...Language is a medium used to express information, as well as emotions and feelings. Animals clearly communicate amongst themselves, but critics feel their communicative actions fall short of meeting the criteria for linguistic capabilities, especially when it comes to distinguished grammar and morphology. Pinker [1994:334-341] goes further by describing how non human primates, formally trained to learn forms of language, didn’t produce any explicitly positive results. He describes how differences in neurological structure, vocal apparatus and their interfacing, are different in apes and thus they are incapable of linguistic capabilities; he explains away any seemingly positive displays of ASL by chimps through likening them more to gestures they already knew from the wild. Finally he also discusses how often humans communicate about unnecessary things; they may comment on how something looks, or just give a random opinion [Pinker, 1994:341], yet this phenomena is rare in other species who mainly “make demands for things they want” [Pinker, 1994:340], and incidents of apes communicating differently such as the famously trained ape Kanzi [Savage-Rumbaugh – Lewin, 1994], displayed this kind of communication minimally [Pinker,1994:341] Tomasello [2003:11] quotes experimental evidence to show, that unlike children, apes could not understand the intentions behind certain sounds, subsequently using this as criteria for language, “sounds become language for young children...
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...How far is children’s linguistic development a result of an innate capacity to learn language? Many children learn their language through their parents talking and the influences around them. In this essay I will be exploring linguistic experts and behaviourists who argue different ways of learning language acquisition and what they believe teaches children and develops their language as part of their capacity to learn their language. I shall be focusing on Chomsky whom is a nativist who believes that every child is born with the ability to learn a human language through inherited characteristics. In contrast to that I will also be looking at the work of skinner, who was a behaviourist, who believed that children learn language through the principle of conditioning this includes repetition, Enforcement and imitation. Within this essay I shall be incorporating examples from children and certain tests to prove both these theory’s or in turn disprove the theories. I shall then be concluding with how far I think children’s linguistic development is part of an inherited capacity to learn language or if it is something that we learn through conditioning. Chomsky believed in the concept that every child is born with the ability to learn a human language, this was through a language acquisition device also known as ‘lad’ this is believed to be a device that is installed in children’s brains from when they are in the womb its believed to be a device with principles of language and...
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...nativism argued that there is not enough evidence to support the claim that children know things about language to which they have received no evidence. They asserted that linguistic nativists have not sufficiently provided enough empirical evidence to support claims that they make. The authors firstly laid out the argument that is made by the proponents of linguistic nativism and indicate how widely accepted the argument for the poverty of stimulus is, as well as portions of the argument held by those who believe in data driven learning. After this, they laid down a methodology that will help provide empirical support for the argument for poverty of stimulus. They then went ahead to test claims of inaccessibility made by nativists. They considered four major arguments which they call ‘substantial collection of plausible cases’ (23) from which they showed whether children are actually exposed to data or not during their language acquisition years. After careful consideration of facts they concluded that linguistic nativists do not have enough empirical evidence to prove ‘the poverty of stimulus argument that has been put up. Authors’ Arguments Pullum and Scholz argued that there is no empirical evidence proving the arguments for poverty of stimulus. They did this by casting doubt on evidences provided by linguistic nativists. On the case of ‘plurals in noun-noun compounds’ by Gordon 1986, they first of all questioned the...
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...Children’s Theoretical Perspective on the Theory of Mind and False Beliefs on Social Cognition Questions seeking an answer to a missing piece, puzzled with things unknown, and bothering twisted thoughts. These are primordial stuff experienced by an individual leading to curiosity. Curiosity which makes every person motivated in finding an answers. The fact that curiosity about a matter will always be the starting point of a new development. One of the best examples is the children. As we can see, children are the most determine explorer because for them everything is a mystery. To discover simple unfamiliar objects, to meliorate their knowledge and to understand their environment are their major goals which we can identify as mediocre. The genuine truth about children is their capacity to understand someone even though they have minimal knowledge on how mental life processes goes through. They can easily figure it out when someone is motivated in acquiring their wants or goals. As a matter of fact, sometimes they can also distinguish what are the positive and negative emotions. On the other hand, they can also practice their false beliefs where they can hardly define between what is real and what is true. Furthermore, as we adults, we are more matured enough in thinking and behaving in all matter. We have the responsibility to modify what we perceive and to justify and stand on what we believe is right and wrong. Nevertheless, people talk too much; people think...
