Faculty of Humanities and Social Science > English

Why theory?

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Gopa B. Caesar:
i.        a system of signs
ii.      Sign = signifier + signified
The sign (or word) is made up of two parts, a signifier (the acoustic image) and a signified (the mental concept).
iii, Any signifier that does not evoke a signified is not a word. 

Gopa B. Caesar:
Signs don’t have to be words of course. For example, RED or GREEN light in a traffic signal.

Gopa B. Caesar:
i.   If the basic units of language can be analyzed as sign systems, then it must be possible to categorize larger units of language
If words can be understood as signs, than can’t we do the same for all forms of meaning-making? 
Structural Anthropology.  An entry point for cultural analysis.
   Structuralists are interested in the interrelationship between UNITS ( also called "surface phenomena," )
            and
   RULES  (the ways that units can be  put together. )

Gopa B. Caesar:
Structuralism

The structuralists drew an analogy between language systems and social systems
Language has a systematic (synchronic) as well as a historical (diachronic) form
They defined societies as complex systems ruled by a social contract
The participant are not always conscious of this (latent) contract
Structuralism is a unified theory that aims to establish the overall structure of society at large

Gopa B. Caesar:
Language and society

What is the status of words in society
Is literature to be compared to ritual, or does it work in a distinctively different way?
According to Geoffrey Hartman, these questions lead to two important discoveries:
Myths and arts, as models productive of social cohesion, have an exemplary role in society
All myths are homologous in structure as well as analogous in function.

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