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Saussure On Language: Ferdinand De Essay

The mental concept or signified basically refers to the particular thing or event within the mental representation. The Linguistic Sign:

Saussure considers language as a form rather than substance because the linguistic sign is basically fabricated by a combination of the obvious sound image (signifier) and the mental concept (signified). In fact, he considers the linguistic sign as a mental relationship between the signifier and the signified rather than being the connection between a thing and a name (Walker par, 5). Furthermore, while the signifier is a link between a sound pattern and a sound, the signified is a connection the mental image of a concept and the concept itself. Therefore, language consists of not only a process of translating concepts into sounds but it is also a process of translating sounds into concepts. As a result of this process, the connection between a sound image and a mental concept contributes to a form rather than a substance.

Meaning of the Statement:

By stating...

He considers language not to be a matter of natural substance but of form because the disparity from other signifiers verifies the identity of signifiers. When signifiers are spelled differently or sound in a different way, they normally create a different meaning and function to name things. Furthermore, according to Saussure, the idea that language is form and not substance means that it is a set of relations between mental symbols of entities and the entities themselves.
Works Cited:

Klages, Mary. "Structuralism and Saussure." University of Colorado. University of Colorado, 6 Sept. 2001. Web. 19 Aug. 2010. .

"Structuralism and Poststructuralism - Saussure And Structuralism." JRank. Net Industries and Its Licensors. Web. 19 Aug. 2010. .

Walker, Christopher. "The Swiss and The Sign." MartNet.com. MartNet, 14 Apr. 1998. Web. 19 Aug. 2010. .

Sources used in this document:
Works Cited:

Klages, Mary. "Structuralism and Saussure." University of Colorado. University of Colorado, 6 Sept. 2001. Web. 19 Aug. 2010. <http://www.colorado.edu/English/courses/ENGL2012Klages/saussure.html>.

"Structuralism and Poststructuralism - Saussure And Structuralism." JRank. Net Industries and Its Licensors. Web. 19 Aug. 2010. <http://science.jrank.org/pages/11346/Structuralism-Poststructuralism-Saussure-Structuralism.html>.

Walker, Christopher. "The Swiss and The Sign." MartNet.com. MartNet, 14 Apr. 1998. Web. 19 Aug. 2010. <http://www.martnet.com/~lexicon/origins.html>.
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