Return to Saussure

Verse and Formula. AI art Introduction: Disciplinary Bias Artificial intelligence has become a transversal tool across multiple areas of knowledge. Yet, not all fields welcome it in the same way. In the hard sciences—physics, chemistry, biology—its integration is seen as natural and beneficial: algorithms that predict protein structures (Jumper et al., 2021), computer vision systems for laboratory experiments, and models for astronomical simulation. The prevailing view is that AI enhances precision, saves time, and opens new horizons for discovery. In contrast, within the humanities—literature, philosophy, history—the response is often skeptical. When an intelligent system composes a poem, an essay, or even a critical review, it is accused of lacking “authenticity,” “soul,” or “inner life.” In cultural forums and journals, machine-generated texts are questioned as hollow copies, while their applications in the hard sciences are accepted without hesitation. This essay argues that ...

Introduction Few concepts have exercised such enduring influence over the history of philosophy and linguistics as the sign . From Aristotle’s On Interpretation to Saussure’s Course in General Linguistics , the sign has been treated as a bridge between thought, language, and reality. Yet Jacques Derrida’s deconstruction in Of Grammatology demonstrates that this apparently stable structure is undermined by its own assumptions. By interrogating the metaphysical commitments underlying the sign, Derrida exposes the fragility of notions such as origin, transcendental signified , and logocentrism . This article explores Derrida’s critique in relation to classical and modern accounts of the sign, focusing on Aristotle, Augustine, Jakobson, and Saussure, and culminating in Derrida’s own proposal of arche-writing . The Classical Foundations: Aristotle and Augustine The Western tradition of the sign begins with Aristotle’s Περὶ Ἑρμηνείας ( On Interpretation ). For Aristotle, signs me...

Network of Signs. AI art Introduction The history of semiotics is a history of unease. From Aristotle’s earliest definitions to poststructuralist elaborations, the sign has always seemed to promise a simple mediation between thought and world, yet has repeatedly shown itself to be unstable. Jacques Derrida and Jean Baudrillard stand as two of the most radical challengers to the metaphysics of presence built into this concept. At first glance, their projects appear distinct: Derrida deconstructs the privilege of speech over writing, while Baudrillard dramatizes the collapse of representation into simulation. Yet, on closer reading, the lines blur. Baudrillard, who seems to stage a linear progression from representation to pure simulacrum, writes instead in the mode of “as if”: a hinge that both affirms and undoes the binary opposition. This essay explores that tension, situating it within the wider genealogy of the sign. Classical Genealogies of the Sign In On Interpretation , Ari...

Introduction In his provocative book Simulacra and Simulation (1981/1994), Jean Baudrillard dismantles the notion that images are secondary to reality. His famous meditation on Disneyland insists that the theme park is not a harmless fantasy but a machine for sustaining belief in the “real” outside its gates. Disneyland, in other words, is presented as imaginary so that the rest of America can appear authentic. Yet, for Baudrillard, the opposite is true: America itself has already become Disneyland, a world of simulations where signs precede and determine reality.  We treat here Baudrillard’s framework as a conceptual lens for analyzing contemporary media; where he did not directly discuss technologies such as social platforms, NFTs, or the metaverse, we extend his ideas as interpretive tools. Today’s digital environments — social media, virtual reality, and the metaverse — extend this diagnosis. Platforms marketed as “virtual” actually reinforce the idea that offline life rem...