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Linguistic relativity hypothesis argues that humans see colors less with their eyes than with their language. (Fountain, 1999) The linguistic relativity hypothesis is important to help in understanding the reasoning behind the way that thought processes develop with the different cultures. The thought processes determine how language comes about and the reasons that the same word can mean different things with different cultures.
In the eyes of a linguist, colors are categorized in eleven words. But, in different cultures the number of words to categorize colors is different. Some cultures have as few as five words to categorize colors. If one culture categorizes color differently from another culture, they would perceive it different as well. What may be green to one culture may be blue to another culture. Linguistic categories affect the way the world is seen. The results support the idea of linguistic relativity if they show color perception as being dependent on categorizing through language.
Results of experiments guided by pointed questions have shown evidence that language shapes thought. (Begley, 2009) People who speak different languages show dramatically different results of cognitive tasks in all manners. Some cultures use gender to symbolize different words, such as female meaning death in one culture, where it would be male meaning death in another culture. The results have also shown that shades of colors with distinct names help people have a better memory...
For instance, being polite in one culture may require someone to shake hands to introduce themselves, but another culture may view handshakes as inappropriate gestures. Words that create thought have different meanings as well in different cultures.
There are different kinds of relativism, such as descriptive and normative. Descriptive relativism is empirical claims that state that certain groups in fact have different modes of thought and standards of reasoning. It describes the principles and practices of different cultural groups. Normative relativism actually has two sides. Anti-realist agrees that there is no such thing as absolute or completely objective facts about moral truth or moral justifications. Realist agrees that once things are relativized to frameworks, facts are present about morality, epistemic justifications, and truth.
There must be an objective connection between speaking a language or belonging to a culture and how one thinks if speaking the language or belonging to the culture leads to different modes of thought. The words that…
Purdue is a scholarly source that connects to an article with the New York Times, a news source. The article discusses how the use of the meaning of colors in different cultures can shape how language is used and the different meanings of the words can and do change from one culture to another in languages. It discusses how the linguistic relativity hypothesis argues that colors are seen more through language than with sight.
Swoyer, C. (2003, Feb 2). Relativism. Retrieved from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/relativism/index.html
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy is a scholarly site. This entry discusses the meaning of relativism, the different contexts of relativism, and how they shape modes of thought, and standards of reasoning. It discusses how the principles and practices of different cultures work with the different methods of relativism in shaping thought processes and standards of reasoning to develop different words and meanings with different cultures. It also discusses how linguistic categories affect the way we see the world. The different categories of words are different from each culture and cause each culture to perceive things different than other cultures do.
Researchers define language in these kinds of studies somewhat differently from one another. Language can be written, spoken, or even just understood, as there are those people who understand someone speaking to them in a different language, but they are not fluent enough to carry on a conversation or to read the language in a book or newspaper. Because of that, it is very important for researchers to consider the
Linguistics Begley, S. (2009). What's in a word? Newsweek/The Daily Beast. Retrieved online: http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2009/07/08/what-s-in-a-word.html Begley provides a helpful overview of the work of Boroditsky in the field of linguistic relativity. The theory was once lacking empirical grounding, but Boroditsky changed that, to provide scientific proof that language indeed shapes perception and cognition. Boroditsky, L. (n.d.). Linguistic relativity. Retrieved online: http://www-psych.stanford.edu/~lera/papers/linguistic-relativity.pdf Boroditsky's (n.d.) "intermediate paper" provides the foundation for linguistic relativity. The author describes how
Linguistics Language can directly impact, if not totally constrain, perceptions and cognitions, according to the Sapir-Whorf linguistic relativity hypothesis. Ample evidence supports the hypothesis, as conceptualizations of reality and events are experimentally different in different language contexts, evaluated by testing native speakers of different languages and requesting their interpretation of various events. For example, language impacts perceptions of colors, which can in turn impact salient issues in the perception of reality
" The authors go on to mention that by comparing the Navajo silent film research with similar research using African-American high school drop-outs in Philadelphia and University of Pennsylvania filmmakers, some "universals" and some differences as well came to light in the relationships between film and "linguistic" and cultural variables. Zhu Zhifang, "Linguistic Relativity and Cultural Communication," Educational Philosophy and Theory. The author, a Whorf hypothesis believer, goes to some lengths
Classroom Introduction- The way humans communicate and share ideas and concepts in society is complex. How are ideas conceptualized -- how are they explained -- how does discourse relate- and how do humans understand messages -- what is true about language- what is not? These are just some of the issues surrounding theories of language acquisition and development. However, a full review of all current linguistic theories is out of
Human Languages Is there a continuum of intelligence from animal to human, or are humans unique in terms of memory, thinking, or language? A child crosses several stages of development before a child ultimately becomes an adult and then completes his/her developmental phase. Meanwhile, the same goes for animals, which begins with the basic techniques for their survival such as standing on all feet, searching for food or recognizing their parents. Therefore,