Return to Saussure

Introduction Ferdinand de Saussure revolutionized linguistics by proposing that the object of study is not given independently of analysis but is instead shaped by the observer’s framework. His analysis of the French word nu (‘naked’) illustrates this idea: depending on the perspective, the term may be perceived as a series of sounds, a conceptual expression, or a historical derivative of Latin. By highlighting how different fields within linguistics construct their own units of study, Saussure challenged the belief that language exists as an objective entity, separate from interpretation. However, he mistakenly confined this principle to linguistics, assuming that other sciences deal with pre-existing entities independent of the conceptual scheme. This supposition does not hold. Scientific theories, like linguistic analyses, are fundamentally shaped by their underlying premises. Modern philosophy of science, particularly through Kuhn’s paradigms, Feyerabend’s critiques and Kar...