The theme conception in the works of Bakhtin’s Circle

Abstract

The study of meaning is one of the most complex problems in Linguistics, according to Bakhtin’s and his Circle’s assumptions. In the meantime, the theme, one of the key concepts, although not the most studied by the Circle, becomes essential for the understanding of language as a concrete action. This bibliographic article aims to discuss, epistemologically and theoretically, the concept of the theme as well as the concepts in the Circle’s works, specifically, Bakhtin’s, Volochínov’s and Medviédev’s. To this end, the text resumes the considerations about the theme in these authors’ works, to observe its deployment over the years. Results show that there are variations in the concept, which made it possible to understand some trends in their understanding: (1) theme as the total meaning of the utterance, the event, the reality and the moment in which content and form interact axiologically; (2) theme such as the relationship between meaning and value of the ideological sign; and (3) theme as the object of the utterance.