IntroductionLanguage and Linguistics

PreviewIntroduction: importance of

languageCommunication systemsFunctions of language Universal properties of languageDefinitions of languageApproaches to the study of

language

LanguageA means to pass a record of what

has happened from one generation to the next through stories and sagas, even before written records

Development of tools to meet a broad range of needs – impossible without language

LanguageCapacity for self-awareness and

abstract thought – dependent on language

The ability to transfer complex information, to discuss the meaning of events and outcomes of alternative actions, to share feelings and ideas – impossible without language

CommunicationCommunication – transfer of

informationSign – a basic unit of

communicationSign – sth that stands for sth else

to communicate it (communicate = to make sth common)

Communication

sign

communication

human

animalPassage of

information, formulation of

inferences

Communication

human

natural

verbal

non-verbal (gestures,

etc.)artificial (street signs)

CodeSender intentionally produces a

sign for the recipientHow can the recipient interpret

the sign?Code – a set of signs, determined

by convention, that provides the rules of interpretation

All communication systems - codes

Semiotic triangle

Functions of languageR. Jakobson’s classification

Channel (contact)Phatic f.

Sender (emotive or expressive

f.)

Message (poetic f.)

Code (metalingui

stic f.)

ContextReferential

f.)

Receiver (conative f.)

Language functionsEmotive (expressive)-expresses the

speaker’s feelings (“What a surprise!”)Referential – information about external

realityConative – making the recipient act in a

particular way (“Open the window!”)Phatic – establishing contact (“Hello!”) Poetic function – focuses on the message

(Carl Sandburg: “The fog comes in on little cat feet”; metaphor)

Metalinguistic – focuses on the code “What’s the subject of this sentence?”

Properties of languageFreedom from stimulusDistancingSocial transferabilityTransferability of mediumMultifunctionality

Freedom from stimulusLanguage – independent from

stimuli, i.e. external aspects of a situation

Distinguishes human from animal language

Human verbal messages – free, no deterministic aspect

Distancing The possibility to formulate

messages which are distant in space and time – characteristic of human language as opposed to animal communication

Social transferabilityAnthropologically, any language

is socially and culturally transmitted

Any human being acquires at least one language (mother tongue) and can learn other languages

Innate language faculty: universal properties of language – empty slots filled by material provided by the environment

Transferability of medium: spoken and writtenPrimacy of the spoken language:Ontogenetic (a child first learns

to speak)Filogenetic (writing developed

much later in human history)Social primacy of the written

language in modern societies (higher cultural prestige; science, education, law)

Multifunctionality of languageExpresses thoughtTransmits informationInitiates, maintains and regulates

cooperative activities and social relationships

Expresses feelings and states of mind

Resolves problemsCreates possible worlds (literary

creation)

Universal properties of languageAlthough languages differ in many

ways, they are made possible by the same genetic information, processed in the brain in the same ways and they share some fundamental features and structural characteristics

Understanding and explaining the properties which are universal to all languages, as well as those which vary across languages – task of linguistics

Universal properties of languageModularityCompositionality and recursionDiscretenessProductivityArbitrarinessReliance on contextVariability

ModularityLanguage – a modular system:

produced and interpreted by using a set of component subsystems (or modules) in a coordinated way

Different regions of the brain – associated with different aspects of language processing

ModularityProduction and interpretation of

speech sounds – phoneticsWords and their structure –

morphologyStructure of sentences – syntaxLexicon – interacting with these

propertiesMeaning – semanticsDiscourse - organization of language

beyond the sentence

Compositionality and recursionLanguages – organized into

constituents, allowing more complex units to enter structures where simpler ones are also possible

Compositionality: examplesShe sat down.The smart woman sat down.The tall, dark-haired, smart

woman with the bright red sweater and pearl necklace sat down.

RecursionProperty of language which

allows grammatical processes to be applied repeatedly, combining constituents to produce and infinite variety of sentences of indefinite length

Recursion Profound implications – noone

can learn a language by memorizing all the sentences of that language, so there must be another explanation for how human beings are able to learn them

The human brain – finite, but recursiveness means that it is capable of producing and understanding an infinite number of sentences

ProductivityLanguage can always produce

messages that have never been produced before

Infinite combinations of basic units whose number is limited

Rule-based creativity: infinite productivity based on a limited number of principles and rules

DiscretnessUnits of language are not

continuous; there is a limit between one element and the next

DiscretenessLanguage – composed of sounds,

words, sentences etc.The fact that we hear speech as

a sequence of individual sounds, words and sentences – incredible accomplishment

Children in the first year or two learn to pick out words from the stream of speech with no instruction

Reliance on contextPronounciation of one and won:

the same sequence of sounds can represent different concepts in the same language

The meaning of a sentence depends on the context in which it is uttered

The context: sentence or sentences which precede it, or the broader physical or social circumstances in which the sentence is uttered

Reliance on context: examplesIt’s cold in here – could be a

complaint, a request to close the window, or even a compliment

Languages rely on the connection between form (what is said) and context (when, where, by whom, and to whom it is said) to communicate much more than is contained in a sequence of words.

