Two readings of Sausurre’s Course in General Linguistics: from the basics to the arcanes

Abstract

The present paper is situated in the context of perspectives of presentation and problematization of Ferdinand de Saussure’s Course in General Linguistics (CGL). We selected two works that circulate in the Brazilian academic context and which, in general, have the common purpose of introducing the CGL to non-initiated readers in linguistics: Para compreender Saussure, by Castelar de Carvalho (1997 [1976]), and the chapter “O Curso de Linguística Geral: modesto ensaio de releitura” (MER), in the book Em busca de Ferdinand de Saussure, by Michel Arrivé (2010 [2007]). Therefore, considering the purpose of these two works, our objective is to reflect about the way this purpose is achieved and what consequences it may bring. We conclude that the first work opts for a synthetic approach, with a fundamentally didactic intent; the second, without refraining to be didactic, opts for a problematized approach, in a progressive and propaedeutic route. In this regard, this discussion is a reflection that can affect the debate on the training of teachers and researchers in the field of language studies.