Human Language: Innate or Constructed?
Human language is a unique characteristic among species on planet Earth. Though many creatures use various methods to communicate, no known creatures other than humans have a language that vastly describes the universe. Is this ability innate or is it the product of environmental factors? In order to answer this, one must investigate a wide array of phenomena.
First, it would be beneficial to define what language is. Though the exact meaning may be debatable in some circles, generally language can be defined as a set of rules that control the use of arbitrary signifiers in order to share information (Owens 8). This is what human beings do. Each signifier is made up of phonemes, which in a sense are …show more content…
A major proponent of this idea was B.F. Skinner, who is famous for developing the branch of psychology known as Behaviorism. Behaviorists often claim that every aspect of a creature is determined by reinforcement from the environment. In this case, the focus is on language, but the principle is clear by their reckoning: language is not different than the acquisition of any other type of learned behavior (Owens 42). Skinner claimed that parents reinforced children by correcting their “incorrect’ language and rewarding their “correct” language. This view, upon reflection, seems to have some truth to it. However, can this simple system account for all of the complex developmental processes that occur when a child acquires their native tongue or is it just an external manifestation of an underlying structure? Perhaps it is just the proverbial tip of the …show more content…
First of all, it may not specifically imply Chomsky 's theories, rather it generally implies them. Why are human beings able to speak and acquire languages and bonobos (a sub-species of chimpanzee and our closest living ancestor) not able to do so? Though they are able to learn some gestural language via hand signs, they are unable to grasp a full language, no matter how hard linguists have tried to reinforce the behavior. This is because they do not have the brain structures that are able to process information this way. Brain structures are built into an organism for one reason: the genes code for
Human language is a unique characteristic among species on planet Earth. Though many creatures use various methods to communicate, no known creatures other than humans have a language that vastly describes the universe. Is this ability innate or is it the product of environmental factors? In order to answer this, one must investigate a wide array of phenomena.
First, it would be beneficial to define what language is. Though the exact meaning may be debatable in some circles, generally language can be defined as a set of rules that control the use of arbitrary signifiers in order to share information (Owens 8). This is what human beings do. Each signifier is made up of phonemes, which in a sense are …show more content…
A major proponent of this idea was B.F. Skinner, who is famous for developing the branch of psychology known as Behaviorism. Behaviorists often claim that every aspect of a creature is determined by reinforcement from the environment. In this case, the focus is on language, but the principle is clear by their reckoning: language is not different than the acquisition of any other type of learned behavior (Owens 42). Skinner claimed that parents reinforced children by correcting their “incorrect’ language and rewarding their “correct” language. This view, upon reflection, seems to have some truth to it. However, can this simple system account for all of the complex developmental processes that occur when a child acquires their native tongue or is it just an external manifestation of an underlying structure? Perhaps it is just the proverbial tip of the …show more content…
First of all, it may not specifically imply Chomsky 's theories, rather it generally implies them. Why are human beings able to speak and acquire languages and bonobos (a sub-species of chimpanzee and our closest living ancestor) not able to do so? Though they are able to learn some gestural language via hand signs, they are unable to grasp a full language, no matter how hard linguists have tried to reinforce the behavior. This is because they do not have the brain structures that are able to process information this way. Brain structures are built into an organism for one reason: the genes code for