语言学PPT what is language
语言学导论
语言学导论一What is LanguageLanguage is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication. To give the briefest definition, language is a means of verbal communication. Language distinguishes us from animals because it is far more sophisticated than any animal communication system.二Design Features of Language一）ArbitrarinessThe widely accepted meaning of this feature, which was first discussed by Saussure, refers to the fact that the forms of linguistic signs bear no natural relationship to their meaning. For instance, we cannot explain why a book is called /buk/.二）DualityIt means the property of having two levels of structures, such that units of the primary level are composed of elements of the secondary level and each of the two levels has its own principles of organization.三）CreativityBy creativity we mean language is resourceful because of its duality and its recursiveness. One of the reasons why language is actually a far more complicated entity is that we can use it to create new meanings.四）DisplacementDisplacement means that human languages enable their users to symbolize objects, events and concepts, which are not present (in time and space) at the moment of communication. For example, we can refer to Confucious or the North Pole, even though the first has been dead for 2,500 years and the second is situated far away.练习：1、Which of the following statements about language is NOT true?A. Animals also have languages.B. Language is a system.C. Language is arbitraryD. Language is symbolic.正确答案:Animals also have languages.2、Productivity is one of the _____ features of languages.A. DesignB. DistinctiveC. PragmaticD. Superasegmental正确答案:designFunctions of Language一）InformativeIt is the major role of language. The use of language to record the facts is a prerequisite of social development.It is also ideational function in the framework of functional grammar.二）Interpersonal FunctionIt is the most important sociological use of language, by which people establish and maintain their status in a society.Attached to the interpersonal function of language is its function of the expression of identity.三）PerformativeThis concept originates from the philosophical study of language presented by Austin and Searle, whose theory now forms the backbone of pragmatics.The performative function of language is primarily to change the social status of persons as in marriage ceremonies, the blessing of children and the naming of a ship at a launching ceremony. The kind of language employed in performative verbal acts is usually quite formal and even ritualized.四）Emotive FunctionThe emotive function of language is one of the most powerful uses of language because it is so crucial in changing the emotional status of an audience for or against someone or something. e.g. God, My, Damn it ......五）Phatic CommunionThe term originates from Malinowski's study of the function of language performed by Trobriand Islanders. It refers to the social interaction of language.We all use small, seemingly meaningless expressions such as Good morning, God bless you, Nice day to maintain a comfortable relationship between people. 六）Recreational FunctionNo one will deny the use of language for the sheer joy of using it such as baby's babbling or a chanter's chanting.七）Metalingual FunctionOur language can be used to talk about itself. For example, we can use the word "book" to talk about a book.What is Linguistics?Linguistics is a branch of science, which takes language as its object of investigation.Main Branches of Linguistics一）PhoneticsPhonetics studies speech sounds, including the production of speech, that is how speech sounds are actually made, transmitted and received, the sounds of speech, the description and the classification of speech sounds, words and connected speech, etc.二）PhonologyPhonology studies the rules governing the structure, distribution and sequencing of speech sounds and the shape of syllables. It deals with the sound systems of a language by treating phonemes as the point of departure.三）MorphologyMorphology is concerned with the internal organization of words. It studies the minimal units of meaning—morphemes and word-formation processes.四）SyntaxSyntax is about principles of forming and understanding correct English sentences.五）SemanticsSemantics examines how meaning is encoded in a language. It is not only concerned with meanings of words as lexical items, but also with levels of language below the word and above it, e.g. meaning of morphemes and sentences.六）PragmaticsPragmatics is the study of meaning in context. In other words, it is concerned with the way language is used to communicate rather than with the way language is structured.练习：1、Which branch of study cannot be included in the scope of Lingustics？