Saussure essay, “Course in General Linguistics” works on studying and argues how language works and further show its varies characteristics. One of the first things he mentions is how problematic it is that we associate language as just a naming process. A reasons he disagrees, is by explaining how doing this, we are assuming that ideas already exist prior to the word used to name it (826). Such as, when the word “horse” is seen, there is already an idea of what a horse is. But that’s not necessarily true because the idea of a horse is complicated because everyone has a different thought of a horse. Some may not even understand what that animal even is, making it hard to even come up with a exact idea, even more, a name for it. This point is actually related to one of Nietzsche argument in his essay, “Truth and Lying in a Moral Sense”, in which he too disagrees with the naming system because it is just a matter of labeling things, minimizing them, to the point that it is taking a way any other value and identity the thing itself holds (754).

Rather than this, Saussure describes language in which a concept and a sounds image work together. He represents this in a chart which shows how concepts and sound images function with one another and how each, “are intimately united… [recalling] the other,” (827). In this case, the sound “horse” doesn’t have to specifically relate or tied down to a certain idea of a horse, but, can be more opened to represent a broader subject of it. It also allows that words aren’t important but rather the sounds of it which help create the concept we are thinking of. This way, it helps to understand language as a more psychological thing rather than something physical (writing) or vocal (speech). Saussure shows us that language then, becomes a process that occurs more so within our mind, as we are trying to decipher and comprehend these sound-images in relation to the concept and vice versa. Reading Saussure’s essay shows how complex it really is to say something we want to say or just wanting to write it down. Basically, our train of thoughts and thoughts are working to find ways to be connect it with the sounds we make in order to allow us to effectively communicate how we want to. The argument is very interesting because language is a very important for humans not just as a means of communication but it is our way of expressing ourselves.