Are Humans Predisposed To Learn Language?

1258 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Chomsky theory of development of language and thought

For a number of years, Noam Chomsky has produced written artefacts relating to the use and acquisition of language. In his works, Chomsky argues that humans have an innate ability to learn how to use language. The question of an innate ability to learn language is a cross-disciplinary one, relating to the fields of psychology, philosophy and linguistics. This essay will review Chomsky’s claim of an innate predisposition to acquire language by first attempting to determine precisely what Chomsky means by this term, before looking at key arguments both supporting and refuting the claim. Finally, a conclusion will be reached as to whether Chomsky’s position can be held as valid based on the evidence reviewed to discuss the claim.

“We can know so much because in a sense we already knew it” (Chomsky, 1976 p.7). Within this quote are the foundations for Chomsky’s theory of an innate predisposition to learn language by his imagination of a mind that holds a priori knowledge. It is suggested by Chomsky (1976) that this innate knowledge is within the human mind at birth and is unlocked by experience. Essentially, Chomsky’s argument is that there is some sort of biological basis only evident within humans that permits the acquisition of language across different cultures, notwithstanding the complexities or differences between them. Christiansen and Chater (2008) provide for Chomsky’s position by noting that children can obtain their native language before being able to carry out tasks such as tying laces or riding a bicycle.

The analysis of Chomsky’s argument in Christiansen & Chater’s (2008) article suggests that there may be an innate universal grammar (UG), meaning that humans are born with the biological ability obtain...

... middle of paper ...

...l, or whether it relates to empirical learning.

Works Cited

Behme, C., & Deacon, S. H. (2008). Language Learning in Infancy: Does the Empirical Evidence Support a Domain Specific Language Acquisition Device? Philosophical Psychology, 21:5, 641-671. doi: 10.1080/09515080802412321

Chomsky, N. (1976). Reflections on Language. Glasgow: Fontana/Collins

Christiansen, M. H., & Chater, N. (2008). Language as shaped by the brain. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 31, 489-558. doi: 10.1017/S0140525X08004998

Gregory, R. L. (Ed.). (2004). The Oxford Companion to the Mind. Oxford: Oxford University Press

Trevarthen, C. (2002). Making Sense of Infants Making Sense. Intellectica, 1, 161-188

Trevarthen, C., & Malloch, S. (2000). The Dance of Wellbeing: Defining the Musical Therapeutic Effect. Norsk Tidsskrift for Musikkterapi, 9:2, 3-17. doi: 10.1080/08098130009477996

Show More
Related

  • Analysis Of Nicaraguan Sign Language

    1217 Words  | 3 Pages

    His argument is that, “conventionalized instrumental acts” were “the first hints of the abilities that eventually led to language” (Burling 108). He goes a step further and hypothesizes that as ability grew, these instrumental acts became more and more arbitrary, which led to the development of modern language (Burling 110-111). He proves this point in many ways but specifically discusses modern-day Sign Language as an example of the combination of motivation and conventionalized—closer to what original language would have been, but still fully developed with complex grammar, syntax, and vocabulary that is not easily learned nor can it be picked up solely by observation. Nicaraguan Sign Language, Burling argues is an example of how quickly language can develop as well as the fact that “a full language cannot be invented by a single person, but it is impossible to stop a community from inventing one” (Burling 117). He wants to stress that languages need multiple people to develop—it goes back to the principle that comprehension of someone’s actions has to come before production of a language to explain those behavior, an idea that Burling stresses throughout the

    Read More

  • Summary Of Atoms Of Language By Mark Baker

    1335 Words  | 3 Pages

    How can it be that something so uniquely human and commonplace in our everyday existence as language, could transcend the limits of our immediate understanding? We all know how to speak and comprehend at least one language, but defining what we actually know about that language an infinitely more demanding process. How can a child without previous knowledge of the construction and concepts of language be born into the world with an innate ability to apprehend any dialect? Mark Baker, in his book The Atoms of Language, seeks to address these unsettling questions, proposing as a solution, a set of underlying linguistic ingredients, which interact to generate the wide variety of languages we see today.

    Read More

  • Core Knowledge Theory Essay

    1260 Words  | 3 Pages

    Research completed on infants, children, and adults across a multitude of cultural environments proposes that no human mind is alike. Spelke found that the four systems on core knowledge are a basis for cognitive systems. This means that some humans learn things easily, while others learn with greater difficulty (Kinzler and Spelke 2007). The core knowledge theory can be seen as both a positive and negative topic. The possible fact that human beings, as well as other species, could potentially be predisposed to cognitive capacities instead of acquiring capacities through experience is an overwhelming and controversial topic. There is not enough research or evidence to deem the core knowledge theory to be an absolute fact, but a strong opinion could be derived. If these cognitive capacities are integrated into us before birth, that would create a strong foundation for building new skills or capacities; it would be difficult to imagine an individual starting their life without this foundation of core symptoms because problems may arise. The core knowledge theory is helpful when studying development because the idea has been apparent in studies since Jean Piaget and could eventually unveil the roots of an evolutionary

    Read More

  • Epistemology And Innateness

    742 Words  | 2 Pages

    In philosophy, “epistemology is the study of knowledge” (Truncellito). The study of innateness falls under the idea of epistemology and focuses on the idea that we are all born already having knowledge, rather than being born having to learn everything in life. The theory of innateness is one that has been argued for centuries and it is argued to various extents of presence in the human mind.

    Read More

  • Infant-Directed Speech and Its Effect on Language Acquisition

    1651 Words  | 4 Pages

    Kuhl, P. (2007). Is speech learning 'gated' by the social brain?. Developmental Science, 10(1), 110-120.