A. AnthropologyB. PhoneticsC. PragmaticsD. Syntax正确答案:Anthropology2、______ is the study of the relationship between symbols and their interpreter.A. PragmaticsB. SemanticsC. SociolinguisticsD. Syntax正确答案:Pragmatics3、____ is concerned with the study of the actual use of language in communication.A. PragmaticsB. SemanticsC. SociolinguisticsD. Synchronic linguistics正确答案:Pragmatics4、Once the notion of _____ was taken into consideration, semantics spilled into pragmatics.A. ContentB. ContextC. FormD. Meaning正确答案:context5、_____ is the major concern of semantics.A. MeaningB. Phrase structure rulesC. Sentence structuresD. Words正确答案:MeaningMacrolinguistics一）PsycholinguisticsPsycholinguistics investigates the interrelation of language and mind, in processing and producing utterances and in language acquisition. The psychological constraints on the form of grammar are studied. It also studies language development in the child, biological foundations of language and the relationship between language and cognition.二）SociolinguisticsSociolinguistics is the study of the characteristics of language varieties, the characteristics of their function and the characteristics of their speakers as these three constantly interact and change within a speech community.三）Anthropological LinguisticsAnthropological linguistics deals with the emergence of language and also with the divergence of languages over thousands of years.四）Computational LinguisticsComputational linguistics is an interdisciplinary field which centers around the use of computers to process or produce human language.Important Distinctions in Linguistics一）Prescriptive & Descriptive（规定性研究与描述性研究）Do/Don't say X.People do/don't say X.The first are prescriptive commands and the second are descriptive statements. The distinction lies in prescribing how things ought to be and describing how things are. （规定性的语言学研究着重观察、总结语言中的“标准”，其目的通常是为了规定人们应该如何说话、写作，因而称为规定性研究；现代语言学诞生之前的大部分语法研究都属于此类。
语言学第一章整理
Chapter one1.What is language?Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication. System means it is rule-governed; arbitrary means there is no logical relationship between language elements and their meaning; vocal means speech is primary; symbols related to arbitrariness, it means language elements are only the symbols for the meaning they express. Human, it means language is uniquely human; communication is the primary function of language.2.What are the design features of language, give their definitions and examples. Arbitrary: arbitrary is the core feature of language, which means that there is no logical relation between meanings and sounds. Arbitrary is a matter of degree, language is not entirely arbitrary, first, the onomatopoeia are words that sound like the sound they describe, to some extent, they have natural basis. Second, some compounds are not entirely arbitrary either, “snow” and“storm” are arbitrary words, but the compound word “snowstorm”is less so. Thirdly, some surnames, such as Longfellow, Johnson.Examples: a rose by other name would smell as sweetDuality: is meant the property of having two levels of structures, such that units of the primary level are composed of elements of the secondary level and each of the two levels has its own principles of organization .we call sounds secondary units as opposed to primary units as words, since the secondary are meaningless and the primary unit have distinct and identifiable meaning.Creativity: language users can understand and produce new sentences to express new meanings. By creativity, we mean language is resourceful because of its duality and recursiveness. By duality the speaker is able to combine the basic linguistic units to form an infinite set of sentences, most of which are never produced or heard before. Language is creativity in another sense, that is, itspotential to create endless sentences. The recursive nature of language provides a theoretical basis of this possibility.Example: He bought a book which was written by a teacher who taught in a school which was known for its graduates who……Displacement: means that human languages enable their users to symbolize objects, events and concepts, which are not present at the moment of communication.Examples : we can refer to Confucius and Bush at the moment of communication , but the former lived thousands of years ago and the latter live far away from us .3.Functions of the language and their examples⑴informative function: when language is used to express human experience and knowledge about the world. It is predominantly the major role of language.⑵interpersonal function is the most important sociological use of language by which people establish and maintain their status in a society. Language marks our identity, physically in terms of age, sex, and voiceprints; psychologically in terms of language, personality, and intelligence; geographically in terms of accents and dialects; ethnically and socially in terms of social stratification, class, status, role, solidarity, and distance.(3) Performative function: is primarily to change the social status of persons, as in marriage ceremonies, the sentencing of criminals, the blessing of children, the naming of a ship at a launching ceremony and the cursing of enemies. The kind of language employed in performative verbal acts is usually quite formal and even ritualized.