[[Formalism vs. Structuralism|Formalism vs. Structuralism]]
📌 Brief Summary
Formalism and Structuralism are two foundational movements in 20th-century literary theory and linguistics that shift focus away from biographical or historical context toward the internal mechanics of a text. While Formalism emphasizes the unique aesthetic properties and "literariness" of an individual work, Structuralism seeks to uncover the underlying, universal systems of signs and rules (langue) that allow any individual work (parole) to derive meaning.

📖 Core Content
**1. Formalism: The Autonomy of the Text**
Formalism, primarily associated with Russian Formalism (e.O. Shklovsky, Jakobson) and later New Criticism in the Anglo-American tradition, posits that a literary work should be studied as an autonomous object. 
* **Defamiliarization (*Ostranenie*):** A central tenet of Russian Formalism is the concept that art exists to make the "familiar" seem "strange," disrupting habitual perception through linguistic complexity and stylistic devices.
* **Literariness (*Literaturnost*):** The focus is not on what a text means in a social sense, but on the specific devices (meter, rhythm, syntax, imagery) that constitute its status as literature.
* **Internal Mechanics:** Formalists analyze "foregrounding"—the way certain linguistic elements are made prominent against the background of standard language—to understand how aesthetic effects are produced.

** and 2. Structuralism: The Systemic Framework**
Structuralism emerged from Saussurean linguistics and expanded into anthropology (Lévi-Strauss) and literary theory, moving beyond the individual text to examine the "grammar" of all human culture.
* **Signifier and Signified:** Drawing from Ferdinand de Saussure, Structuralists view meaning as a product of a system of differences within a structure, where a sign (signifier + signified) derives value only through its relationship to other signs in the system.
* **Langue vs. Parole:** Structuralism prioritizes *langue* (the abstract, rule-governed system of language) over *parole* (the individual instance of speech or writing). The goal is to map the underlying structures that make communication possible.
* **Binary Oppositions:** A key methodology involves identifying the fundamental oppositions (e.g., nature/culture, male/female, presence/absence) that organize human thought and narrative structure.

**3. Key Distinctions and Theoretical Transition**
* **Micro vs. Macro:** Formalism operates at a "micro" level, focusing on the specific texture and device of a single text; Structuralism operates at a "macro" level, looking for the universal patterns that govern entire genres or mythologies.
* **The Role of the Subject:** Formalism treats the text as a self-contained aesthetic miracle; Structuralism treats the text as a manifestation of pre-existing linguistic and cultural codes, often de-centering the authorial "voice" in favor of the system.
* **Evolutionary Link:** Roman Jakobson serves as a critical bridge between the two; his work transitioned from analyzing the specific poetic functions of language (Formalism) to understanding how those functions operate within the broader linguistic system (Structuralism).

🔗 Knowledge Connections
* Related Topics: Saussurean Linguistics, New Criticism, [[Post-structuralism|Post-Structuralism]], Semiotics, [[Narratology|Narratology]]
* Projects/Contexts: Structural Anthropology, The Russian Formalist School, Deconstruction
* Contradictions/Notes: While Structuralism grew out of Formalist linguistic inquiries, it is often criticized by Post-Structuralists (like Derrida) for being too rigid and for assuming that a stable, centered "truth" or "structure" can actually be captured.

Last updated: 2026-04-16