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The only part of the human body that can really be said to be devoted to speech in a way totally unique to humans is the brain. There are language centers in the human brain that researchers have yet to find any analogs for in other animals. This supports Noam Chomsky's assertion that language did not simply evolve from animal calls. There are, it is true, all of the biological mechanisms required for speech in many other animals, but language is capable of much more than simply making sounds or even communicating. Language can imagine the future, and express ideas that do not necessarily pertain to the current situation. The difference between the language of humans and the communication abilities of animals, as it is not physically based, must be neurologically based, and research both into human and animal brains and a careful examination of language supports this theory.
Chomsky, perhaps our era's greatest linguist -- though also accused of exaggerating evidence -- claims that there is a "universal grammar" to...
Chomsky does not go so far as to deny the environmental aspects of language acquisition, but he claims that there are biological consistencies in all humans that enable them to learn and reproduce language. There is also neurological evidence for much of Chomsky's theory. Dr. R. Joseph has found that a variety of complex structures of neurons and pathways in the brain are devoted to understanding and producing language, both in the imaginative aspects and in the control of the speech apparatus. He has even found that the two sides of the brain are specialized in the way they respond to language -- the left hemisphere deals with the actual meaning of language while the right deals with emotive sounds and inflections to extract meaning. As this differentiation is uniquely human, it is clear that there is a biological basis for language and speech.
Works Cited
Duke University Neurobiology. http://www.duke.edu/~pk10/language/neuro.htm
Works Cited
Duke University Neurobiology. http://www.duke.edu/~pk10/language/neuro.htm
The evidence for the biological basis of language is strong, however; researchers have found that newborn infants thought to be at a stage of development that precluded language abilities have been shown to recognize and express interest in spoken syllabic patterns over randomized syllables, and to retain that recognition over long periods of time (Gervain et al. 2008). The authors of this study conclude that the newborn brain is
Rather, language may be more apt to change the way we see the world, rather than vice versa, at least according to Chomsky. Meaning thus varies and shifts, some would say as the world shifts, others would say as language itself grows and generates new meanings -- while almost all would agree that the drive to communicate and make consistent and coherent meanings endures in all segments of the species.
Apparently this view has much in its favor. When we compare modern English with some of those Indian languages which are most concrete in their formative expression, the contrast is striking. When we say "The eye is the organ of sight, the Indian may not be able to form the expression the eye, but may have to define that the eye of a person or of an animal is meant.
Theoretical Perspective of the Approach The approach's personality models are grounded on biological models. The models are based on empirical human and animal findings concerning the associations between neurological system functions and personality dimensions. Traits that are measured are reward-dependence, harm avoidance, novelty-seeking etc. The hypothesis is that they are grounded on genetic and neurochemical influences. For instance, sensation-seeking and explorative tendencies like drug usage make use of dopaminergic pathways, and
Pinker maintains that evolution follows a branching, rather than linear pattern. Many species develop concurrently, each with their own survival instincts. Humans, and their survival instinct of language, are just one branch of the evolutionary process rather than a pinnacle rung. Holding the belief that we can, or might someday communicate with animals creates empathy, which leads to humane treatment of animals. A belief that animals cannot communicate with us
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