Ferdinand de Saussure (1857-1913) was one of the most important thinkers of the 20th century, whose work not only laid the foundations for important developments in linguistics but also proved widely influential in philosophy, anthropology, sociology and literary theory. The Course in General Linguistics is his most important work.Roy Harris is Emeritus Professor of General Linguistics at the University of Oxford, UK.

An influence on a wide-range of thinkers from Derrida and Lacan to Chomsky, Saussure's major work is now available in the Bloomsbury Revelations series.

Saussure's masterwork and one of the most important works of 20th Century thought.

Introduction to the Bloomsbury Revelations EditionPreface to the First EditionPreface to the Second EditionPreface to the Third EditionEditor's Introduction, Roy HarrisIntroduction 1. A Brief Survey of the History of Linguistics 2. Data and Aims of Linguistics: Connexions with Related Sciences3. The Object of Study 4. Linguistics of Language Structure and Linguistics of Speech 5. Internal and External Elements of a Language 6. Representation of a Language by Writing7. Physiological Phonetics Appendix: Principles of Physiological Phonetics 1. Sound Types 2. Sounds in Spoken Sequences Part One: General Principles 1. Nature of the Linguistic Sign 2. Invariability and Variability of the Sign3. Static Linguistics and Evolutionary Linguistics Part Two: Synchronic Linguistics 1. General Observations 2. Concrete Entities of a Language 3. Identities, Realities, Values 4. Linguistic Value 5. Syntagmatic Relations and Associative Relations 6. The Language Mechanism 7. Grammar and Its Subdivisions 8. Abstract Entities in Grammar Part Three: Diachronic Linguistics 1. General Observations 2. Sound Changes 3. Grammatical Consequences of Phonetic Evolution 4. Analogy 5. Analogy and Evolution 6. Popular Etymology 7. Agglutination 8. Diachronic Units,Identities and Realities Appendices Part Four: Geographical Linguistics1. On the Diversity of Languages 2. Geographical Diversity: Its Complexity 3. Causes of Geographical Diversity4. Propagation of Linguistic Waves Part Five: Questions of Retrospective Linguistics Conclusion 1. The Two Perspectives of Diachronic Linguistics 2. Earliest Languages and Prototypes3. Reconstructions 4. Linguistic Evidence in Anthropology and Prehistory5. Language Families and Linguistic Types Index

Ferdinand de Saussure is commonly regarded as one of the fathers of 20th Century Linguistics. His lectures, posthumously published as the Course in General Linguistics ushered in the structuralist mode which marked a key turning point in modern thought. Philosophers such as Jacques Derrida and Roland Barthes, psychoanalysts such as Jacques Lacan, the anthropologist ClaudeLevi-Strauss and linguists such as Noam Chomsky all found an important influence for their work in the pages of Saussure's text. Published 100 years after Saussure's death, this new edition of Roy Harris's authoritative translation is now available in the Bloomsbury Revelations series with a substantial new introduction exploring Saussure's contemporary influence and importance.