(4) Emotive function: changes the emotional status of an audience for or against someone or something.(5) Phatic communion: occurs when language is used for pure interpersonal purposes, e.g. greetings, farewell, etc.(6) Recreational function: when language is used for the pure joy of using it, such as baby’s babbling and chanter’s chanting.(7) Metalingual function: when language is used to discuss itself. For example, to be honest, to make a long story short, come to think of it, on second thought.4. What is linguistics?Linguistics is the scientific study of language.4.Main branches of the linguistics1)Phonetics: studies speech sounds, it is the description, classification, andtranscription of speech sounds. It includes articulatory phonetics, acoustic phonetics and auditory phonetics.2)Phonology: the study of speech sounds as a system: the relations betweenspeech sounds, the way in which speech sounds are related to meaning, the rules governing the structure, distribution and sequencing of speech sounds. 3)Morphology: the internal structures of words. It studies the minimal units ofmeaning-morphemes and word-formation processes.4)Syntax: studies the internal structure of sentences5)Semantics: the study of meaning as encoded in language6)Pragmatics: the study of language use, meaning in context5. Macrolinguistics1) Psycholinguistics investigates the interrelation of language and mind, in processing and producing utterances and in language acquisition. The psycholinguistics constraints on the form of grammar are studied. It also studies language development in the child, biological foundations of languages, and the relationship between language and cognition.2) Social linguistics: is an umbrella term, which covers a variety of different interest in language and society, including the social functions of language and the social characteristics of its users.3) Anthropological linguistics: anthropology and linguistics combined: the relationship between language and culture.4) Computational linguistics: the use of computers to process or produce human language: machine-translation, information retrieval, expert systems.6. Important distinction in linguistics1) Descriptive VS PrescriptiveThe distinction lies in prescribing how things ought to be and describing how things are. Describing language as it is used by its native speakers is descriptive; trying to lay down language rules for correct uses of language is prescriptive. To say linguistics is a descriptive science is to say that linguist tries to discover and record the rules to which the members of a language community actually conform and does not seek to impose upon them rules, or norms, of correctness.2) Synchronic VS diachronicStudying language as it is used at a particular point in time is synchronic study; studying language as it changes over time is a diachronic study.3) Langue Vs paroleSaussure distinguished the linguistic competence of the speaker and the actual phenomena or data of linguistics as langue and parole. Langue is the language system, which is social, essential, and stable while parole is the actual use of the language system, which is individual, accidental, and unstable.4) Competence VS performanceA language user’s underlying knowledge about the system of rules is called his linguistic competence, and performance refers to the actual use of language in concrete situation. (Chomsky)5) Syntagmatic VS paradigmatic relationsSyntagmatic relations are relations between units present in the same sequence or construction, syntagmatically related elements form structures.Paradigmatic relations are relations between a unit and other units that can replace it in a given sequence. Paradigmatically related units form systems.how he can get to his destination. Then you tell him all that you know about the course, including which bus or subway he should take. This is the very process in which you use your experience and knowledge to help him. If you have no idea about his destination, you would say “Sorry, I can’t help you”. At this moment, he may buy a map of the city. This is the reason why map came into being. Map provides the detailed information including not only the complicated and crossing roads, but also the course of bus and subway. Map is an instrument by that peopleuse language to show their experience and knowledge. By analogy, there are also many other instruments for people to express content, such as books, papers, magazines and dictionaries and so on. These forms are utilized by human to record the facts of social development; conversely, the recorded facts is a prerequisite of social development. Having talked so much, I believe there are two important points to be captured. 一是，人这个主体通过使用语言将内容传递出去；另一个是语言通过报纸、杂志、书、字典等的外在形式把知识和经验传递出去。
语言学Chapter 1
