Understanding Language Structures: Metonymy and Metaphor

The question asks about a prominent theorist who identified "metonymy" and "metaphor" as fundamental structures present in language and thought. These two figures of speech are not just stylistic devices but, according to certain linguistic theories, represent core ways we organize and relate concepts.

Identifying the Theorist

Let's examine the options provided and their contributions to linguistic theory and semiotics:

• Ferdinand de Saussure: Considered one of the founders of modern linguistics and structuralism. His key concepts include the linguistic sign (signifier and signified), langue (language system) vs. parole (individual speech), and the synchronic vs. diachronic study of language. While foundational to structural linguistics, Saussure is not primarily known for focusing on metonymy and metaphor as fundamental structures in the way the question implies.
• Roland Barthes: A French literary theorist, philosopher, and semiotician. Barthes extended Saussure's ideas into cultural analysis, studying signs and symbols in various forms of communication and culture (like myths, fashion, and wrestling). His work involves analyzing how meaning is constructed, but the specific identification of metonymy and metaphor as the two fundamental language structures is not his primary contribution.
• J.L. Austin: A British philosopher of language, known for developing the theory of speech acts. His work focused on how language is used to perform actions (e.g., promising, requesting, stating). His key concepts include locutionary, illocutionary, and perlocutionary acts. His focus is on language use and pragmatics, not on metaphor and metonymy as underlying structural principles.
• Roman Jakobson: A highly influential Russian linguist and literary theorist. Jakobson was a key figure in structural linguistics and semiotics. He famously proposed that the two fundamental poles of language and thought are based on selection (or substitution), related to metaphor, and combination (or contiguity), related to metonymy. He argued that all linguistic activities and structures operate along these two axes. For example, choosing a word involves selecting from a set of possible terms (metaphorical axis), and combining words involves arranging them sequentially (metonymical axis).

Conclusion on Fundamental Language Structures

Based on the contributions of these theorists, it is clear that Roman Jakobson is the one who specifically identified metaphor and metonymy as the two fundamental structures of language. His work maps these figures of speech onto the essential operations of selection and combination that underlie all linguistic processes.

Therefore, the theorist who identifies "metonymy" and "metaphor" as two fundamental structures of language is Roman Jacobson.

Revision Table: Key Theorists and Concepts

Additional Information on Metaphor and Metonymy by Jakobson

Roman Jakobson's idea that metaphor and metonymy are fundamental structures goes beyond them being mere rhetorical devices. He saw them as organizing principles of language and thought:

• Metaphor: Works on the principle of similarity or substitution. When we use a metaphor, we substitute one concept for another based on a perceived likeness. This relates to the 'selection' axis in language – choosing one item from a paradigm of possibilities.
• Metonymy: Works on the principle of contiguity or association. When we use metonymy, we refer to something by naming something else closely associated with it (e.g., "the crown" for monarchy, "the press" for journalism). This relates to the 'combination' axis in language – combining elements based on their sequential or contextual relationship.

Jakobson applied this distinction not only to figures of speech but also to broader linguistic phenomena, such as aphasia (language disorders) and the structure of literary texts (poetry tending towards metaphor, prose towards metonymy).