structuralism.

An approach that explains phenomena through the systems of relationships organizing their parts.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• linguistic structuralism
• literary structuralism

On the page

Literary structuralism directs attention to recurring relationships within narratives.

Usage notes

Primary category: academic / formal. Forms: Usually uncountable; no ordinary plural in this sense. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: analysis, explanation, qualification. Commonness: uncommon.