Chapter 1 Invitations to LinguisticsTeaching aims: let the students have the general idea about language and linguistics.Teaching difficulties: design features of language ; some important distinctions in linguisticsTeaching procedures1. language1.1 Why study language?为什么学习语言A tool for communication交流的工具An integral part of our life and humanity 人类生活和人性中不可或缺的一部分.If we are not fully aware of the nature and mechanism of our language, we will be ignorant of what constitutes our essential humanity.如果不能完全理解语言的本质和结构,我们就会对人类的本质一无所知.1.2 What is language?什么是语言1.2.1 different senses of language 语言的不同意义1. what a person says( concrete act of speech)a person’s consistent way of speaking or writinga particular level of speaking or writing e.g. colloquial language an abstract system2. A webster’s New Dictionrary offers a frequently used sense of the word “language”:a. human speech 人类的言语b. the ability to communicate by this means 通过言语来交流的能力c. a system of vocal sounds and combinations of such sounds to which meaning is attributed, used for the expression or communication of thoughts and feelings; 用来表达或交流思想和感觉的一套声音及这些声音互相结合的系统d. the written representation of such a system 系统的文字表达3. the barest of definition, language is a means of verbal communication.最简洁的定义:语言是言语交流的一种方式.Language is instrumental in that communicating by speaking or writing is a purposeful act. It is social and conventional in that language is a social semiostic and communication can only take place effectively if all the users share a broad understanding of human interaction including such associated factors as nonverbal cues, motivation, and socio-cultural roles. Language distinguishes us from animals.因为说和写的交流方式是一种有目的的行为,所以语言是实用性的;因为语言是社会符号,语言的交流只能在所有参与者广泛理解了人类的那些非言语的暗示,动机,社会文化角色等等互相关联的因素之后才能有效进行,因此语言又是社会的,约定俗成的.语言使人类区别于动物.1.2.2 definitions一.Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication.What is communication?A process in which information is transmitted from a source (sender or speaker) to a goal (receiver or listener).A system----since elements in it are arranged according to certain rules systematically, rather than randomly. They cannot be arranged at will. e.g. He the table cleaned. (×) bkli (×)Why do we say language is arbitrary?Arbitrary----there is no intrinsic (logic) connection between a linguistic form and its meaning, between the sounds that people use and the objects to which these sounds refer. This explains and is explained by the fact that different language have different words for the same object, it is good illustration of the arbitrary nature of language . it is only our tacit agreement of utterance and concept at work and not any innate relationship bound up in the utterance. A typical example to illustrate the arbitrary of language is a famous quotation from shakepeare’s play:” Romeo and Juliet: A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.一朵玫瑰不管它叫什么名字,闻起来都是一样香的.Symbols----words are just the symbols associated with objects, actions, and ideas by nothing but convention. Namely, people use the sounds or voval forms to symbolize what they wish to refer to.Vocal-------- the primary medium for all languages is sound, no matter how well developed their writing systems are. Writing systems came much later than the spoken forms. The fact that small children learn and can only learn to speak and listen before they write or read also indicates that language is primarily vocal, rather than written.Writing systems came into being much later than the spoken forms. People with little or no literacy can also be competent language users.Human ----language is human-specific.Human beings have different kinds of brains and vocal capacity.“Language Acquisition Device”(LAD)二.What characteristics of langauge do you think should be included ina good ,comprenhensive definition of language?Language is a rule-governed system; langauge is basically vocal; langauge is arbitrary ; langague is used for human communication.1.3 Design features of language 语言的结构特征Design features------ refers to the defining properties of human language that distinguish it from any animal system of communication. They are arbitrariness, duality, creativity/ productivity, displacement, clutural transmission and interchangeability.Design features----- are features that define our human languages,such as arbitrariness,duality,creativity,displacement,cultural transmission,etc.(指决定了人类语言性质的特征.例如任意性,二重性,创造性,移位性,文化转移性等.)The American linguist Charles Hockett specified twelve design features. What is arbitrariness?任意性a. arbitrariness----arbitrariness(任意性): one design feature of human language,which refers to the fact that the forms of linguistic signs bear no natural relationship to their meaning.(人类语言的本质特征之一,指语言符号的形式与意义之间没有自然的联系.)It was discussed by Saussure first.The link between them is a matter of convention.E.g. “house” uchi (Japanese)Mansion (French)房子(Chinese)(1) arbitrary between the sound of a morpheme and its meaning语言的音和义之间的任意性a. By “arbitrary”, we mean there is no logical connection between meanings and sounds. 语言的意义和语音之间没有逻辑关系。
语言学精品课胡壮麟版ppt课件
2. Scopes of linguistics
☺General linguistics—studies linguistics as a whole.
