The meaning of meaning

Question 1

Prototype theory (Rosch 1975)

Answer 1

Rosch presented her subjects with a questionnaire which contained category names (birds, furniture etc.) Subjects had to rate each item out of 7 as a good example of the category. The results were ALL very similar with typical examples such as robins etc. There are more typical words within categories.

Question 2

The prototype theory discusses…?

Answer 2

How categories operate

Question 3

What is the classical view?

Answer 3

That the meaning of a word can be broken down into a set of components. When we give words ‘features’ that allow them to classify as a word. For example a square should have ‘four sides’, ‘right angles’, ‘sleight sides’ and be ‘equal’.

Question 4

An early prototype experiment by Labov (1973)?

Answer 4

Labov asked subjects to give names to drawings of vessels which represented a cup to different degrees. He began to ask the subjects to imagine flowers, food and liquid etc in the vessels. This suggests that the vessels were not identified based just on what they looked like but also what they can be used for.