The lack of rules would contribute to disorder in the world, especially pertaining to one of the most important methods in which we communicate to one another: language in its diverse forms. In “What is a Language?” the authors Neil Smith and Deidre Wilson and establish their perspective of language being governed by rule-systems. With the density of the subject, languages have three research approaches: how it is used as a form of communication, by social groups, and the ways in which language is an organism that changes through time. As a prerequisite to judging languages to one another, an individual must be able to distinguish the content of a language. Language can be defined by the setting of certain grammar rules that hold two purposes:
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Every speaker holds a unique set of rules when it comes to speaking a language. Children who are in the process of learning a first language create their own rules that do not always make sense to adults. An example of this can be seen with my cousin Jake, a three year old who is still in the process of learning to speak in sentences. On occasion, he will refer to himself in the third person whenever speaking saying phrases such as, “Jake wants to eat” rather than saying “I want to eat” to disclose his needs to his parents or those around him. Referring to the third person is the rule that he makes and …show more content…
Psychological validity of the grammar rules depends on what the speaker has heard previously, especially during their time as a child learning language. The speaker will take in a diverse amount of utterances in his environment, building their own grammar. However, there have been arguments by the likes of Locke that are against the idea of unconscious knowledge, which leaves gaping questions such as “How can someone explain an act of memory?” After all, using our memory is “to bring to consciousness an item of unconscious, stored knowledge” (Smith and Wilson). The job of a linguist is to figure out whether the patterns that emerge from his or her studies on grammar are whether they are considered accidental or significant generalizations. By having a psychologically real grammar rule, it would open up new opportunities to gain a more critical look on other relevant
Every speaker holds a unique set of rules when it comes to speaking a language. Children who are in the process of learning a first language create their own rules that do not always make sense to adults. An example of this can be seen with my cousin Jake, a three year old who is still in the process of learning to speak in sentences. On occasion, he will refer to himself in the third person whenever speaking saying phrases such as, “Jake wants to eat” rather than saying “I want to eat” to disclose his needs to his parents or those around him. Referring to the third person is the rule that he makes and …show more content…
Psychological validity of the grammar rules depends on what the speaker has heard previously, especially during their time as a child learning language. The speaker will take in a diverse amount of utterances in his environment, building their own grammar. However, there have been arguments by the likes of Locke that are against the idea of unconscious knowledge, which leaves gaping questions such as “How can someone explain an act of memory?” After all, using our memory is “to bring to consciousness an item of unconscious, stored knowledge” (Smith and Wilson). The job of a linguist is to figure out whether the patterns that emerge from his or her studies on grammar are whether they are considered accidental or significant generalizations. By having a psychologically real grammar rule, it would open up new opportunities to gain a more critical look on other relevant