☺ Phonetics—study of sounds ☺ Phonology--study of the system of
sounds, how they are combined ☺ Morphology—study of the structure and
language development, more practical than written form, hard to record • writing : • permanent, can be recorded
• ngue and parole • —by the Swiss linguist F. de Saussure
• descriptive –describes and analyzes the language people are currently speaking. It deals with “what people actually say”
• 3.2 synchronic vs. diachronic • synchronic—description of a language at
• 2.1.4. Language is symbolic. • 2.1.5. Language is human –specific. • 2.1.6. Language is used for
communication
2.2. Design features of language
• 2.2.1. arbitrariness • 2.2.2. productivity • 2.2.3. duality • 2.2.4. displacement • 2.2.5. cultural transmission
语言学第一章
语言学第一章Chapter 1 Invitation to linguistics1.1 Why study language?1. Language is very essential to human beings.2. In language there are many things we should know.3. For further understanding, we need to study language scientifically.1.2 What is language?Language is a means of verbal communication. It is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication.1.3 Design features of languageThe features that define our human languages can be called design features which can distinguish human language from any animal system of communication.1.3.1 ArbitrarinessArbitrariness refers to the fact that the forms of linguistic signs bear no natural relationship to their meanings.1.3.2 DualityDuality refers to the property of having two levels of structures, such that units of the primary level are composed of elements of the secondary level and each of the two levels has its own principles of organization.1.3.3 CreativityCreativity means that language is resourceful because of its duality and its recursiveness.Recursiveness refers to the rule which can be applied repeatedly without any definite limit. The recursive nature of language provides a theoretical basis for the possibility of creating endless sentences.1.3.4 DisplacementDisplacement means that human languages enable their users to symbolize objects, events and concepts which are not present (in time and space) at the moment of conversation.1.4 Origin of language1. The bow-wow theoryIn primitive times people imitated the sounds of the animal calls in the wild environment they lived and speech developed from that.2. The pooh-pooh theoryIn the hard life of our primitive ancestors, they utter instinctive sounds of pains, anger and joy which gradually developed into language.3. The “yo-he-ho” theoryAs primitive people worked together, they produced some rhythmic grunts which gradually developed into chants and then into language.1.5 Functions of languageJacobson——language has six functions:1. Referential指称功能: to convey message and information;2. Poetic: to indulge in language for its own sake;3. Emotive: to express attitudes, feelings and emotions;4. Conative意动功能: to persuade and influence others through commands and entreaties;5. Phatic寒暄功能: to establish communion with others;6. Metalingual元语功能: to clear up intentions, words and meanings.Halliday ——that language has three metafunctions:1. Ideational function: to convey new information, to communicate a content that is unknown to thehearer;2. Interpersonal function: embodying all use of language to express social and personal relationships;3. Textual function: referring to the fact that language has mechanisms to make any stretch of spokenand written discourse into a coherent and unified text and make a living passage different from a random list of sentences.Hu Zhuanglin——language has at least seven functions:1.5.1 InformativeThe informative function means language is the instrument of thought and people often use it to communicate new information.1.5.2 Interpersonal functionThe interpersonal function means people can use language to establish and maintain their status in a society.1.5.3 Performative施为功能The performative function of language is primarily to change the social status of persons, as in marriage ceremonies, the sentencing of criminals, the blessing of children, the naming of a ship at a launching ceremony, and the cursing of enemies.1.5.4 Emotive functionThe emotive function is one of the most powerful uses of language because it is so crucial in changing the emotional status of an audience for or against someone or something.1.5.5 Phatic communionThe phatic communion means people always use some small, seemingly meaningless expressions such as Good morning, God bless you, Nice day,etc., to maintain a comfortable relationship between people without any factual content.1.5.6 Recreational functionThe