Jakobson
Jakobson
Jakobson
Every creature on earth has developed a way to communicate emotions, thoughts, and desires.
But what sets humans apart from the rest of the animal kingdom is our unique ability to use a
formal language. Our languages help us to think critically, collaborate with others, brainstorm
ideas, and convey specific meaning as we plan, organize, and execute important projects.
Languages differ in how the words are put together, word pronunciation, and sentence structure.
But with all of their differences, all of these languages have the same purpose—to communicate
clearly with other people.
Roman Jakobson was a linguist who studied the structure of language and was particularly
interested in the difficulties that appear in many languages. He was one of the pioneers in
structural linguistics, which is the theory that language is a structured system of interrelated
formal units. Structural linguistics analyzes how units such as word structure, sentence syntax,
and phonetics relate to each other.
Jakobson was also interested in philology—the study of literary texts, and oral and written
records, as well as establishing their authenticity. His work eventually led to creating a theory of
communication in which he established what he called the six functions of language.
The word communication comes from the Latin word communicare, which means “to share” or
“to be in relation with.” This makes sense because sharing and relations sort of form the basis of
communication. You need at least one person to share information, and at least one person to
receive that information, to participate in the communication process.
Jakobson’s theory looks at what needs to be present in the process of linguistic communication,
beyond the simple relationship of sending and receiving information. Jakobson establishes that
there are six functions of language that are needed for communication to occur. In addition,
there are six elements, or factors, in the communication process. Each function focuses on and
interacts with a factor of the communication process.
In Jakobson’s theory, there are six factors that are required for communication:
Basically, these factors work together to enable the communication process. They are the steps
to successful communication, which looks like this:
Language is more than just knowing a lot of different words and what those words mean. If we
don’t know how to put those words together, they won’t have much meaning. We learn how to
form sentences and phrases by listening to others and by studying grammar. It’s the grammar
that helps us to understand the system, structure, and meaning of written or spoken sentences.
Jakobson’s theory of communication includes six functions of language. If the grammar tells us
what the message means, the functions tell us the purpose of the addresser who is using the
language.
Understanding how we communicate always helps us improve our interactions with others. At
Lucid, we also know that a picture is worth a thousand words. Try sharing your words in a
Lucidchart document or Lucidspark board, so your team can come together to talk and illustrate
their next great idea!