当代语言学导论课件

当代语言学导论课件

Chapter10LanguageInstinct\nSaussure’sLangue&ParoleLangue:theidealformofalanguageParole:theactualformoflanguageinspeechandwriting\nChomsky’sCompetence&PerformanceCompetence:thecompleteknowledgeofthelanguageanidealspeaker/hearerwouldhave.Performance:theactualuseofthelanguagebyindividualsinspeechandwriting.\nLANGUAGEISMODULAR语言模块性\nIfastudentmissesaclass,hewillprobablynotknowhowtosolvecertainproblemsrelatedtothecontentofthatclass.Ifamanencountersanybasicproblemrelatedtohismothertongue,hedoesnotneedtoaskforhelpfromhisteachersorfriends.Justbyaskinghisownmindhecangetananswersimilartomostofhiscompatriots.AccordingtoanexcellentcontemporarypsycholinguistinAmerica,StevenPinker,whattheyrelyonisthelanguageinstinct.\nObservationAretheyEnglishwords?slipslibspillsbillYesPossibleYesimpossibleWHY?\nThephonologicalformofalexicalitemisself-governed.Itmakesnoreferencetoitssyntacticalorsemanticinformation.\nObservationInGermanIchhabeeinenFüller.Eristrot.Word-for-wordtranslationinEnglishIhaveapen.Heisred.WHY?\nObservationIaskedwhatthenumberofstudentsintheclasswas.Iinquiredwhatthenumberofstudentsintheclasswas.Iaskedthenumberofstudentsintheclass.Iinquiredthenumberofstudentsintheclass.WHY?\nThesyntacticformofalexicalitemisself-governed.Itmakesnoreferencetoitssemanticinformation.\nAutonomousSyntaxPrincipleNosyntacticrulecanmakereferencetopragmatic,phonological,orsemanticinformation.Chomsky(1977)\nObservationThegirlsleft.Thefogleft.*Thefogwentaway.Thetrainleft.Themailleft.“Toleave”referstoamovementroutinelycontrolledbyhumanbeings.WHY?\nThesemanticstructureofalexicalitemisself-governed.Itmakesnoreferencetoitssyntacticfeatures.\nObservationWhattimeisitinthekitchen?Icutalltheflagstones.Whatdoestheclockinthekitchensay?IcutallthegrassaroundtheflagstonesWHY?\nThepragmaticinferenceisself-governed.Itmakesnoreferencetoboththesyntacticandsemanticstructures.\nEachlinguisticmoduleisgovernedbyitsparticularsetofgeneralprinciples.Thesuperficialcomplexityoflanguageisaconsequenceoftheinteractionofsuchmodules.\nLANGUAGEISUNIQUE语言独特性\n1.LanguageandsignalcodesTheideathatsomeanimalsmaybecapableofutilizingalanguageisfarfromridiculous.\nAnimalcallsystemscanbebrokenintobasicunitslikehumanlanguagesbrokenintophonemes.SpeciesNumberofIdentifiedBasicVocalSignalsbirds12–25lowermammals7–36dolphins7–19monkeysandapes10–37humanlanguages11–67\nButanimalcallsystemscannotbeconsideredastruelanguage.Truelanguageinvolvesthefreecombinationofsymbolslimitedonlybylogicalrulesofgrammarandsyntax,whichthemselvesexpressrelationsbetweensymbolsandhencesymbolizerelationsbetweenthingsandindividualsandevents.Inaddition,truelanguagemustinvolvetruecommunication.Compulsiveutteranceofsignalsintheabsenceofotherindividualsisnottruecommunication.\nArethebeestalking?No,that’samatterofautomaticsignaling.\nAretheytalking?No.Theyarecourting.\nDolphinsareextremelyvocalanimals.Butdolphin’swhistlinghasbeendiscoveredasconditionalreflexes.Itisnotameansofcommunication.\nThoughadolphincanrespondtoanother’svocalsignals,thesignalsarenotintentionallymadeforthelistener.Theycan’texchangeideas.\nThenhowaboutamonkey?Attemptstoteachapestocommunicatewithhumanbeingsallprovedtobefailures.Amonkeycouldnotaskquestionsandusethenegationforms.\nBiologicallimitationThevocalorgansofallkindsofmonkeysaretoocurvingtoproducemanysounds.\n2.Howdifferentishumanlanguagefromanimal'language'?A.ThebiologicalfoundationoflanguageThereisarightanglebendinthehumantractwhichprovidesforawiderrangeofvocalsoundsasaresultofthedescentofourancestorsfromthetreesandwalkingerect.Nootherprimateusesthevocalorganstocommunicateanythingbutrudimentarywarningsandemotivecries.