recreational function means people use language for the sheer joy of using it, suc h as a baby’s babbling or a chanter’s chanting.1.5.7 Metalingual functionThe metalingual function means people can use language to talk about itself. E.g. I can use the word “book” to talk about a book, and I can also use the expression “the word book” t o talk about the sign “b-o-o-k” itself.1.6 What is linguistics?Linguistics is the scientific study of language. It studies not just one language of any one community, but the language of all human beings.1.7 Main branches of linguistics1.7.1 PhoneticsPhonetics is the study of speech sounds, it includes three main areas: articulatory phonetics, acoustic phonetics, and auditory phonetics.1.7.2 PhonologyPhonology studies the rules governing the structure, distribution, and sequencing of speech sounds and the shape of syllables.1.7.3 MorphologyMorphology studies the minimal units of meaning –morphemes and word-formation processes.1.7.4 SyntaxSyntax refers to the rules governing the way words are combined to form sentences in a language, or simply, the study of the formation of sentences.1.7.5 SemanticsSemantics examines how meaning is encoded in a language.1.7.6 PragmaticsPragmatics is the study of meaning in context.1.8 MacrolinguisticsMacrolinguistics is the study of language in all aspects, distinct from microlinguistics, which dealtsolely with the formal aspect of language system.1.8.1 Psycholinguistics心理语言学Psycholinguistics investigates the interrelation of language and mind, in processing and producing utterances (and in language acquisition for example).1.8.2 Sociolinguistics社会语言学Sociolinguistics is the study of the characteristics of language varieties1, the characteristics of their functions2, and the characteristics of their speakers3. (123相互作用构成一个speech community 语言社团)1.8.3 Anthropological linguistics人类语言学Anthropological linguistics studies the history and structure of formerly unwritten language, the emergence of language and the divergence of languages.1.8.4 Computational linguistics计算语言学Computational linguistics is an interdisciplinary field which centers around the use of computers to process or produce human language.1.9 Important distinctions in linguistics1.9.1 Descriptive描写vs. Prescriptive规定A linguistic study is descriptive if it describes and analyses the facts observed.It is prescriptive if it tries to lay down rules for the “correct” use of language.1.9.2 Synchronic共时vs. Diachronic历时The description of a language at some point in time is a synchronic study.The description of a language as it changes through the time is a diachronic study.The distinction between synchronic and dischronic studies is only theoretically clear.原因：①Languages are in a constant state of changing.②The language of any speech community is never uniform.③When a language changes, one set o f features are not suddenly replaced by another set of features.1.9.3 Langue 语言& parole言语Saussure distinguished the linguistic competence of the speaker and the actual phenomena or data of linguistics as langue and parole.Langue refers to the abstract linguistic system shared by all the members of a speech community.Parole refers to the actualized language, or realization of langue.区别：①Langue is abstract but parole is specific to the situation in which it occurs.②Langue is not actually spoken by anyone; parole is alwaysa naturally occurring event.③Langue is relatively stable and systematic; parole is subject to personal and situational constraints.1.9.4 Competence and performanceAccording to Chomsky, a language user’s underlying knowledge about the system of rules is called the linguistic competence, and the actual use of language in concretesituations is called performance.Competence is the ideal language user`s knowledge of the rules of his language.Performance is the actual realization of this knowledge in utterances.。
胡壮麟语言学教程u1(第一单元)提纲
5) any means of expressing or communicating, as gestures, signs, or animal sounds
6) a special set of symbols, letters, numerals, rules etc. used for the transmission of information, as in a computer
3)Creativity:By creativity we mean language is resourcefulbecause of its duality and its recursiveness.
●Words can be used in new ways to mean new things, and can be instantly understood by people who have never come across that usage before.(与其他动物的交流区别开来)
●Creativity partly originates from its duality, because of duality the speaker is able to combine the basic linguistic units to form an infinite set of sentences, most of which are never before produced or heard.
(eg: pin&bin; fish& dish)
Arbitrariness and convention.
