Structuralism

STRUCTURALISM
Report by Jose Antonio Rivera & Vince Sucatre

An Introduction to Structuralism
Structuralism is a theoretical Method, not a political position
“Quite Indifferent to the cultural value of its object” - Terry Eagleton
The method of Structuralism is Analytical, not evaluative
Derived from the theoretical work of Swiss Linguist Ferdinand de Saussure.
Strauss, Barthes, Foucault, Lacan and Althusser ; Professionals in different fields were
influenced by Saussure
Structuralism is a theoretical framework in the fields of linguistics, anthropology, and
psychology, among others, that emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. At its
core, structuralism is concerned with the analysis of the underlying structures that shape
human behavior, thought, and culture.
Structuralists believe in breaking down human experience into basic structures or

elements. These structures are seen as the building blocks of human experience.
Structuralists believe these structures are universal and can be analyzed using
rigorous scientific methods. They are interested in analyzing the relationships
between different elements of human experience. They are particularly interested
in how these structures shape human behavior, thought, and culture. Structuralists
believe these structures are often hidden or unconscious, inferred from observed
patterns of behavior and thought.
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Ferdinand De Sassure
26 November 1857 – 22 February 1913
Swiss Linguist, Semiotician and Philosopher

Divides language into 2 Component parts: The signifier and
the signified
The signifier and the signified's relationship is completely
Arbitrary
The relationship between the two is simply the result of
convention of cultural agreement.
Meaning isn't created by the correspondence between signified
and the signifier but by the result of difference and
relationship.
The system works not by expressing Natural meaning but
marking a difference
Meaning is also the result of a process of combination and selection.
(Saussure)
Syntagmatic axis of language: A meaning is complete once the final word is said.
Meaning can also be added for more emphasis, or can also substitute a word that
changes its whole meaning.
Example: Terrorists attacked an army base today.

If changed the word Terrorist to “Freedom Fighters” or “Anti - Imperialists” a whole
new interpretation is made
Meaning of a sentence is produced through the process of Selection and

Combination
Structuralists argue that language doesn't reflect on a existing reality. But to
organize and construct access to reality
The way we conceptualize the world is ultimately dependent on the language we
speak
“In language there are only differences without positive terms” - Saussure
2 theoretical approaches to linguistics are
Diachronic Approach: Studies the historical development of a language
Synchronic Approach: Studies a given language at a particular moment in time
Saussure made a distinction proved essential to the development of structuralism.

He discussed the division of language into Langue and Parole
Langue being the system of language, complete with the rules and the
conventions.
Parole being the individual utterance.
Saussure then goes on and compares language to a game of chess
Were we are able to discern between the game's rules and a real game of
chess. There could be no real game without the set of rules, yet these rules can
only be seen in a real game.
Thus, structure, and performance, Langue, and Parole are present. The
performance's heterogeneity is made feasible by the structure's homogeneity.
“throughout heaven and earth I alone am the honored one”
Structuralism focuses on the 'grammar' of cultural texts and practices, arguing that meaning is
the result of the interplay of relationships of selection and combination.
Cultural texts and practices are studied as analogous to language, examining the underlying
structure that makes meaning possible.
Structuralism aims to make explicit the rules and conventions (the structure) that govern the
production of meaning.
SITUATIONS OF STRUCTURALISM
A marketing psychologist shows research participants different product ads and
asks them to describe their emotional experience while watching each one.
A developmental psychologist carefully documents the verbal interactions of two

toddlers as they engage in pretend play.
A psychotherapist shows her patients several Rorschach inkblots in an attempt to

