Noam Chomsky's Innateness Theory

Within a humanistic society communication is essential in its ability to covey the deepest secrets and ideals towards potentially anyone. In other species an innateness to communicate creates a differing pattern of communicative, meaningful vocalisations. These can range from bird songs that incorporate a limitedly learnt system or even domesticated pets using pitch variations to express themselves in scenarios. Humanistic communicative function can be infinite in its premise, utilising a limited set of speech and words, especially as language progresses. Innateness in this regard has been contested and debated in the academic world for almost sixty years due to the research and findings of Noam Chomsky in his Nativist approach. The question of innateness has become a core argument between Nativists and Empiricists because of this.
The innateness theory (from a Nativist viewpoint) is the belief that there is an incessant urge to communicate from an early age which subsequently utilises an inbuilt cohesive grammaticism. Chomsky (amongst others) argues that this grammatical ability is an instinct and is passed through generation to generation using a genetic blueprint that humans have honed over time. The general idea of …show more content…
Empiricism consists of two separate approaches with similar beliefs. The classical Empiricist believes that language is acquired through hearing, smelling, touching, seeing and tasting alongside intuition. Whilst a more contemporary Empiricist argues that without environmental factors affecting senses, a language will not develop at all. Although both have a slightly differing view on how we acquire language, both are in agreement that the Nativists idea of innateness is wrong (or partly wrong), with most usually citing B. F. Skinners work towards disproving Nativism