语言学---第一章知识框架
Chapter 1Invitations to Linguistics1.1 Why Study Language?1.Some myths about language2.Some fundamental views about language3.Some concrete demonstrations to show Linguistics’importance1.2 What is Language?1. Language “is not to be confused with human speech, of which it is only a definite part, though certainly an essential one. It is both a social product of the faculty of speech and a collection of necessary conventions that have been adopted by a social body to permit individuals to exercise that faculty”.--Ferdinand de Saussure (1857-1913): Course in General Linguistics (1916) 2. “Language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of voluntarily produced symbols.”--Edward Sapir (1884-1939): Language: An Introduction to the Study of Speech (1921)3. “A language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols by means of which a social group co-operates.”--Bernard Bloch (1907-1965) & George Trager (1906-1992): Outline of Linguistic Analysis (1942)4. “A language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols by means of which the members of a society interact in terms of their total culture.”--George Trager: The Field of Linguistics (1949)5. “From now on I will consider language to be a set (finite or infinite) of sentences, each finite in length and constructed out of a finite set of elements.”--Noam Chomsky (1928- ): Syntactic Structures (1957)6. Language is “the institution whereby humans communicate and interact with each other by means of habitually used oral-auditory arbitrary symbols.”--Robert A. Hall (1911-1997): Introductory Linguistics (1964)7.“Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication.”--Ronald Wardhaugh: Introduction to Linguistics (1977)8. “Language is a means of verbal communication.”—It is instrumental in that communicating by speaking or writing is a purposeful act.—It is social and conventional in that language is a social semiotic and communication can only take place effectively if all the users share a broad understanding of human interaction including such associated factors as nonverbal cues, motivation, and socio-cultural roles. -- Our textbook (2006)9. Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication.1.3 Design Features of LanguageLanguage distinguishes human beings from animals in that it is far more sophisticated than any animal communication system.Human language is ‘unique’1. Arbitrariness①Definition②Different levels of arbitrarinessa.Arbitrary relationship between the sound of a morpheme and its meaningb.Arbitrariness at the syntactic levelc.Arbitrariness and convention2. Duality①Definition②Two levels of structures in languageThe secondary level (sounds, meaningless)The primary level (words, meaningful)③Hierarchy of language3. Creativity①Language is resourceful because of its duality and its recursiveness. We can useit to create new meanings.②The recursive nature of language provides a potential to create an infinitenumber of sentences. For instance:---He bought a book which was written by a teacher who taught in a school which was known for its graduates who ..4. Displacement①Definition②Two examples③The advantage of displacement1.4 Origin of language1.The “bow-wow”theory2.The “pooh-pooh”theory3.The “yo-he-ho”theory1.5 Functions of language1.Jakobson’s classificationContextREFERENTIALAddresser EMOTIVE(e.g. intonation showing anger)MessagePOETIC(e.g. poetry)AddresseeCONATIVE(e.g. imperatives andvocatives)ContactPHATIC(e.g. Good morning!)CodeMETALINGUAL(e.g. Hello, do you hear me?)2.Halliday’s classification①Three metafunctions of language②Seven categories of language functions by observing child languagedevelopment3.The author’s introduction①Informative②Interpersonal Function③Performative④Emotive Function⑤Phatic Communion⑥Recreational Function⑦Metalingual Function1.6 What is Linguistics?Linguistics is usually defined as the science of language or, alternatively, as the scientific study of language.1.7 Main branches of Linguistics1.Phonetics2.Phonology3.Morphology4.Syntax5.Semantics6.Pragmatics1.8 Macrolinguistics1.Psycholinguistics2.Sociolinguistics3.Anthropological Linguisticsputational Linguistics1.9 Important distinctions in Linguistics1.Descriptive vs. Prescriptive2.Synchronic vs. Diachronicngue & Parolepetence and Performance。
语言学概论Chapter1WhatisLanguage
语言学概论研究生课程使用教材：语言学入门（英语版）An Introduction to Linguistics by Stuart C. Poole 外语教学与研究出版社Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press麦克米伦出版社Macmillan Publishers Ltd参考资料：[1] Halliday, M. A. K. (1994[1985]) An Introduction to Functional Grammar. 2nd edn. London:Edward Arnold.[2] Labov, William 1966. The Social Stratification of English in York City. Washington, DC:Center for Applied Linguistics.[3] Ladefoged, Peter. 1993. A Course in Phonetics . 3rd ed. Fort Worth,TX: Harcourt Brace.[4] Lakoff, George & M. J. Johnson 1980. Metaphors We Live By. Chicago: University of ChicagoPress.[5] Leech, G. 1969. A Linguistic Guide to English Poetry. Longman.[6] Leech, G. and M. Short. 1981. Style in Fiction. Longman.[7] Radford, Andrew et all. 1999. Linguistics: An Introduction. Cambridge University Press.[8] Roach, Peter. 1991. English Phonetics and Phonology. 2nd ed. Cambridge University Press.[9] Yule, George. 1996. The Study of Language, 2nd edition. Cambridge: Cambridge UniversityPress.[10] 胡壮麟. 2001.《语言学教程》北京：北京大学出版社.第一章What Is Language?本章的教学目的、要求与内容：掌握语言的意义和定义、语言的功能和结构特征。
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by creativity we mean language is resouceful owing to its duality and its recursiveness. Peculiar to human languages，users of language can understand and produce sentences they have never heard before. “ A red-eyed elephant is dancing on the hotel bed”
----Language can be used to refer to things, which are not present: real or imagined matters in the past, present or future, or in far-away places. Displacement enables people to handle generalizations and abstractions.
