinand. Course in General Linguistics. Open Court House.
^ Joseph, John E. (2002). From Whitney to Chomsky: Essays in the History of American Linguistics. John Benjamins. ISBN 9781588113504.
^ Hejl, P. M. (2013). "The importance of the concepts of "organism" and "evolution" in Emile Durkheim's division of social labor and the influence of Herbert Spencer". In Maasen, Sabine; Mendelsohn, E.; Weingart, P. (eds.). Biology as Society, Society as Biology: Metaphors. Springer. pp. 155–191. ISBN 9789401106733.
^ Sériot, Patrick (1999). "The Impact of Czech and Russian Biology on the Linguistic Thought of the Prague Linguistic Circle". In Hajičová; Hoskovec; Leška; Sgall; Skoumalová (eds.). Prague Linguistic Circle Papers, Vol. 3. John Benjamins. pp. 15–24. ISBN 9789027275066.
^ Aronoff, Mark (2017). "Darwinism tested by the science of language". In Bowern; Horn; Zanuttini (eds.). On Looking into Words (and Beyond): Structures, Relations, Analyses. SUNY Press. pp. 443–456. ISBN 978-3-946234-92-0. Retrieved 2020-03-03.
^ Saussure, Ferdinand De (1931). Cours de linguistique générale (3e éd.). Paris: Payot. p. 42. Nous pensons que l'étude des phénomènes linguistiques externes est très fructueuse ; mais il est faux de dire que sans eux on ne puisse connaître l'organisme linguistique interne.
^ Dosse, François (1997) [First published 1991]. History of Structuralism, Vol.1: The Rising Sign, 1945-1966; translated by Edborah Glassman (PDF). University of Minnesota Press. ISBN 978-0-8166-2241-2.

[Martinet_1989-1] Martinet, André (1989). "Linguistique générale, linguistique structurale, linguistique fonctionnelle". La Linguistique. 25 (1): 145–154.

[Matthews_2014-2] Matthews, P. H. (2014). "Structural linguistics". The Concise Dictionary of Linguistics (3rd ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780191753060.

[3] Saussure, Ferdinand. Course in General Linguistics. Open Court House.

[Joseph_2002-4] Joseph, John E. (2002). From Whitney to Chomsky: Essays in the History of American Linguistics. John Benjamins. ISBN 9781588113504.

[Hejl_2013-5] Hejl, P. M. (2013). "The importance of the concepts of "organism" and "evolution" in Emile Durkheim's division of social labor and the influence of Herbert Spencer". In Maasen, Sabine; Mendelsohn, E.; Weingart, P. (eds.). Biology as Society, Society as Biology: Metaphors. Springer. pp. 155–191. ISBN 9789401106733.

[Seriot_1999-6] Sériot, Patrick (1999). "The Impact of Czech and Russian Biology on the Linguistic Thought of the Prague Linguistic Circle". In Hajičová; Hoskovec; Leška; Sgall; Skoumalová (eds.). Prague Linguistic Circle Papers, Vol. 3. John Benjamins. pp. 15–24. ISBN 9789027275066.

[Aronoff_2017-7] Aronoff, Mark (2017). "Darwinism tested by the science of language". In Bowern; Horn; Zanuttini (eds.). On Looking into Words (and Beyond): Structures, Relations, Analyses. SUNY Press. pp. 443–456. ISBN 978-3-946234-92-0. Retrieved 2020-03-03.

[8] Saussure, Ferdinand De (1931). Cours de linguistique générale (3e éd.). Paris: Payot. p. 42. Nous pensons que l'étude des phénomènes linguistiques externes est très fructueuse ; mais il est faux de dire que sans eux on ne puisse connaître l'organisme linguistique interne.

[Dosse_1997-1-9] Dosse, François (1997) [First published 1991]. History of Structuralism, Vol.1: The Rising Sign, 1945-1966; translated by Edborah Glassman (PDF). University of Minnesota Press. ISBN 978-0-8166-2241-2.

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