Week 1 general concepts - Knowledge of Language

Question 1

What are the 3 realities of Language?

Answer 1

1. SOCIAL reality
2. GENETIC reality (for species)
3. COGNITIVE reality (for individual)

Question 2

Define SOCIAL Reality of Language

Answer 2

Lang LEARNED and USED in SOCAL ENVIRONMENT
- infants NOT “born speaking”, they are “exposed” to lang in social environment (NOT ACQUIRE IF NOT EXPOSED)
> Genie, 1979 age 13 virtual isolation. never normal develop after certain age

Question 3

Define GENETIC Reality of Language

Answer 3

Humans have INNATE CAPACITY for language

• children develop their L1, NOT “taught”. Sufficient to be “exposed”
• Puberty onward, WAY HARDER. LAD turned off at some point
• all human lang = common features. Linguists study as LINGUISTIC UNIVERSALS

Question 4

Define COGNITIVE Reality of Language

Answer 4

INDIVIDUALS possess “knowledge” of a Lang
- enables them to PRODUCE + INTERPRET “LINGUISTIC OBJECTS”
> newspaper, convo, lecture, novel, poem, joke, songs, curses, txts

Question 5

What are the 3 Broad types of Linguistic Competence (knowledge)?

Answer 5

1. PRAGMATIC (communicative) competence
2. SEMANTIC (meaning) competence
3. STRUCTURAL (grammatical) competence

Question 6

Pragmatic COMMUNICATIVE Competence

Answer 6

knowledge by which we DO things w lang - telling jokes, ordering lunch

• allows us to SELECT ling expression APPROPRIATE to SITUATION
• knowledge of social, interpersonal, context-specific realities that allow us to INTERPRET INTENTIONS
• eg “do you have the time?” - “Yes!” not appropriate. it is literal response - prag allows us to know they MEAN “WHAT is the time”

Question 7

SEMANTIC competence

Answer 7

Ling Expressions - Words, Phrases, Sentences - have (propositional) content. THEY MEAN SOMETHING
- know what ling expressions mean

Question 8

GRAMMATICAL competence

Answer 8

Knowledge of what is/is not a “Possible” expression in a language - BASED ON FORM

• Knowledge that enables us to recognise WELL-FORMED and ILL-FORMED expressions in that language

EXAMPLE (phonology)

zbishchu
- not possible english
> no english syllable BEGIN w /zb/ (only word-internal across syllable boundary - husband)
> /shch/ english not have 2 strident coronals together. only across word boundary - fresh cheese)

EXAMPLE (syntax)
-The iggle squiggs wombled in the harlish gloop
vs
- *Squirrels little the ooze in brackish the frolicked

Question 9

relations between 3 kinds of linguistic competence

Answer 9

viewed as TRIANGLE of
CONTEXT-FORM-CONTENT

FORM = Grammar

FORM + CONTENT = semantics

FORM + CONTEXT + CONTENT = Pragmatics