    Read More

  • Importance Of Diagnostic Labeling

    649 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...vist can utilize the loophole that the grammar aspect of the language acquisition device may take a certain amount of time before becoming active (pg. 296). Lack of self-correction is evident when nativists are confronted with situations of adults who misuse grammar. Again, rather than consider the fault in the theory a nativist can easily site that just because someone has misused grammar does not mean that they are lacking in knowledge pertaining to it (pg. 296). Lastly, the exaggerated claims are clear as the nativist’s theory states that the language acquisition device innately has all relevant knowledge pertaining to language. While the Broca’s area and Wernicke’s area are scientifically linked to production and comprehension of language, there is no evidence to say that these areas are nothing more than tools that are utilized after knowledge has been gained.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Sign Language

    739 Words  | 2 Pages

    It has long been debated whether or not humans are the only species that have evolved and are advanced enough to cultivate a complex language system. While it has been argued that other species do indeed have their own inherent methods of communication, none so far have exhibited sign of a language system as complex and structural as that of humans. Apes have exhibited their own method of language through ‘call systems,’ a limited number of sounds produced when certain stimuli are encountered. But while they are capable of their own language, it is another question entirely of whether they are capable of human language, which is characterized by its inherent qualities of displacement, arbitrariness, productivity, discreteness, duality and cultural transmission (Nature of Language, p. 17-18).

    Read More

  • Language Development in Children

    1962 Words  | 4 Pages

    ... (p. 116). In her article, “Babies Prove Sound Learners,” Sohn (2008), states, “Such studies show that, up to about 6 months of age, babies can recognize all the sounds that make up all the languages in the world” (para.24). B.K. Skinner suggest that the materialization of language is the result of imitation and reinforcement. According to Craig and Dunn (2010), “Language development is linked to cognitive development that, in turn, depends on the development of the brain, on physical and perceptual abilities, and on experiences. Biological and social factors also jointly influence the early development of emotion and personality” (p. 117). In her article, A natural history of early language experience. Hart (2000), states, “Talking is important for children, because complexity of what children say influences the complexity of other people’s response” (para. 1).

    Read More

  • Language and Brain

    1338 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the last few decades, the notion of language and brain has been highlighted in different scientific fields such as: neurology, cognitive science, linguistics biology, technology and finally education.

    Read More

  • Comparing Theories of Language Acquisition and Language Development

    2926 Words  | 6 Pages

    Language acquisition is perhaps one of the most debated issues of human development. Various theories and approaches have emerged over the years to study and analyse this developmental process. One factor contributing to the differing theories is the debate between nature v’s nurture. A question commonly asked is: Do humans a...

    Read More

  • Reflections on Appropriate Feedback and Error Correction in ELL

    1097 Words  | 3 Pages

    Lightbown, P., & Spada, N. M. (2006). How languages are learned (3rd ed.). Oxford [england: Oxford University Press.

    Read More

  • The Biological Basis of Language Development

    3894 Words  | 8 Pages

    Schnitzer, Marc L. Toward a neurolinguistic theory of language. Brain & Language. Vol 6(3) 342-361, Nov 1978.

    Read More

  • Language Acquisition

    7590 Words  | 16 Pages

    Still today, it is the commonly held belief that children acquire their mother tongue through imitation of the parents, caregivers or the people in their environment. Linguists too had the same conviction until 1957, when a then relatively unknown man, A. Noam Chomsky, propounded his theory that the capacity to acquire language is in fact innate. This revolutionized the study of language acquisition, and after a brief period of controversy upon the publication of his book, Aspects of the Theory of Syntax, in 1964, his theories are now generally accepted as largely true. As a consequence, he was responsible for the emergence of a new field during the 1960s, Developmental Psycholinguistics, which deals with children’s first language acquisition. He was not the first to question our hitherto mute acceptance of a debatable concept – long before, Plato wondered how children could possibly acquire so complex a skill as language with so little experience of life. Experiments have clearly identified an ability to discern syntactical nuances in very young infants, although they are still at the pre-linguistic stage. Children of three, however, are able to manipulate very complicated syntactical sentences, although they are unable to tie their own shoelaces, for example. Indeed, language is not a skill such as many others, like learning to drive or perform mathematical operations – it cannot be taught as such in these early stages. Rather, it is the acquisition of language which fascinates linguists today, and how it is possible. Noam Chomsky turned the world’s eyes to this enigmatic question at a time when it was assumed to have a deceptively simple explanation.

    Read More

  • Chomsky and Skinner and Theories Of Language Development

    1469 Words  | 3 Pages

    Chomsky and Skinner and Theories Of Language Development Many psychologists have studied and researched into how we acquire language. Some have concluded that the ability to learn language is a genetically inherited skill. Others believe that language is learned following birth and is due to environmental factors. This is part of the nature vs. nurture debate.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Nature And Nurture In Child Development

    1276 Words  | 3 Pages

    A linguist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology named Chomsky, declared that we have the ability to learn language not only because somebody taught us, but also because we are born with the principles of language in our genes. Chomsky also said “We have language because of nature, not just nurture” (Everywhere Psychology, 2012). Chomsky was one of the people that believed Genie still had a chance to learn language since everybody is born with the ability to learn. A neuropsychologist named Eric Lenneberg, agreed with Chomsky about humans being born with the ability to learn a language as nature, but believed there is a deadline for learning language. Lenneberg believed that if a first language isn 't learned by puberty it could be too late. What Lenneberg proposed is called the "critical period hypothesis," (Everywhere Psychology,

    Read More

More about Are Humans Predisposed To Learn Language?

Open Document