\nB.ThesocialfoundationoflanguageLanguageistheoutcomeofsocialinteractions.Tool-makingoccupiedanimportantplaceinhumanhistory,markingtheadvancesofculture.Thereisclinicalevidencetoshowthatthereareverycloserelationshipsbetweenthemanipulationofhandsandourspeakingcapacity.\nC.AbstractthinkingLanguageisusedtodiscussmattersnot“hereandnow”.Displacementasanimportantfeatureoflanguagemarksthebeginningofabstractthinking.Itistheprocessofabstractingfromtheconcrete,andreconstitutionistheprocessofgettingbacktotheconcretefromabstraction.Reconstitutionallowsmantoconstructeventfardisplacedintimeandisthesuperstructureofabstractthought.\nD.Usinglanguagetoconveyspecialinformationaboutthereferents.Humanbeingsuselanguagetoconveyspecialinformationaboutthereferents.Thisisknownasmodalmeaning,andamodalsentenceisoneinwhichthetruthofthepredictionissubjecttosomekindofcontingencyormodification.\nForexample:Heiscertaintobethere.(certainty)ItislikelythatIshallbeabletoplay.(probability)Itmaybeagoodprogramme.(possibility)Itcan'tbetrue.(nilcertainty)\n3.GeneticfoundationsoflanguageThegeneticfoundationofmanytypesofbehaviouriswidelyrecognizedtoday,Itisnotassumed,however,thatspecificbehaviouraltraitsaredirectlyproducedbydefinitegenes,butmerelythatpropensitiesforcertainbehaviourareinherited.Itisdifficulttoobservetheinheritedpropensitiesforlanguageinnormalsituation,butitispossibletoobservethefamilialoccurrenceoflanguagedisabilities.\nMoredirectevidenceforthegeneticbasisoflanguagecomesfromtheworkofMoorhead,etalwhohavemadechromosomecountsofafamilyinwhichamotherandfourofherfivechildrenhadachromosomalabnormalityassociatedwithvaryingdegreesofmentalretardationandastrikingfailureofspeechdevelopment.Thefatherandafifthsiblinghadanormalchromosomepictureandwerenotaffectedbehaviorally.Itisnowknownthatgenesarelengthsofathreadlikechemicalcalleddeoxyribonucleicacid(DNA)andformacontinuousstringthatconstitutesthechromosomes..\nBrainandIntelligence\nWearenotcertainwhetherman'sabilityforlanguageistheresultofhisgeneralintelligenceorlanguageabilityisthecauseofhumanintelligence.However,languagemightbeofgreaterbiologicalantiquitythanthepeculiarintellectiveprocessesofrecentman.\nLennebergproposedthattheabilitytoacquirelanguageisabiologicaldevelopmentthatisrelativelyindependentofthatelusivepropertycalledintelligence.HesawevidenceforthisviewinthefactthattheabilitytolearnandspeakhasalowcorrelationwithmeasuredI.Q.inman:ChildrenwhoseI.Qis50atage12andabout30atage20arecompletelyinpossessionoflanguagethoughtheirarticulationmaybepoorandanoccasionalgrammaticalmistakemayoccur.\nSomeofthehigheranimalformspossessvoicesofvarioustypesandinflectionsandmayevenbetrainedtoimitatethesoundofsimplewords.Thevocalizationsmade,however--forexample,bymonkeysandchimpanzees--appeartobeprimarilyunderthecontrolofcentersinthelimbicsystem,or"emotionalbrain,"ratherthanthecortex.Electricalstimulationofthelimbicsystemcanproduceallthevocalresponsesthatmonkeysarecapableofmaking.\nDestructionofthecorticalspeechcentersinhumans,however,eitherdestroysspeechoraffectsitcritically,whereasdestructionofsimilarareasofthecortexinmonkeysdoesnotaffecttheirvocalization.Thusthehumanbrainappearstobeuniquelyadaptedforspeech.Onlyinhumanshavethecentersofspeechbeentransferredfrominstinctiveorreflexcenterstothecortex,makingpossibleahighlyvoluntarycontrolofspeechandlanguage.\nTherearethreeidentifiedspeechareas.Thesupplementarymotorcortex,ontheverytopoftheleftfrontallobe,involvestheprocessofvocalizationitself.Broca'sarea,lowerdownatthebackoftheleftfrontallobe,appearstoinvolvefunctionsofarticulation,vocabulary,inflection,andwordsequence.Wernicke'sareaismainlytheposteriorpartofthelefttemporallobe,withpartsoftheparietalarea;anylargedestructionofthisarearesultsinthelossofthecapacityformeaningfulspeechbutnotthelossofsoundproduction.布洛卡区韦尼克区