Ferdinand de Saussure

Biography

Resulting from a Genevese family of famous scientists, Ferdinand de Saussure was born in 1857. He is the son of Henri de Saussure, Entomologiste, the brother of Rene de Saussure, esperantist and the father of Raymond de Saussure, doctor and psychoanalyst. One can also note in his genealogy Horace-Bénédict de Saussure, naturalist and geologist, his back-large father, considered as the founder of the Alpinisme, and the son of this last Nicolas Theodore de Saussure, chemist and botanist.

After having completed its secondary studies, it goes in 1875 to Leipzig where was then the most famous university of Philologie of the time, then to Berlin and Paris. In 1877, Saussure communicates to the Company of linguistics of Paris its Mémoire on the primitive system of the vowels in the Indo-European languages . Two years later, it presents to Leipzig its thesis of doctorate: Of the use of the genitive absolute in Sanskrit . He worked then a few years in France, where he taught the Linguistique Indo-European before turning over in Suisse. There, it accepted a pulpit of linguistics and taught, inter alia, the Sanskrit, the Lituanien and general linguistics.

Work

Sources

The Cours of general linguistics constitutes the most important document of which we laid out to know the thought of Saussure. However this text was not written by Saussure itself, but by the two linguists Charles Bally and Albert Sechehaye: while being based on the notes of the student Albert Riedlinger, they wrote a supposed text to return the thought of Saussure.

It is only in the Fifties that a more precise study of the sources of the Cours of general linguistics developed which tried to determine the ideas belonging authentically to Saussure starting from the fragments which us remain about it today.

Definition of the concept of language

The ultimate end of Saussure is to propose a coherent theory of the language, which will be capable to seize its object with the greatest possible rigor and clearness, by distinguishing the linguistic phenomenon from any related phenomenon. This brings of Saussure to distinguish the language from the languages. By language , of Saussure understands general faculty to be able to express itself by means of signs. This faculty is not specific to the natural languages but it characterizes any form of human communication. By language , of Saussure understands on the other hand a whole of signs used by a community to communicate: French, English or German, to quote only some examples.

But beyond this distinction, from Saussure differentiates moreover the language and the Parole. the word is, for him, the concrete use of the linguistic signs in a precise context. By this concept of word, Saussure tries to distinguish the concrete use of the language from the language itself, heard like whole of signs.

Diachrony and synchrony

The language has a diachronic dimension (evolution of the signs during time) and a synchronic dimension (relationship between the signs at a given moment). It is in the study of this second aspect that of Saussure particularly innovated. According to him, the diachronic prospect must be studied, certainly, but it does not make it possible to return account owing to the fact that the language is a system. It indeed only takes counts the modifications during time of them; the synchronic approach shows, it, that the significance of the signs depends on the structure of the unit of the language.

The language like system

The linguistic theory of Saussure is clearly Sémiotique insofar as she interprets the language like a whole of signs: the linguist distinguishes in the Signe two elements: the Meaning and the Meant.

Meant

Meant the concept indicates, i.e. a mental representation of a thing. Contrary to a spread idea, the language is not a repertory of words which would reflect the things or the preexistent concepts by affixing labels there. If it were the case, the words of a language, but also its grammatical categories would always have their exact correspondent in another. This observation leads Saussure to distinguish significance and value : “sheep” and " sheep" have the same direction, but not the same value, since English for its part distinguishes sheep , the animal of its meat mutton ; it of the opposition preterite (simple) is also thus /passé of it indefinite (compound) which expresses an opposition of Aspect in English or Castilian, a practical value (written/oral) in contemporary French. Thus the contents (meant) are a definite concept negatively because of existence or of the absence in a language of other concepts which are opposable for him.

Meaning

Meaning the acoustic image of a mot. indicates. What imports in a word, it is not its sonority in itself, but the phonic differences which distinguish it from the others. Its value rises from these differentiations. Each language builds its lexicon starting from a limited number of phonemes, characterized like meant, not by their quality specific and positive, but by what opposes: to roll a " r" in French is without consequence for comprehension; not to do it in Arabic led to confusions, since this language comprises at the same time apical vibrating (" r" rolled) and a Fricative velar sound (near to the " R grasseyé French). The words rasīl (messenger) and ġasīl (detergent) are characterized only by the opposition r/ġ.

