aps審核復(fù)習(xí)可以不看語(yǔ)言學(xué)1language and linguistics

1、Linguistics Wang LijuanTopic 1 Language and Linguistics1.1 LanguageIt is language that makes us human. 1.1.1 Definition of language What is Language?Students definition (group discussion):Language is _.Some definitions:Language is an edifice or a well-defined object. (Saussure - Structuralist)Langua

2、ge is an activity which consists of listening, speaking, reading and writing. (Halliday Sociolinguist)Language is a set (finite or infinite) of sentences, each finite in length and constructed out of a finite set of elements. (Chomsky Transformationalist)The following is a definition which has been

3、accepted by most people:“Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication.” (Wardhaugh, 1979)The definition has captured the main features of language.“Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication.”Language is a system.Language is arbitrary

4、.Language is vocal.Language is symbolic.Language is particularly human.Features of Language Illustration Language is a system. *llbta *been he tall a not Language is arbitrary. Language is vocal. Language is symbolic. Language is particularly human. Features of Language Illustration Language is a sy

5、stem. Elements of language are combined according to rules.*llbta *been he tall a not Language is arbitrary. Language is vocal. Language is symbolic. Language is particularly human. Features of Language Illustration Language is a system. Elements of language are combined according to rules.Language

6、is arbitrary. There is no intrinsic or logical connection between a linguistic symbol and what the symbol stands for. Shakespeare: “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”*onomatopoeic words: cuckoo, crash, bow-wow, etc Language is vocal. Language is symbolic. Language is particularly human.

7、 Features of Language Illustration Language is a system. Elements of language are combined according to rules.Language is arbitrary. There is no intrinsic or logical connection between a linguistic symbol and what the symbol stands for. Language is vocal. The primary medium for all languages is soun

8、d.Language is produced by various movements of speech organs. *writing system*visual symbolsLanguage is symbolic. Language is particularly human. Features of Language Illustration Language is a system. Elements of language are combined according to rules.Language is arbitrary. There is no intrinsic

9、or logical connection between a linguistic symbol and what the symbol stands for. Language is vocal. The primary medium for all languages is sound.Language is produced by various movements of speech organs. Language is symbolic. Words are just symbols; they are associated with objects, actions, idea

10、s, etc. by convention. Language is particularly human. Features of Language Illustration Language is a system. Elements of language are combined according to rules.Language is arbitrary. There is no intrinsic or logical connection between a linguistic symbol and what the symbol stands for. Language

11、is vocal. The primary medium for all languages is sound.Language is produced by various movements of speech organs. Language is symbolic. Words are just symbols; they are associated with objects, actions, ideas, etc. by convention. Language is particularly human. Language is possessed only by human

12、beings to talk about the past, the present and the future, and to express request, command and so on. *Dogs bark*Worker bees danceFeatures of Language Illustration Language is a system. Elements of language are combined according to rules.Language is arbitrary. There is no intrinsic or logical conne

13、ction between a linguistic symbol and what the symbol stands for. Language is vocal. The primary medium for all languages is sound.Language is produced by various movements of speech organs. Language is symbolic. Words are just symbols; they are associated with objects, actions, ideas, etc. by conve

14、ntion. Language is particularly human. Language is possessed only by human beings to talk about the past, the present and the future, and to express request, command and so on. 1.1.2 Design features of language Design features: the defining properties of human language that distinguish it from any a

15、nimal system of communication. 1 Duality (結(jié)構(gòu)二重性)Language is a system which consists of two sets of structures, or two levels: units of the primary level (words which are meaningful) being composed of elements of the secondary level (sounds which are meaningless, but can be grouped and regrouped in t

16、o words) and each level having its own principles of organization. Can you find duality in dogs bark ?2 Arbitrariness (任意性) There is no intrinsic connection between a linguistic form and its meaning.A game: How to write these words to help others guess the meaning of the words? get up small tall loo

17、k fall mix kick3 Productivity (能產(chǎn)性) Creativity / Open-endedness Language is productive, or generative, because we can produce and understand sentences that have never been created or heard before. Will you please try to create a sentence which we have never heard before?4 Displacement (移置性)Human lan

18、guage can be used to refer to contexts removed from the immediate situations of its users. Cats meow:5 Discreteness (離散性)The sounds used in language are meaningfully distinct. Each sound in a language is discrete. The pronunciation of the forms pat and bat leads to a distinction in meaning.6 Cultura

19、l transmission (文化傳播性) Language is passed on from one generation to the next through teaching and learning. You may inherit brown eyes and dark hair from your parents, you do not inherit their language. You acquire a language in a culture with other speakers and not from parental genes. 1.1.3 Functi

20、ons of human languageDifferent linguists have different terms for the various functions of language.The functions of language can be mainly embodied in three aspects.1 Language is a tool of human communication.2 Language is a tool whereby people learn about the world.3 Language is a tool by which pe

21、ople create art.Some basic functions that serve peoples daily communication:Discussion: What functions do you think these utterances express?1 A sneezes violently B: “Bless you.” A: “Thank you.”2 The priest says: “I announce you husband and wife.”3 “He went to Paris yesterday.” 4 “Oh, my God!” 5 “ P

22、lease be seated.” 6 “Whats your suggestion?”Some basic functions that serve peoples daily communication:1 Phatic: To create an atmosphere, to maintain social contact.e.g. A sneezes violently B: Bless you. A: Thank you.2 Performative: To perform certain action by uttering certain words or sentences.

