Introductory - LINGUISTICS

Introductory    

          Chomsky in one of his books, “Reflection of Language” attempts to determine the limits of what is ‘knowable in thought’. As a result, the reflection on language becomes transformed virtually into philosophy of science. 

          Speculation about language goes beck thousands of years. Ancient Greek Philosophers speculated on the origins of language and the relationship between objects and their names. They also discussed the rules that govern language or grammar, and by the 3^rd century B.C. they had begun grouping words into parts of speech and devising names for different forms of verbs and nouns.

          In India religion provided the motivation for the study of language nearly 2500 years ago. Hindu priests noted that the language they spoke had changed since the compilation of their ancient sacred texts, the Vedas, staring about 1000 B.C. They believed that for certain religious ceremonies based upon the Vedas to succeed, they needed to reproduce the language of the Vedas precisely. Panini, an Indian grammarian who lived about 400 B.C. produced the earliest work describing the rules of Sanskrit, the ancient language of India.

          The Romans used Greek grammars as models for their own, adding commentary on Latin style and usage. Statesman and orator Marcus Tullius Cicero wrote on rhetoric and style in 1^st century B.C. Later grammarians Aelius Donatus (4^th century A.D. and Priscian (6^th century A.D. produced detailed Latin grammars. Roman works served as textbooks and standard for the study of language for more than 1000 years.

          It was not until the end of the 18^th century that language was researched and studied in a scientific way. During the 17^th and 18^th centuries modern languages such as French and English, replaced Latin as the means of universal communication in the West. This occurrence, along with developments in printing, meant that many more exist became available.  At about this time, the study of phonetics, or the of sounds in different languages; in the late 18^th century the observation of correspondences among Sanskrit, Latin and Greek gave birth to the field of Indo-European linguistics.

          There are three function of language. The first is informative .ie. to communicate information. When a history teacher describes a battle, he communicate information. The second function is expressive. i.e. to express feelings, emotions or attitude and invoke similar feelings in the reader. W.H. Davies says,

          “What is this life, if full of care”

          We have no time to stand and stare.”

          Here the poet convey no information but his feeling. The third function is directive. .ie. to cause or prevent an action. When a teacher asks as student to write on the blackboard or when a major commands his soldier to march they do not communicate any information or evoke any emotion, but they intend to cause an action.