The question as to what role language plays in different areas of knowledge and of what importance in every case, cannot be of an easy answer. I am not certain whether language in humans is a product according to behaviorist psychology theory (B.F. Skinner) that assumes no innate capacity but the impact of experience and learning or is innate (according to Noam Chomsky), present from birth as a feature of the human brain.
Language as a way of Knowing
Language according to Merriam Webster can be defined as:
- the system of words or signs that people use to express thoughts and feelings to each other
- any one of the systems of human language that are used and understood by a particular group of people
- words of a particular kind
To better explain, I will use an example, the Bake Rolls ad, where a bunch of Neanderthals try to give a name for the wheel. In this context, they use some verbal elements like “sinema gugu…” meaning “I will call it”, some sign elements like the drawing in a way so to share a common understanding and feelings.
This is a micrograph of how language has been developed initially so to achieve now-a-days, in the Information era, the maximum of human intellectual status, leading to a wide variety of areas of human knowledge with a broad depth of understanding in each AOK.
Language is a set of words. A word has three necessary properties, a phonological form, a syntactic category, a semantic use. On the basis of this notion of word, a language becomes a lexicon, a set of words used for linguistic intercommunication and a grammar, that is, the set of strategies used for intercommunication by those who possess a common lexicon.
In general, in order to acquire knowledge in any given area, we usually h...
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...anguage unlike the role of language in Natural Sciences and perhaps Mathematics where language has a universal effect.
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Bibliography & References
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Hill, Jane H., P. J. Mistry, and Lyle Campbell. The Life of Language: Papers in Linguistics in Honor of William Bright. Berlin [etc.: Mouton De Gruyter, 1998. Print.
Language allows us to communicate with other human beings and without it the world would be doomed. We would not be able to understand anything or have the abilities to cooperate with each other. Although language is made up by humans and not the world, we choose to believe otherwise. Everyday we go on with our lives thinking that the world created everything, but that is not true because something or someone had to create the world as the world was not just there. Language is essential to the world just as water is essential to people. For example, those who are deaf and communicate with sign-language sometimes struggle because not everyone knows how use
Language is defined as the method of human communication either spoken or written, consisting of the use of words, in a structured or conventional way. Communication is the interaction or exchange of information or news(Webster, 2013).
Let me begin by introducing two familiar, controversial, but to my mind not implausible, views about language, each of which has a long history.
Language refers to the method that humans use to communicate, either through speech or written. It consists of the use of the word in a structured and conventional way. Language has been referred to as ‘our means of classifying and ordering the world; our means of manipulating reality’. In structure and in its use, we bring the world into realisation and if it is inherently inaccurate, then we are misled. Dale Spender, 1980.Language has power that allows us to make sense out of the reality we live in.
Communication occurs through symbolism. (Gudykunst & Kim, 2003) Symbols convey concepts (Light & McNaughton, 2014) and in the realm of communication, symbolic communication transmits messages interpreted by the receiver. (Gudykunst & Kim, 2003) Symbolic communication is probably the most powerful form of communication. Symbolic communication comes in various forms such as the facial expressions displayed from one person to another, as well as the positioning of one’s body indicating the level of interest in the
In science, we use many different languages. Because science is used all over the world, though, we have to have something to relate everything so that scientists can understand each other in the pursuit of knowledge. For someone to share knowledge, there has to be a bridge in which connects the speakers so that they can solve a problem. Language is a necessary key in finding a solution to a problem.
"[H]uman knowledge is organized de facto by linguistic competence through language performance, and our exploration of reality is always mediated by language" (Danchin 29). Most higher vertebrates possess ‘intuitive knowledge’ which occurs as the result of slow evolution of species. However, the ability to create knowledge through language is unique to humans. According to Benjamin Whorf, "language…. is not merely a reproducing instrument from voicing ideas but rather is itself the shaper of ideas…. We dissect nature along lines laid down by language" (Joseph 249). In addition, the development and acquisition of language seems to be related to "complex sequential processing, and the ability to form concepts and to classify a single stimulus in a multiple manner" (Joseph 178). Antione Danchin suggests that the knowledge we create through language allows us distinguish ourselves from the rest of the world to produce models of reality, which become more and more adequate due to the "self-referent loop" which enables us to understand ourselves as objects under study. This "path from subject to object," which is common to all humans, Danchin claims, suggests the existence of a universal feature of language (29).
Finegan, Edward,."Language :its structure and use" Edward Finegan, David Blair and Peter Collins. 2nd ed. N.S.W : Harcourt, Brace & Co., c1997
Language is a part of our everyday lives, and we can describe the meaning of language in many ways. As suggested in Gee and Hayes (2011, p.6 ) people can view language as something in our minds or something existing in our world in the form of speech, audio recordings, and writings or we can view language as a way of communicating with a group of people. Language can be used to express our emotions, make sense of our mental and abstract thoughts and assists us in communicating with others around us. Language is of vital importance for children to enable them to succeed in school and everyday life. Everyone uses both oral and written language. Language developed as a common ability amongst human beings with the change
Language is the most important aspect in the life of all beings. Language is a link between meaning and expression that consist of signs and symbols which can be understood within a context. Therefore, human use language to express their inner thoughts and emotions, make sense of complex and abstract thought, to learn and communicate with others, to fulfill their wants and needs, as well as to establish rules and maintain their culture. The origin of language has been a popular topic for research study over the past two centuries. Thus, the philosophers and linguists have come out with some theories such as the divine source theory, Language Universals theory, and the verbal and gestural theory which can answer the question of how the behavior
Language is a form of verbal communication via words and its pronunciation that is used and comprehended by various people of the same nation, culture, or geographical background. It has been said to be dated back as far as one thousand years ago before writing. Like culture, language is passed on through the process of enculturation. Meaning that it is something that is learned (Kottak, 101). In the video, “TED TALK:
Lagemaat, Richard Van De. Theory of Knowledge for the IB Diploma. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2005. Print.
To start with, I do not want to narrowly define language as merely verbal communication. Language is far broader than that. In a few seconds a person walking past you on the street could tell you more about themselves with a sincere smile than they could with a few rushed words. Language encompasses all aspects of communication that enhance the level of our interaction. The tone in our voice demonstrating our feelings on a topic or our body language indicating our level of interest are just as important in interaction as verbally communicating content. There for I define language as any act that is involved in the interaction between two or more people.
Before the spoken word was commonly used to communicate, there was body language. Body language allowed people to effectively communicate with one another. Non-verbal gestures, facial expressions, and movements were used to express thoughts and feelings when the mouth was not. Later in history, a famous philosopher, politician, and scientist by the name of Francis Bacon stated that “as the tongue speaks to the ear so the gesture speaks to the eye.” Even though spoken l...