23、e.g. The priest says: “I announce you husband and wife.”3 Informative: To tell the fact and describe the reality.e.g. “He went to Paris yesterday.” “I have a red suit.”4 Emotive: To express immediate feelings or the reaction to the immediate situation. e.g. “Oh, my God!” “Damn it!”5 Directive: To ge

24、t the listeners to do something. e.g. “ Please be seated.” “ I suggest that you go there.6 Interrogative: To inquire information. e.g. “Whats your suggestion?”7 Evocative: To evoke certain feelings in the audience. e.g. advertisementThe British linguist M. A. K. Halliday uses the following terms to

25、refer to the initial functions of Childrens language:1 Instrumental工具功能: Language allows speakers to get things done. It allows them to control things in the environment. e.g. I name this ship Liberty Bell.2 Regulatory控制功能: Language is used in an attempt to control events once then happen. Those eve

26、nts may involve the self as well as others. e.g. Why did I say that? / Steady! / Let me think about that again.3 Representational表達(dá)功能: Language is used to communicate knowledge about the world, to report events, to make statements, to give accounts, to explain relationships, to relay messages and so

27、 on.4 Interactional交互功能: Language is used to ensure social maintenance. e.g. How are you?5 Personal自指性功能: Language is used to express the individuals feelings, emotions and personality.6 Heuristic啟發(fā)功能: Language is used in order to acquire knowledge and understanding of the world. Language may be use

28、d for learning. Questions can lead to answers, argumentation to conclusions and hypothesis-testing to new discoveries.7 Imaginative想象性功能: Language is used to create imaginary system, whether these are literary works, philosophical systems or utopian visions, or daydreams.Questions:Why do we say lang

29、uage is a system?Can you think of some words in English which are onomatopoeic?Can you mention some typical expressions of phatic communion in Chinese?Please prepare the following for the next week:1 The definition of linguistics.2 Explain some important distinctions in linguistics.Descriptive vs. P

30、rescriptiveSynchronic vs. DiachronicLangue & ParoleCompetence & PerformanceActual Linguistic Choice & Potential Linguistic ChoiceFormalism vs. Functionalism3 The scope of linguistics1.2 Linguistics1.2.1 What is Linguistics?Linguistics is the branch of cognitive science concerned with language.It can

31、 be defined as the scientific study of language, which involves the investigation into all human languages.1.2.2 Some distinctions in linguistics Does linguistics tell people how to speak or write properly? What is the prescriptive/descriptive view of the following sentences: “It is I.” & “It is me.

32、” “Who did you speak to?” & “Whom did you speak to?”Descriptive （描寫(xiě)）Prescriptive （規(guī)定）Aimto describe how things actually are; to describe how people speakto prescribe how things ought to be; to teach people how to speak, read, write a languageFormulaePeople do/dont say XDo/dont say XIn the 18th centu

33、ry, all the main European languages were studied prescriptively. Now, the descriptivism wins more and more understanding. Do you think the prescriptivism is still necessary?2 Synchronic vs. Diachronic The synchronic description of language is the study of a language at a particular time. The diachro

34、nic linguistics is the study of a language through the cause of its history. Today synchronic axis 1500 1066 diachronic axis 449In modern linguistics, it seems that a synchronic study enjoys priority over a diachronic one. Can we draw a sharp line between synchronic and diachronic language studies?

35、3 Langue & ParoleIt is pointed out by Ferdinand de Saussure (1916). Whats the relationship between langue and parole?Foreign language teaching involves both two aspects.Langue （語(yǔ)言）Parole （言語(yǔ)）The abstract linguistic system shared by all the members of a speech communityThe concrete act of speaking in

36、 actual situation by an individual speakera set of conventionsthe generalized rulesthe concrete use of the conventions or applications of the rules4 Competence & PerformanceThis distinction is discussed by Chomsky (1965). Can you tell the similarities between langue & parole and competence & perform

37、ance?Distinction: Langue is a mere systematic inventory of items. Competence is underlying as a system of generative processes.Competence （語(yǔ)言能力）Performance （語(yǔ)言運(yùn)用）A language users underlying knowledge about the system of rulesThe actual use of language in concrete situations5 Actual Linguistic Choice

38、 & Potential Linguistic ChoiceThis distinction views language as a semiotic system with sets of oppositions and choices.Through this distinction what people did do or did say on any particular occasion is related to what they could have done or could have said.6 Formalism vs. FunctionalismFormalism

39、focuses centrally on linguistic form. It is the segregational analysis of language.Functionalism holds that the function of conveying meaning has so affected grammatical form that it is senseless to compartmentalize it.1.2.3 Branches of Linguistics1 Phonetics: It studies the characteristics of speec

40、h sounds and provides methods for their description, classification and transcription.2 Phonology: It is the study of the distinctive sounds of a language, the so called phonemes. Phonology examines the functions of sounds within a language.3 Morphology: It is the study of the meaning units.4 Syntax

41、: It is the study of sentence structure or the rules governing the combination of words into sentences. It is a part of grammar in the broad sense.5 Semantics: It examines the meaning of linguistic signs and strings of signs.6 Pragmatics: It is the study of the use of signs and the relationship betw

42、een signs and their users. It investigates a linguistic utterance as a communicative action.7 Discourse Analysis: It is much concerned with the study of relationship between language and context in which it is used.8 Stylistics: It studies language style, which explains the relationship between the text and its conte