MODULE ON MORAL REALISM

I – Introduction

Structuralism is a theory in different fields first introduced by Ferdinand de

Saussure. It is a revolutionary theory based on Saussure’s Course in General Linguistics
(1916), which aimed to create a science of language. This module aims to deepen the
learners' knowledge about structuralism and its application in real-life contexts.

II – Objectives

At the end of this module, the learners are expected to:

a. know what structuralism is;

b. understand the fundamental concepts in structuralism;
c. value the significance of structuralism to different fields and real-life
contexts; and,
d. apply structuralism

III – Strategies

A. Activity

Directions: The class will be divided into two groups. Each group will have two
representatives that will play the game “Pinoy Henyo: Silhouette Version”. In this game,
one member will describe the silhouette that they will pick. The other member will have
to guess the silhouette posted on his/her forehead. The group that will have the most
number of correct guesses within 3 minutes will be the winner of the game and the group
members will receive an additional one point for the quiz.

B. Analysis

Directions: Based on the previous activity, answer the following questions.

You may discuss each with your groupmates.

1. How did you recognize the silhouette?

2. What strategies or methods did you use to identify the silhouette?
3. How did your initial knowledge contribute to identifying the silhouette?
 C. Abstraction

Structuralism is a 20th-century intellectual movement and approach to the human

sciences (it has had a profound effect on linguistics, sociology, anthropology, and other
fields in addition to philosophy) that attempts to analyze a specific field as a complex
system of interrelated parts. Broadly speaking, Structuralism holds that all human activity
and its products, even perception and thought itself, are constructed and not natural, and
in particular that everything has meaning because of the language system in which we
operate. It is closely related to Semiotics, the study of signs, symbols, and
communication, and how meaning is constructed and understood.

Structuralism is widely regarded to have its origins in the work of the Swiss
linguistic theorist Ferdinand de Saussure (1857 - 1913) in the early 20th Century, but it
soon came to be applied to many other fields, including philosophy, anthropology,
psychoanalysis, sociology, literary theory, and even mathematics. In the early 20th
Century, Saussure developed a science of signs based on linguistics (semiotics or
semiology). He held that any language is just a complex system of signs that express
ideas, with rules that govern their usage. He called the underlying abstract structure of a
language, "langue", and the concrete manifestations or embodiments, "parole". He
concluded that any individual sign is essentially arbitrary and that there is no natural
relationship between a signifier (e.g. the word "dog") and the signified (e.g. the mental
concept of the actual animal).

Unlike the Romantic or Humanist models, which hold that the author is the
starting point or progenitor of any text, Structuralism argues that any piece of writing (or
any "signifying system") has no origin and that authors merely inhabit pre-existing
structures ("langue") that enable them to make any particular sentence or story
("parole"), hence the idea that "language speaks us", rather than that we speak the
language. Structuralism was also to some extent a reaction against Phenomenology in that
it argued that the "depth" of experience could in fact only be an effect of structures that
are not themselves experiential.
Although they would probably all have denied being part of this so-called
movement, the philosopher Michel Foucault, the anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss
(1908 - 2009), the psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan (1901 - 1981), the developmental
psychologist Jean Piaget (1896 - 1980), the linguists Roman Jakobson (1896 - 1982)
and Noam Chomsky (1928 - ), the literary critic Roland Barthes (1915 - 1980) and the
Marxist theorists Louis Althusser (1918 - 1990) and Nicos Poulantzas (1936 - 1979)
were all instrumental in developing the theory and techniques of Structuralism, most of
this development occurring in France.

Barthes, in particular, demonstrated the way in which the mass media

disseminated ideological views based on its ability to make signs, images, and signifiers
work in a particular way, conveying deeper, mythical meanings within a popular culture
than the surface images immediately suggest (e.g. the Union jack signifies the nation, the
crown, the empire, "Britishness", etc).

The Genesis of Structuralism

The Pioneer: Ferdinand de Saussure – Saussure, a Swiss linguist, laid the foundational
concepts of Structuralism. He proposed that language is a system of signs, wherein each
sign consists of a signifier (sound pattern) and a signified (concept). He stressed the
arbitrary nature of these signs and the importance of their relational differences [2].

Expansion by Claude Lévi-Strauss – Lévi-Strauss, a French anthropologist, extended

Structuralism to anthropology. His studies on myths and kinship systems demonstrated
how culture functions as a language. For Lévi-Strauss, the elements of culture acquire
meaning not independently, but through their relations within a system.

Other Key figures:

Roland Barthes- Decoding literature through structural relations.

Vladimir Propp- One of the Russian Formalists, became influential in the field of
narratology, which is the study of narrative and narrative structure. This field, which is
heavily influenced by structuralism, counts Barthes as one of its early representatives.

Talks about Rhyme and Reason.

Principles of Structuralism

Structuralism operates under several key principles:

1. Binary oppositions are a key concept in structuralism. We understand the world

 through pairs of contrasting elements.

For example, we understand the concept of "good" in relation to "bad" or "light" in

relation to "dark."

These oppositions are fundamental to how we structure meaning.

2. Signifier and Signified. At the core of Saussure’s linguistic structure is the sign,
which is the coming together of a signifier and a signified. The signifier and the
signified represent the division of language into two parts, but neither the signifier
nor the signified is distinct before they come together in the sign. In other words,
the signifier and the signified are inchoate by themselves and become signs when
articulated together. Saussure’s signifier is a sound image, and his signified is a
thought image.

