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1、Lecture 2What is Language?- The nature of human language,Contents of this lecture,1. Definitions of language 2. Features of language (chapter 2) 3. Origins of language (chapter1) 4. Functions of language 5. Forms of Language (chapter 16) 6. Gestures and signs of language (chapter 15),Questions: 1. W
2、hat is language 2. What if we had no language? 3. Is language important? Is it more important than (less important, as important as) our eyes, hands, ears or legs?,1. Definitions,辞海（1989年版，第446页） 人类最重要的交际工具。它同思维有密切的联 系，是人类思维和表达思想的手段，也是人类社 会最基本的信息载体。人们借助语言保存和传递 人类文明的成果。语言是人区别于其他动物的本 质特征之一。共同的语言又常是民族的
3、特征。语 言是以语音为物质外壳，以语词为建筑材料，以 语法为结构规律而构成的符号体系。,语言是一种特殊的社会现象，它随着社会 的产生而产生，发展而发展。语言没有阶 级性，一视同仁地为社会各阶层服务。社 会各阶级，阶层或社会集群也会影响到语 言，因而造成语言在使用上的不同特点或 差异。,Language “is not to be confused with human speech, of which it is only a definite part, though certainly an essential one. It is both a social product of the
4、 faculty of speech and a collection of necessary conventions that have been adopted by a social body to permit individuals to exercise that faculty”. (Ferdinand de Saussure 1857-1913),Language is a set of sentences, each infinite in length and constructed out of a finite set of elements. (Chomsky, 1
5、957),Language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of voluntarily produced symbols. (Sapir, 1921),“ A language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols by means of which a social group co-operates.” - Bernard Bloch (1907-1965) the larynx dr
6、opped to a lower position than the throat because of an upright posture. Pharynx: a longer cavity acting as a resonator for increased ranged and clarity of the sounds produced via the larynx and the vocal tract.,5) The tool-making source,-manual gesture may have been a precursor of language. - right
7、-handed and making tools - tool-making is evidence of a brain at work. - human brain: large and lateralized - motor movements of speaking and making tools are controlled by some part of the brain in the left hemisphere.,6) The genetic source,- The process of first language acquisition led scholars t
8、o believe that human offspring are born with a special capacity for language- Innateness hypothesis - language gene - the biological basis of the formation and development of human language.,4. Functions of language,1) What do we do with language? 2) What kind of things can language do?,Function is
9、generally used in linguistics to refer to the roles language plays in our life or in society. Even in this sense, function may refer to specific roles or general roles. -The specific roles language plays fulfill an individuals purpose of communication. -The general roles language plays are termed me
10、tafunctions. A metafunction is a more abstract one, which is capable of describing innumerable specific functions.,Specific functions of language,Referential function (transactional function) The transmission of information is the first thing we think of when we consider the functions of language. I
11、nformational or referential or ideational function is associated with what objects and ideas are called and how events are described.,Performative Function Language is used to do thing, to perform some as in marriage ceremonies, the sentencing of criminals, the blessing of children, the naming of a
12、ship at a launching ceremony, and the cursing of enemies.,For example: 1) The priest: Now I declare you man and wife. 2) The judge: Now I sentence you to ten years in prison. 3) when we say to a friend: “今晚到我们这儿吃顿便饭” 。 we perform the following acts:,- Producing noises. - Producing noises in such a w
13、ay they become Chinese sounds. - Producing sounds in such a way they become Chinese words. - Putting Chinese words in such a way they become a meaningful utterance. -What we do is issuing an invitation. The purpose of doing this is to be polite or to reinforce the friendship and etc.,Emotive Functio
14、n The emotive function of language is one of the most powerful uses of language because it is so crucial in changing the emotional status of an audience for or against someone or something.,For example, swear words, obscenities, involuntary verbal reactions to beautiful art or scenery; conventional
15、words/phrases, like “God”, “Damn it”, “What a sight”, “Wow”, etc.,Phatic Communion It refers to the social interaction of language, e.g. Good morning! Nice day!,Recreational Function The recreational function of a language is often overlooked because it seems restrictive in purpose and supposedly li
16、mited in usefulness. For example, poetry writing gives them the pleasure of using language for its sheer beauty.,Linguists talk about the functions of language in an abstract sense. They summarize these practical functions and attempt some broad classifications of the basic functions of language. According to M.A.K. Halliday (1970), language plays three metafunctions simultaneously.,Metafunctions,Halliday (1970) p
