Structuralism: Examining the Interrelationships Around Occupation

Structuralism asserted that human culture as a phenomenon contains elements or concepts that can be examined and understood as part of a larger system. However, no single element is independent or has intrinsic value; rather, its value is only realized by studying its relationship to other elements and in relation to the larger structure. Structuralism’s intellectual itinerary may be compartmentalized into three epochs: a modest beginning in 1900s Europe rooted in semiotics, widespread use and application to the social sciences in the 1950s and 1960s, and laying the foundation for and eventual promulgation of post-structuralism and deconstruction in the 1970s. We limit the focus of this chapter to the first two epochs.