戴炜栋简明语言学教程配套笔记

戴炜栋《简明语言学教程》配套笔记戴炜栋《简明语言学教程》配套笔记 Chapter 1 What is language?Chapter 1 What is language? [A] The origins of language[A] The origins of language Some speculations of the origins of language: ①① The divine source The divine source The basic hypothesis: if infants were allowed to grow up without hearing any language, then they would spontaneously begin using the original god-given language. Actually, children living without access to human speech in their early years grow up with no language at all. ②② The natural-sound source The natural-sound source The bow-wow theory: the suggestion is that primitive words could have been imitations of the natural sounds which early men and women heard around them. The “Yo-heave-ho” theory: the sounds produced by humanswhen rting physical effort, especially when co-operating with other humans, may be the origins of speech sounds. Onomatopoeic sounds ③③ The oral-gesture source The oral-gesture source It is claimed that originally a set of physical gestures was developed as a means of communication. The patterns of movement in articulation would be the same as gestural movement; hence waving tongue would develop from waving hand. ④④ Glossogenetics Glossogenetics（言语遗传学）（言语遗传学） This focuses mainly on the biological basis of the ation and development of human language. Physiological adaptationàdevelop naming abilityàinteractions and transactions Physical adaptation: Human teeth are upright and roughly even in height. Human lips have intricate muscle interlacing, thus making them very flexible. The human mouth is small and contains a very flexible tongue. The human larynx is lowered, creating a longer cavity called the pharynx, and making it easier for the human to choke on the pieces of food, but making the sound speech possible. The human brain is lateralized. Those analytic functions (tool-using and language) are largely confined to the left hemisphere of the brain for most humans. Two major functions of language: Interactional: a social function of language. Transactional: a function involving the communication of knowledge and ination [B] The properties of language[B] The properties of language Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication. a) System: combined together according to rules b) Arbitrary: no intrinsic connection between the word “pen” and the thing in the world which it refers to c) Vocal: the primary medium is sound for all languages d) Human: language is human-specific（交际性与信息性） Communicative vs. Inative: Communicative: intentionally using language to communicate something Inative: through/via a number of signals that are not intentionally sent Design features (unique properties): the defining properties of human language that distinguish it from any animal system of communication ①① Displacement Displacement（跨时空性，移位性）（跨时空性，移位性） Language can be used to refer to contexts removed from the immediate situations of the speaker (refer to past and future time