identify their underlying thought processes.
Claude Lévi-Strauss
28 November 1908 – 30 October 2009
French Anthropologist and Ethnologist
He used Saussure to understand the 'unconscious foundations' of 'primitive' societies' culture.
He compares cultural practices like cooking, dress, and aesthetics to a language system, each
serving as a communication mode.
His main focus is on myth, arguing that individual myths are examples of a homogeneous
structure.
Myths are composed of individual 'mythemes,' similar to language units like morphemes and
phonemes.
Anthropologists aim to discover the underlying 'grammar' or rules that make myths meaningful.
Myths are structured in terms of 'binary oppositions', meaning they are produced by dividing
the world into mutually exclusive categories.
Meaning is a result of the interplay between similarity and difference, as seen in the definition of
what is bad and what it means to be a man or woman.
Lévi-Strauss and his type of structuralism are no longer fashionable as a theoretical approach or
method, and has since been taken over by post-structuralists. However, it is important to remember
that Lévi-Strauss and his structuralism provided an important contribution for debating the nature of
“meaning”.
Lévi-Strauss' Myth Theory
•All myths share a similar structure and sociocultural function.
• Myths aim to make the world understandable and resolve its problems and contradictions.
• Mythical thought progresses from opposition awareness to resolution.
• Myths provide a logical model to overcome contradictions.
• Myths aim to banish contradictions and make the world habitable.
• They aim to bring peace with ourselves and our existence.
According to Lévi-Strauss, "mythical thought always progresses from the awareness of oppositions toward their resolution". In other
words, myths consist of:
1. elements that oppose or contradict each other and

2. other elements that "mediate", or resolve, those oppositions.
For example, Lévi-Strauss thinks the trickster of many Native American mythologies acts as a "mediator". Lévi-Strauss's argument
hinges on two facts about the Native American trickster:
1. the trickster has a contradictory and unpredictable personality;

2. the trickster is almost always a raven or a coyote.
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Will Wright's Analysis of the Hollywood Western
Wright uses Lévi-Strauss's structuralist methodology to analyze the
Hollywood Western.
He argues that the narrative power of the Western is derived from its
binary oppositions.
Wright differs from Lévi-Strauss in his focus on how the Western myths
communicate a conceptual order to society members.
He identifies three stages of the Western: 'classic,' 'transition theme,' and
'professional.'
He identifies a basic set of structuring oppositions:
Inside society | Outside society
Good | Bad
Strong | Weak
Civilization | Wilderness
Wright divides the 'classic' Western into sixteen narrative functions:
1. The hero enters a social group.
2. The hero is unknown to society.
3. The hero is revealed to have an exceptional ability.
4. The members of the society recognize a difference between themselves and the hero; the hero is given
special status.
5. The society does not completely accept the hero.
6. There is a conflict of interests between the villains and the society.
7. The villains are stronger than the society; the society is weak
8. There is a strong friendship or respect between the hero and the villain.
9. The villains threaten the society.
10. The hero avoids involvement in the conflict.
11. The villain endangers a friend of the hero.
12. The hero fights the villains.
13. The hero defeats the villains.
14. The society is safe.
15. The society accepts the hero.
16. The hero loses or gives up their special status.
Examples in Media
The Hero’s Journey
The most famous Structuralist approach to mythology is without a
doubt Joseph Campbell’s
The Hero With A Thousand Faces.
Campbell, though not a Structuralist, was strongly influenced by

Lévi-Strauss and his work is the perfect example of the
Structuralist project of unearthing underlying structures in this case
exposing the monomythic structure of the hero’s journey that hides
beneath the surface parole of a million and one individual myths.
-James Causen
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In Conclusion:
Structuralism is a way of understanding culture and meaning in the arts by relating the
individual piece of art (a novel, a painting, a symphony) to something larger. In
Structuralist theory, the relationship between cultural phenomena is a web, network, or
structure, which exists underneath the way we think and act, and produce art.
Dedicated to: The Honored One

Structuralism

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STRUCTURALISM

Report by Jose Antonio Rivera & Vince Sucatre

Structuralists believe in breaking down human experience into basic structures or

Swiss Linguist, Semiotician and Philosopher

Example: Terrorists attacked an army base today.

Meaning of a sentence is produced through the process of Selection and

Saussure made a distinction proved essential to the development of structuralism.

A developmental psychologist carefully documents the verbal interactions of two

A psychotherapist shows her patients several Rorschach inkblots in an attempt to

1. elements that oppose or contradict each other and

1. the trickster has a contradictory and unpredictable personality;

The Hero With A Thousand Faces.

Campbell, though not a Structuralist, was strongly influenced by

Dedicated to: The Honored One

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