Report on Olson's "Writing and the Mind"
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Transcript of Report on Olson's "Writing and the Mind"
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A Report for ED 202E“Writing and the
Mind” by David Olson
Lorna Gonzalez, Graduate Student
12 October 2009University of California, Santa
Barbara
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Picture generated at www.wordle.net
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Structure of the Chapter Language acquisition is a cultural practice; cognitive
processes & structures are transformed by language and writing acquisition.
Pervasive assumptions in theories of writing system evolution.
History of Writing: The [Misleading] Evolutionary Story
History of the Alphabet: Borrowing Script Learning to Read: emblems vs. abstractions
THESIS: Writing is a model for speech and communication, evolved from adapted uses of the alphabetic system, and employed for thinking about language.
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“Words spoken are symbols or signs of affections or impressions of the soul; written words are the
signs of words spoken”
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Assumption: Writing is an expression of speech, which is an expression of thought.
Assumption: Inventors of writing systems knew that language consisted of smaller parts (phonemes, syllables, etc.). They simply needed an “optimal” script.
Pervasive assumptions in theories of writing system evolution
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Olson’s claim:
We read and hear speech in terms of the categories expressed in scripts.
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History of Writing: The [Misleading] Evolutionary Story
The alphabet is economical (few signs) and complete (visually represents anything that can be spoken)
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History of Writing: The [Misleading] Evolutionary Story
This story is misleading because:
1.It assumes different levels of the features of a language.
2. Alternative writing systems are also optimal (i.e. Chinese logograms).
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Olson’s hypothesis: Writing systems are developed for communication, but they provide a model for language and thought because they can be read and interpreted.
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has different syntax than 3
Script is language & model for speech
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• Homeric Greeks (oral tradition) valued justice and courage (exemplified by gods).• Classical Period Greeks (literate tradition) valued philosophy and reflection.
Words became things upon which to reflect; they no were no longer emblems (i.e. sheep). Writing is a model for speech production.
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History of the Alphabet: Borrowing Script
Chinese Characters:1.Iconic representation (i.e. sun)2.Borrow the icon for other words with a similar sound3.Homophones for words which sound the same
Picture reference: farm1.static.flickr.com/6/68457700_11256e9d70.jpg
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History of the Alphabet: Borrowing Script
A property of Semitic (Hebrew & Arabic) script/K/ /T/
/B/katab“he wrote”
katabi“I wrote”
ketob“write”
koteb“writing”
All can be written “ktb” (vowels not necessary).
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History of the Alphabet: Borrowing Script
Borrowing and manipulating script for new & different linguistic purposes allowed for categories of speech to be seen and heard more precisely (and therefore, thought about as well).
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Learning to Read: emblems vs. abstractions• Alphabet is a model for literacy• children learn to read emblems before they understand words
““4” 4” = “four” but also “quatre”• Graphic communication is then a
model for verbalization.
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Read the sentence below:
Oh, it’s you.Which words are emphasized?Is this a statement of disgust, surprise, fondness, or some other intention?
(Our writing system represents part of the meaning)
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Summary1. Writing provides a model for speech.2.History of script is really a history of borrowed and adaptations.3.Scripts provide models of language which are acquired in the learning process and help us think about language.4.Script does not necessarily account for tone/intention (& other features)
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THANK YOUHandouts:•Notes page•Summary