VariabilityThe language people use varies

depending on who’s speaking and the situation in which they are speaking

Variation – essence of information

Variability of language – indexicalSpeakers vary the language they

use to signal their social identities (geographical, social status, ethnicity, gender) and also to define the immediate speech situation

VariabilityPeople show who they are by the

variety of language they use - they reveal their geographical origin and social status.

They signal membership in a range of overlapping social groups: male or female, teenager or adult, member of an ethic group, etc.

VariabilityPeople also use language

variation to communicate the situation and purpose in which they are talking, as well as the roles they are playing in those situations

The descriptive approachLanguage – universal characteristic of

human beingsAll languages (and language varieties)

– equalLanguage varieties differ because over

time they have adapted to differing needs of their speech communities

Each language – equally functional in meeting the communicative needs of its speech community

The descriptive approachSometimes when two or more speech

communities come into contact, one group will have more power;

the language variety of the dominant group is often perceived as having higher status as well, especially if speaking it affords increased access to power or wealth; language varieties spoken by the less powerful groups – often stigmatized as “incorrect” or “bad” language

The descriptive approachLinguists take language as they

find it, rather than attempting to regulate it in the direction of preconceived criteria

LanguageA finite system of elements and

principles that make it possible for speakers to construct sentences for particular communicative functions

Grammatical competenceKnowing the meanings signified

by different sound sequences and how to combine units of meaning into words, phrases and sentences

Communicative competenceTo be effective, speakers have to

combine grammatical competence with the knowledge of how to use grammatical sentences appropriately to the purpose and context at hand

Defining language

the knowledge included in the grammatical competence + the ability to use that knowledge to accomplish a wide range of communicative tasks – language

Definition of languageLanguage is a) a codeB) which organizes a system of signs

which areC) primarily phonic-acousticD) fundamentally arbitraryF) capable of expressing anythingG) possessed as interiorized knowledge

which allows to produce infinite sentences starting from a limited number of elements

General principles for the analysis of languageSynchronic and diachronic

approachLangue et paroleParadigmatic and syntagmatic

axisLevels of analysis

Synchronic and diachronic studySyn (‘with’) + chronos (‘time’)Dia (‘across’) + chronosDiachrony – study of language

over time (history)Synchrony – study of language at

a definite moment in time Two approaches - complementary

Langue et paroleDistinction between the abstract

system (langue) and its concrete realization (parole): Ferdinand de Saussure

System and use (Louis Hjelmslev)Competence and performance

(Noam Chomsky)

Langue et paroleLangue (system, competence) – a

set of interiorized rules of a language that constitute our capacity to produce messages in a certain language; abstract, unconscious competence shared by all members of a linguistic community

Parole – individual linguistic act, concrete realization of a message in a particular language

Langue et paroleLangue et parole: opposition

between the abstract, social and constant on the one hand (langue) and concrete, individual and variable on the other (parole)

Paradigmatic and syntagmatic axisParadigmatic axis concerns

relations on the level of the system, syntagmatic axis concerns relations on the level of structures that realize the potentialities of the system

Paradigmatic and syntagmatic dimensions constitute a double perspective according to which the structures, combinations of linguistic signs, function

Paradigmatic and syntagmatic axisSyntagmatic axisParadigmatic axis

Levels of analysisPhonetics and phonologyMorphologySyntaxSemantics

Levels of analysis

Phonetics and phonology

Morphology Syntax

Lexicon and semantics

Physical reality

External world cognitively

codified

Levels of analysisPhonetics and phonology,

semantics – link with external reality

Phonetics – physical support to communication

Semantics: conceptualisation and cognitive categorisation of our world

Levels of analysisMorphology and syntax – internal

levels on which the system is organised according to the principles that govern the language faculty

The diversity of linguisticsGeneral linguisticsHistorical linguisticsLanguage acquisitionSociolinguisticsPsycholinguisticsCognitive linguisticsComputational linguisticsCorpus linguisticsApplied linguistics (foreign language

learning, LSP, translation studies, forensic linguistics etc.)

SummaryCommunication systemsFunctions of languageUniversal properties of languageStudy of language