On Language

Roman Jakobson

Edited by Linda Waugh

Edited by Monique Monville-Burston

    Preface

    Editorial Method

    Phonetic Symbols

    Abbreviations

    Introduction: The Life, Work, and Influence of Roman Jakobson
    By Linda R. Waugh and Monique Monville-Burston

    PART I: The Science of Language: General Overviews
    1. Current Issues of General Linguistics
    2. Efforts toward a Means-Ends Model of Language in Inter-war Continental Linguistics
    3. My Favorite Topics

    PART II: The Function and Structure of Language: Some Fundamental Concepts
    4. The Speech Event and the Functions of Language
    5. Langue and Parole: Code and Message
    6. Parts and Wholes in Language
    7. Two Aspects of Language and Two Types of Aphasic Disturbances
    8. The Concept of Mark (with Krystyna Pomorska)

    PART III: Dimensions of Language:
    Invariants and Variants across Time and Space
    9. Typological Studies and Their Contribution to Historical Comparative Linguistics
    10. Implications of Language Universals for Linguistics
    11. The Time Factor in Language (with Krystyna Pomorska)
    12. The Space Factor in Language (with Krystyna Pomorska)
    13. Principles of Historical Phonology
    14. On the Theory of Phonological Affinities between Languages

    PART IV: The Sound System of Language
    15. The Concept of Phoneme
    16. The Concept of the Distinctive Feature (with C. Gunnar Fant and Morris Halle)
    17. Quest for the Ultimate Constituents (with Linda R. Waugh)
    18. The Sound Laws of Child Language and Their Place in General Phonology
    19. Why "Mama" and "Papa"?

    PART V: Meaning in Language: Grammatical and Lexical
    20. Some Questions of Meaning
    21. Boas' View of Grammatical Meaning
    22. Contribution to the General Theory of Case
    23. Shifters and Verbal Categories

    PART VI: Sound and Meaning in Language: Their Interrelations
    24. The Phonemic and Grammatical Aspects of Language in Their Interrelations
    25. Quest for the Essence of Language
    26. The Spell of the Speech Sound (with Linda R. Waugh)

    PART VII: The Place of Language: Interdisciplinary Perspectives
    27. Linguistics in Relation to Other Sciences
    28. Linguistics and Communication Theory
    29. Brain and Language

    Notes

    References

    Name Index

    Subject Index

  • Cover: On Language

Roman Jakobson (1896-1982) was at the time of his death Professor Emeritus at Harvard University and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Linda Waugh is Professor of Linguistics, Romance Studies, and Comparative Literature, Cornell University.

Monique Monville-Burston is Associate Professor, Department of French, University of Melbourne.