Whenever I think about de Saussure’s argument against language-as-nomenclature, I think about Bob Dylan. In his blessedly brief evangelical Christian phase, Dylan wrote a song based on Genesis 2:20, in which Adam gives names to the animals, with God’s sanction. The song imagines the event somewhat humorously and perfectly captures the philosophy of language de Saussure demolishes. We’ll discuss why in class; for now, enjoy a scarily accurate cover version, complete with pictures of cute animals…

 

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Copyright music and lyrics reproduced by kind permission of Special Rider — for original, exclusive performances by Bob Dylan, check-out the official channel at www.youtube.com/bobdylan “Copyright Disclaimer, Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for ‘fair use’ for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.