ABSTRACT
J Jakobson, Roman (1896-1982) Structuralist linguist who contributed an influential model of communication and important concepts relating to style. Born in Moscow, Roman Jakobson was a member of the Russian Formalist School and the Prague Linguistic Circle. Jakobson studied at the University of Moscow, serving as research associate from 1918 to 1920, after which he went to Prague. A professor at Masaryk University (1933-1939), the Ecole Libre des Hautes Etudes in New York (19421946), Columbia University (1946-1949), Jakobson wrote extensively on linguistics and literary criticism. In 1949 he became the Samuel Cross Professor of Slavic Languages and Literature, and in 1957 he also joined the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as Institute Professor. By the end of his career, Jakobson had produced over 475 publications, many of interest to rhetoricians.