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...UNIVERSIDAD DE BELGRANO FACULTAD DE LENGUAS Y ESTUDIOS EXTRANJEROS TRADUCTORADO PÚBLICO, LITERARIO Y CIENT. TEC. DE INGLÉS PROF. ALEJANDRO PARINI “PIDGINS, CREOLES AND THE CRITICAL PERIOD HYPOTHESIS” SAMANTHA VÁSQUEZ 7517 INTRODUCTION In this paper I am going to talk about pidgins and creoles from the point of view of language acquisition. Creolistics (short form for pidgin and creole linguistics) have provided some revealing and controversial insights into language evolution, acquisition and use; though disagreements exist over what languages or varieties can be labelled as 'creole' or as 'pidgin', and debate continues over the nature of creolization, the 'life cycle' of pidgins and creoles and the origin of grammatical structures in creoles which are absent in any preceding pidgin. PIDGIN LANGUAGES A pidgin language is a language which is based on another language or to be precise on several other languages. A pidgin language develops among people and becomes a means of communication among people who speak different native languages, but in contrast to normal natural languages a pidgin language shows a very poor grammar and a sharply curtailed vocabulary. The major ingredients of a pidgin language come from the native languages of the pidgin speakers. The language with the strongest influence on the pidgin is called the superstrate language and all other contributing languages are called the substrate...
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...more as a separate reference system and is able to learn to think in it According to Rod Ellis The good language learner will: • Be able to avoid developing negative anxiety and inhibitions in response to the group dynamics of the learning context • Seek out all opportunities to use the target language • Make maximum use of the opportunities afforded to practice listening to and responding to speech in L2 addressed to him or her or to others, attending to meaning rather than form • Supplement learning derived from direct contact with speakers of the L2 with learning derived from study techniques (such as making vocabulary lists) and involving attention to form • Possess sufficient analytic skills to perceive, categorize, and store the linguistic features of the L2, and also to monitor errors • • • Possess a strong reason for learning the L2 (which may reflect an...
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...In the linguistic evolution, the child must go through to achieve a good language, starting from babbling to first words or phrases. This process frequently appears in the first months. However, that time or specific age at which a child begins to talk may vary depending on many factors. One of the most important is hearing, but it is not the only factor, there are many other factors that influence such as sex (girls tend to improve their language skills, cognitive abilities and general development long before the boys) and among the most important is the stimulation that is given to the child. Hence, the family plays a very important role in the emergence and development of verbal language of the...
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...capacities can be made available to the broader culture at a time of incredible change. Language is defined as “Any code employing signs, symbols, or gestures used for communicating ideas meaningfully between human beings”. There are three language acquisition theories by Skinner (Behavioristic) Infant learn by imitation and have no prior knowledge of language, Chomsky (Nativistic or psycholinguistic)Child is prewired for language development and the environment triggers its emergence, Piaget(Interactionistic) Language occurs through fixed developmental stages. CHOMSKY’S THEORY: Noam Chomsky was a believer of the idea that every human infant has an inherited capacity to learn any human language. He stated that a child’s mind has some linguistic configurations embossed on it, on the basis of their accurate usage by the...
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...“W. Labov: Case Study Martha’s Vineyard and New York” Sprachwissenschaft Englisch Hausarbeit “Sociolinguistics“ Maria Juchem 2003 List of Contents 1. Introduction 2. Labov’s motivation for studying Sociolinguistics 3. Labov’s observations in Martha’s Vineyard 3.1 Geographical and historical basics of Labov’s studies 3.2 Repetition of the studies in 1961 by Labov 3.3 Labov’s explanation of the observations 4. Labov’s studies in New York 4.1 The Social Stratification of (r) in New York Department Stores 4.1.1 Preliminary Überlegungen 4.1.2 The experiment 4.1.3 The results of the department store study 4.2 Study of Lower East Side 4.2.1 The MFY Survey 4.2.2 The ALS (American Language Survey) 5. The meaning of Labov’s studies for modern sociolinguistics 6. Conclusion 1. Topic and Introduction The topic of this term paper are “Labov’s studies in New York and Martha’s Vineyard”. Labov’s observations in Martha’s Vineyard served Labov as a model for his Master’s essay and his observations in New York as a model for his dissertation. The second chapter will give a survey of William Labov’s motivation for studying sociolinguistics. Chapter 3 is about his observations in Martha’s Vineyard. After that I’ll give a detailed description of his studies in New York (chapter 4) divided up into the two parts: First, the social stratification of (r) in New York City Department Stores (4.1) and second The Lower East Side (4.2). These studies are Labov’s most famous works and...
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...What is Linguistics? According to Professor David Crystal, Linguistics is the science of language. It is the subject whose practitioners devote their energy to understanding why human language is the way it is. They study the history, acquisition, structure, and use of as many languages as possible. In general, Linguistics studies the nature of human language. It aims to uncover the general structure of natural language which is not dependent on individual languages and ways in which languages can be described. Moreover, the discipline examines the characteristics that separate human language from other sign and communication systems. Both in teaching and research, language is studied in a versatile manner from the level of sounds to complete sentences and texts, their meanings and entire spoken discourses. Moreover, Linguistics studies regional, social and temporal changes occurring in language, context-related use of language and production, and understanding processes of linguistic messages from the perspective of individual psychology. Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. There are many approaches to the study of language, emphasizing different scientific traditions and aspects of the subject. Two broad divisions are the following: Theoretical Linguistics: the study of the structural properties of language, e.g., the rules or constraints that govern the formation and interpretation of words and sentences in the world's languages. Experimental...
