The Characteristics of Structuralism

Structural analysis is an approach to understand a literary work which has several characteristics. Sapardi Djoko Damono (1978:38) in his book Sosiologi Sastra:

Sebuah pengantar Ringkas, writes four characteristics of structuralism as follows:

1. A literary work is viewed as a unity as a totality. The totality of its elements is the most important in this approach. It is not the elements of the totality, which becomes the analysis but the relationship among the elements.

2. structuralism does not analyze surface structure and the deep structure what is seen and what is heard are not the real structure but only the evidence exist.

3. The analysis done by the structuralism involves synchronic structure not a diachronic one. The analysis involves synchronic structure not a diachronic one. The attention focused on the existing relationship in a certain time and not in a chronological time. The synchronic structure is not base on the structural analysis.

4. Structuralism is an anti causal approach. In analyzing, the structuralism never uses the meaning of cause and effect. They do not believe in because affect’s law and only believe in structural relationship.


Reference:

Damono, Sapardi Djoko. 1979. Sosiologi Sastra. Jakarta: Depdikbud.