For example, the word "tree" (signifier) represents the concept of a tall, woody plant with
branches and leaves (signified)

The relationship between the word and its meaning is arbitrary and established through
language conventions.

3. Langue and Parole. Langue is the system of language, that is, the rules and
conventions that organize it. On the level of language, language is a social
institution. In his Elements of Semiology, Barthes describes langue as a
“collective contract which one must accept in its entirety if one wishes to
communicate.” Parole is language at the level of the individual utterance, that is,
the use of language.
● Langue refers to the underlying structure or system of a language. Parole refers to
individual instances of speech or writing.
● For instance, consider the difference between the rules of grammar (langue) and the
actual sentences people speak or write (parole).
● The rules of grammar dictate how sentences should be structured, while parole
involves the actual use of language by individuals.
4. Syntagmatic and Paradigmatic. At the level of selection, each of the words in a
sentence function along the paradigmatic axis of language, whereas at the level of
 combination, all of the words in a sentence function along the syntagmatic axis of
language.
● Syntagmatic relations involve the linear arrangement of elements in a sequence,
such as the order of words in a sentence.
● Paradigmatic relations involve the selection of one element over another within a
set of alternatives.

EX: "The cat chased the mouse”

5. Mythemes. These are basic units or elements of mythic narratives.

For example, in the myth of "Cinderella," mythemes include the wicked stepmother, the
fairy godmother, the glass slipper, and the prince.

Each of these elements contributes to the overall structure and meaning of the myth,
revealing underlying cultural and psychological patterns.

Structures of narrative in folktales (by Vladimir Propp)

● This concept refers to the underlying structure of narrative patterns and functions in
folktales.
● For example, in the fairy tale "Little Red Riding Hood," the narrative follows a
pattern of the heroine encountering a wolf, being deceived by the wolf, and
ultimately being rescued by a woodsman.
● These recurring narrative functions form the rhyme and reason of the story,
providing a framework for understanding its structure and meaning. 6. Synchronic vs
Diachronic Analysis. Synchronic Analysis studies a language or system at a specific
point in time. Diachronic Analysis examines the changes and evolution of a language
or system over time.
● These recurring narrative functions form the rhyme and reason of the story.
● This provides a framework to understand its structure and meaning.

Applications of Structuralism

● Linguistics – Structural linguistics focuses on underlying structures in language,

 seeing it as a system of differential signs.
● Anthropology – Structural anthropology seeks to decode the “unconscious”
structures that shape human behavior and culture.
● Literary Criticism – Structuralist criticism analyzes literature as a system of signs,
with meaning generated by structural relationships.

D. Application

Directions: The students will be divided into groups. Each group will be given
three stories to analyze. The students will find binary oppositions that are present in the
story and list all of them in a manila paper. After five minutes, the activity will be
evaluated by the teacher.

Directions: Choose the letter of the correct answer. Write in on your

paper. 1. Who is the founder of structuralism?
a. Ferdinand de Saussure
b. Roland Barthes
c. Vladimir Propp
d. Ferdinand Marcos

2. It refers to the underlying structure or system of a language.

a. Parole
b. Signifier
c. Signified
d. Langue
3. __________relations involve the linear arrangement of elements in a sequence, such as
the order of words in a sentence.

a. Langue
b. Syntagmatic
c. Paradigmatic
d. Synchronic
4. (True or False) The word "tree" (signified) represents the concept of a tall, woody plant
with branches and leaves (signifier)

5. Give an example of a binary opposition in literature or everyday life.

E. Closing
Directions: Read the quotation below. Reflect on it and share your thoughts with
your classmates.
“The connection between the signifier and the signified is arbitrary” – Ferdinand
de Saussure.

IV – Reflection/Insight/Learnings

Structuralism is a very broad topic that discusses a variety of fields. It can be used
to understand language, culture, and even the way we think. But this topic made me
question the reality of life.

The quotation from Saussure said “Linguistic structure is no less real than speech
and no less amenable to study.” made me realize something. For me, it says that language
is just like playing the game of chess. For us to play it, we do not just watch the game but
we study the rules behind it. Just like in language, even though we do not talk about the
patterns and rules, it is necessary that we study the system behind it for us to
communicate.

Another thing that I learned is about one of the key ideas about structuralism
which is about binary oppositions. It made me understand that words are related to each
other. We understand the words through contrast. It makes sense because I can easily
identify and understand the meaning of a word based on its relation with other words
like the words “good” and “bad”. Similarly, if we apply it in the context of life, we do not
understand the meaning of something without experiencing the opposite of it. For
example, we cannot understand happiness unless we have been through sadness.

In literary criticism, structuralism plays a vital role in scrutinizing literature. One

of its contributions to literary criticism is it emphasizes the universality of language. It
does not just focus on history or the cultural context but it explores more on the structure
of the literature. As analyzed by Vladimir Propp, literature from different countries
especially folktales share some similar structures. They follow similar patterns to the
story's themes, plot, and other elements. For instance, the common themes of some
literature are good vs. evil and love vs. hate. Another example is in Greek mythology,
Poseidon is the god of the sea while In Roman is Neptune.

Since structuralism emphasizes the underlying structure of literature, one of its

weaknesses there are instances that the historical and cultural background of it might be
overlooked. The

To summarize, structuralism theory is essential in different fields such as

linguistics, anthropology, or even literary criticism. It guides us to understand the
meaning of things behind it through understanding its structure. It reminded us that in
order to understand a word, concept, or idea, especially while analyzing literature we
must first understand its structure.

Prepared by:

Yna D. Mercado