Metaphors, analogies, and comparisons in the tormented mind of Ferdinand de Saussure

This article investigates the uses that Ferdinand de Saussure made of metaphors, analogies, and comparisons both in the manuscripts collected in the Writings in General Linguistics and in the Course in General Linguistics. The aim is to show that, more than the erasures and gaps in the manuscripts, it is the images and figures that Saussure employs in his texts that reveal his doubts and hesitations in the pursuit of a theory of general linguistics. With this reanalysis of the analogies, metaphors, and comparisons made by Saussure, the intention is to cast a new light not only on his legacy but also on the fact that he did not publish the results of his reflections on language.