Abstract:
This work deals with the relation between Saussure’s proposal and syntax, a topic of interest for grammarians. This work attempts to answer the following questions: Does Saussure's grammar consider syntax as part of its object of study? Which is its place in the theory? When Saussure explicitly refers to syntax, which one is he mentioning, a positional one or a syntax close to logic? The author of this paper believes that the Cours de Linguistique Générale has the fundamental objective of laying the foundations of linguistics as science. Consequently, all the concepts are related to the criteria for delimitating the object of study and the method of identification and analysis of the elements. Therefore, this theory is not aimed at “describing” how the sign and language actually are but to construct an argumentation for individualizing a fixed, self-consistent, binary system. At first, a critical analysis of the notions that support the sintagm and syntax is put forward. Then, the definition, location and scope of sintagm as well as of the meanings that such term has in Saussure’s work are examined. Secondly, the contexts and meanings of syntax when Saussure explicitly refers to it as object of study and discipline are analyzed.