The sign taken in its totality

The fundamental idea of Saussure is that the language is a closed system of signs. Any sign is defined compared to the others, by pure difference (negatively), and not by its particular characteristics (" positives") : this is why about Saussure speaks about " système". Named however (after its death) “father of the Structuralism”, it forever, at any moment, and it notable, is used the term of " structure" : it spoken forever about another thing only of " System ".

The arbitrary one of the sign

The language cuts out simultaneously one meaning in the formless mass of the sounds and a concept, a " idée" , in the mass informs of the concepts.

The relationship between meaning and meant is arbitrary and unmotivated: nothing, a priori , justifies, in French for example, that following phonemes (meaning it, in fact, of the sign " arbre"), the concept d'" is associated; arbre" (which is the " here; signifié" , in saussuriens terms). No reasoning can result in preferring with to mean the concept of " bœuf". De Saussure from the epistemological point of view is located in nominalism.

Two axes: syntagmatic reports/ratios and associative reports/ratios

Linguistic units

A speech being composed of a succession of signs, of Saussure raises the question of the delimitation of the sign, essential to the comprehension of the connected speech (the ear cannot distinguish it if it concerns an unknown language). It is thus brought to define the linguistic unit like " a section of sonorities which is, other than what precedes and by what follows, meaning it by certain concept. Thus the sound segment: (in International Phonetic Alphabet) is analyzed by a French-speaking person in three linguistic units: " je/la/prends/" , or " je/l/apprends" (the choice between these cuttings being done according to the context). To arrive to this analysis, the language establishes between the units of direction two kinds of reports/ratios, essential one with the other.

Syntagmatic reports/ratios

The linguistic units are connected one with the other in the unfolding of the connected speech and depend one on the other. Any combination of two or several signs linguistic constitutes a Syntagme. Any sign placed in a syntagm draws its value from its opposition to what precedes, to what follows or to both: " Re-lire" , " against tous" , " if it makes beau" are syntagms made up of two units or more.

Associative reports/ratios (or paradigmatic, denomination post-saussurienne)

The elements thus combined are in addition associated in the speaker with others which belong to multiform groups: " enseignement" is connected as well to " enseignant" … by relationship that with " armement" , chargement" … by suffixation identical or that to " training, éducation" meant by analogy. Whereas the syntagmatic reports/ratios are directly observable ( in praesentia ), the associative reports/ratios are virtual, subjacent ( in absentia ).

These two types of reports/ratios cooperate; coordination in space (syntagmatic reports/ratios) contributes to create associative bonds and those are necessary for the location and the analysis of a syntagm. In, is analyzed as unit of direction because it joins " te/lui… " who are opposable for him: they could replace and are excluded one the other. But without the presence by what precedes and follows (syntagmatic report/ratio), cannot be perceived like unit of direction: it is the case in the syntagm because the combination does not constitute a syntagm.

Linguistics and semiotics

Ferdinand de Saussure always insisted on the relationship between linguistics and Sémiotique. By semiotic or Semiology , it understands the Social science which studies the signs and symbols in a general way. It is interested, for example, with the corporate measures or social objects which have a significance symbolic system (like the acts of courtesy or the national flags).

Linguistics was not with the eyes of Saussure that a branch of semiotics, the language being a system of signs. However linguistics of constitutes the most developed branch, and most important, because of the complexity of the human language. What is interesting to note it is that, in spite of the clear separation carried out between language (like abstract system of signs) and word (like concrete use of this system), of Saussure clearly linguistics like a social science defined, and the language like the product of a pure social convention.

Posterity

External bonds

'' the course of general linguistics of Saussure: The role of the language with respect to the thought '' Sandrine Tognotti, University of Geneva, 1997.
Celebrates text of [[Greimas] on the Cours of general linguistics ].
Text on line of the '' [[Memory on the primitive system of the vowels in the Indo-European languages] ]

Text of Hjelmslev on the distinction between language and word

'' associative reports/ratios like determinants of the style ''. Nicolas Meeùs, University of Paris Sorbonne. Text on line on the associative reports/ratios in music.

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