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...Taylor Tai Sociology 101 Tabetha Mowrey 22/Feb/2012 Film analyses: “Genie: The secret of the Wild Children” Genie is a wild child who found in LA on 1970, she is a very extreme case of neglected the caretaking from adult. Her father believed she is retarder She spent her first thirteen years on tiding at the potty chair and still wearing diaper, she had never see, listen, being taught of anything in her life. For the past many years she had been isolation and lack of adult care make her the way she is right now. According to the George Hebert Mead’s integrationist theory; Mead (1934, 1964a). During the preparation stage, child had no self-present, however, they imitates the action of others, for example; when adults cry the child cry. During the play stage, child is developing the sense of self-present. They start to rakes the role of a single other, as if he or she were the other. The game stage is the last stage under Mead’s model, the child will no longer be playing role taking but starts to develop the relationship between the other and recognize the responsibilities as well as the social positions. It is very important for an infant to be around adult human. An infant imitate people around them, they can’t be disconnected from the socialization. Otherwise, they will be lost of human interaction and the important process of learning attitudes, behavior appropriate and the culture. In the case of Genie, I see very strong statement on hoe important for...
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...Throughout the semester, various linguistic topics and fields have been mentioned, ranging from neurolinguistics to sociolinguistics. Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of linguistics (to me, at least) is the role that language plays in the brain – neurolinguistics. From the apparent critical period of language, most supported by the case of Genie, to how one can have their speech production severely handicapped if Broca’s area in the left hemisphere is damaged, the effects that changes to the brain can have on language (and the reverse – the effects that language can have on the brain) are wide-ranging and potentially not fully explored. As such, if I were given license to be a linguist, my focus would be on neurolinguistics; specifically,...
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...Linguistics & English Language (University of Edinburgh) 2013-2014 How to Write an Essay in Linguistics The following guidelines range from very general to very specific. They are also more specifically geared toward writing essays in sociolinguistics or empirical methods rather than other areas of linguistics, though many of the same general principles apply. It is to your benefit to try follow these guidelines from the start of your first draft; the closer you follow them, the easier it will be for your instructor to make useful comments on your drafts, focusing on content, rather than style; on linguistics, rather than writing ability. It will also save you a lot of time because there will probably be less restructuring needed between your first draft and your final draft. GENERAL STRUCTURE: 1. Tell us what you’re gonna tell us. 2. Tell us! 3. Tell us what you told us. At a very basic level, this is all you need to know. The main point here is that your paper is not a mystery novel; there should be no ‘big reveal’ at the end. Rather, you want to set up the reader’s expectations so that they know up front what you’re trying to argue and, while reading your paper, will see if they’re convinced by how you make your arguments. The first step roughly corresponds (to the first paragraph of) your introduction and the third step roughly corresponds to (the first paragraph of) your conclusion (remember that this is an art, not a science, and these are guidelines...
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...How does one distinguish between two entities that are essentially the same functionally yet, intrinsically different? This essay is an attempt to make this distinction, by defining denotation before drawing a contrast to reference and sense respectively. A clear definition of denotation can be understood through Saussure’s (1959) explanation of the signification (concept) and signal (sound pattern). Where upon hearing the sound pattern /kəʊm/ one will be able to conceptualize a class of objects they classify as combs. The understanding of the sentence ‘the comb is broken’ depends of the listener’s knowledge of the concept of ‘comb’ as opposed to ‘brush’ and thus, “part of the meaning of the sentence depends on the sorts of extra-linguistic entities that can be referred to the lexeme”...
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...Indicators of Effective and Efficient Use of Language A Paper Work Presented to Professor Rowena J Rivero The Faculty of the Graduate School Meycauayan College In Fulfillment of the Requirements for the ENG202 Descriptive Linguistics Nathaniel R. Bautista Student CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Words are basic element in communication, to communicate effectively one must know what exactly he/she wanted to express. Use specific rather than general words avoid clincher, there repeated words lost its effectiveness, because of redundancy. Do not use slang, jargon, or foreign words. It only confuse your listener, you also avoid euphemisms that can create subtle ideas. Above all avoid self–favorite words. In this world of complex individual men and women are two distinct creatures, who actually had opposite expressions, ideas and choice of words. This is the main reason why conflicts arise. A lot of studies show the diversity of men to women. To start with let us explore the languages each one utilizes. Facilitating better connotation between sexes, doesn’t mean that men need to completely change their behaviors or that women need to change, but in order to improve communication and have more harmonious relationship and effective work environment, we each have to work harder to understand and respect our differences. The men speak “menglish” women say “it’s a girl thing“. It may sound the same the same but words and phrases have entirely different meanings thus...
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