Systematic---- rule-governed, elements in it are arranged according to certain rules; can’t be combined at will. e.g. *bkli, *I apple eat.
Arbitrary---- no intrinsic connection between the word and the thing it denotes, e.g. “pen” by any other name is the thing we use to write with. “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet”----Shakespeare
2. Phonology----sound patterns of languages (the rules governing the structure,distribution, and sequencing of speech sounds and the shape of syllables) Distinctions between phonetics (chaos )and phonology(order)
Morphology----the form of words It studies the minimal units of meaning and word-formation processes. 4. Syntax----the rules governing the combination of words into sentence. E.g. The children watched the firework from the hill.
It
refers to the property of having two levels of structures: units of the primary level being composed of elements of the secondary level and each level having its own principles of organization. Lower level----sounds (meaningless) Higher level----meaning (larger units of meaning)
From these explanation we can conclude that language can be defined as a means of verbal communication. It is instrumental in that communicating by speaking or writing is a purposeful act. It is social and conventional / arbitrary in that language is a social semiotic and communication can only take place effectively if all the users share a broad understanding of human interaction including such associated factors as nonverbal cues, motivation, and socio-cultural roles.
1. Phonetics----speech sound
(description, classification, transcription) which includes three levels: Articulatory phonetics, Acoustic phonetics, Auditory phonetics. Channel Speaker ……… Listener
5. Semantics----the meaning of language (when the meaning of language is conducted in the context of language use----Pragmatics) 6. Pragmatics---the study of meaning in context the study of the use of signs and the relationship between signs and their users.
Vocal---- the primary medium is sound for all languages; writing system came much later than spoken form.
Human-specific---- different from the communication systems other forms of life possess, e.g. bird songs, bee dance, animal cries Arbitrariness Duality Productivity/Creativity Displacement
Webster’s New World Dictionary offers several most frequently used senses of the word “language”. [1] (a) human speech (b) the ability to communicate by this means (c) a system of vocal sounds and combinations of such sounds to which meaning is attributed, used for the expression or communication of thoughts and feelings; (d) the written representation of such a system [2] (a) any means of expressing or communicating, as gestures, signs, or animal sounds (b) a special set of symbols letters, numerals rules etc. used for the transmission of information.
Applied
linguistics----linguistics and language teaching social factors (e.g. class, education) affect language use behavior
Sociolinguistics----
Psycholinguistics----linguprocess
Anthropological linguistics: anthropological linguists are interested primarily in the history and structure of formerly unwritten languages. Computational linguistics (e.g. machine translation): an interdisciplinary field which centers around the use of computers to process or produce human language.
许国璋先生认为把语言定义成交际工具不够科学, 至少不够严谨.他对语言的定义做了如下概括:语 言是一种符号系统. 当它作用于人与人之间的关系的时候,它是表达 相互反应的中介; 当它作用于人与客观世界的关系的时候,它是认 知事物的工具; 当它作用于文化的时候,它是文化的载体
Oral language: a human natural language in which the words are uttered through the mouth. Written language: a conventional system of graphic signs (or letters),compared to spoken English. Sign language: using the hands, arms, and face rather than parts of the mouth as their place of articulation.