LESSON 2:
Language and
Humans
FEATURES OF HUMAN LANGUAGE BY HOCKETT
“Humans are born to learn language", Angela D. Frederica begins her
new book "Language in Our Brain" by discussing the structures in our
brains which enable us to develop this fascinating medium which we
use to speak and write, think and poetize, email and tweet. "We learn
our mother tongue without any formal lessons and are nevertheless able
to handle it in every situation without even thinking about it." A capability
which remains reserved for us humans. Indeed, apes, dogs, and parrots
are able to learn words by associating an abstract symbol or a sound
with an object. But they are not able to combine them according to
certain rules to make them into meaningful sentences.
FEATURES OF HUMAN LANGUAGE BY HOCKETT
Hackett, C. (1960). Fifteen "design-features" of human language:
1. Vocal-auditory channel: sounds emitted from the mouth and
perceived by the auditory system.
2. Rapid fading (transistorizes): Signal last a short time. This is true of all
systems involving sound.
3. Interchangeability: All utterances that are understood can be
produced.
3. Total feedback: The sender of a message also perceives the message.
That is, you hear what you say.
FEATURES OF HUMAN LANGUAGE BY HOCKETT
Hackett, C. (1960). Fifteen "design-features" of human language:
5. Specialization: The signal produced is specialized for communication and is not
the side effect of some other behavior.
6. Semanticist: There is a fixed relationship between a signal and a meaning.
7. Arbitrariness: There is an arbitrary relationship between a signal and its
meaning. That is, the signal is related to the meaning by convention or by instinct
but has no inherent relationship with the meaning.
8. Discreteness: Language can be said to be built up from discrete units (e.g.,
phonemes in human language). Exchanging such discrete units causes a change
in the meaning of a signal. This is an abrupt change, rather than a continuous
change of meaning.
FEATURES OF HUMAN LANGUAGE BY HOCKETT
Hackett, C. (1960). Fifteen "design-features" of human language:
9. Displacement: Communicating about things or events that are
distant in time or space.
10. Productivity: Language is an open system. We can produce
potentially an infinite number of different messages by combining
the elements differently.
11. Cultural transmission: Each generation needs to learn the system
of communication from the preceding generation
FEATURES OF HUMAN LANGUAGE BY HOCKETT
Hackett, C. (1960). Fifteen "design-features" of human language:
12. Duality of patterning: Large numbers of meaningful signals (e.g.,
morphemes or words) produced from a small number of
meaningless units (e.g., phonemes).
13. Prevarication: Linguistic messages can be false, deceptive, or
meaningless.
14. Reflexives: In a language, one can communicate about
communication.
15. Learnability: A speaker of a language can learn another language
HALLIDAY’S LANGUAGE FUNCTIONS
Halliday (1978) proposed that there are 7 stages or functions of a
child's speech. These are as follows.
Instrumental function - language that is used to fulfil a need, such
as to obtain food, drink or comfort. This typically includes concrete
nouns
Regulatory function - language that is used to influence the
behavior of others including persuading, commanding or requesting.
Interactional function - language that is used to develop
relationships and ease interaction. This could include phrases like "I
love you mummy" or "Thank you".
HALLIDAY’S LANGUAGE FUNCTIONS
Halliday (1978) proposed that there are 7 stages or functions of a child's
speech. These are as follows.
Personal function - language that expresses personal opinions, attitudes
and feelings including a speaker's identity. Representational/Informative
function- language that is used to relay or request information.
Heuristic function - language that is used to explore, learn and discover.
This could include questions or a running commentary of a child's actions.
Imaginative function - the use of language to tell stories and create
imaginary constructs. This typically accompanies play or leisure activities
JAKOBSON’S LANGUAGE FUNCTIONS
Roman Jakobson, a linguist and communication theorist, identified six
functions of language that describe different purposes of communication.
Each function corresponds to an element of the communication process.
1. Referential Function (Informative)
2. Emotive Function (Expressive)
3. Conative Function (Directive)
4. Phatic Function (Social Interaction)
5. Metalinguistic Function (Clarification)
6. Poetic Function (Aesthetic)
LEECHE’S LANGUAGE FUNCTIONS
Geoffrey Leech, a linguist known for his work in pragmatics, identified five
functions of language in communication. These functions highlight different
ways people use language in various contexts.
1. Informational Function (Conveying Information)
2. Expressive Function (Expressing Feelings and Emotions)
3. Directive Function (Giving Orders and Requests)
4. Aesthetic Function (Artistic and Literary Use of Language)
5. Phatic Function (Maintaining Social Interaction)
NON-HUMAN COMMUNICATION
What is Non-Human Communication?
Non-human communication refers to the ways animals
and other non-human entities convey information without
using human language. This can include sounds, body
movements, chemical signals, and even artificial
intelligence interactions.
HOW ANIMALS COMMUNICATE?
A. Birds
• Chirping
• Mating Calls
• Singing
B. Dogs
• Barking
• Whining
• Tail Wagging
C. Cats
• Purring
• Growling
• Meowing
OTHER FORMS OF NON-HUMAN
COMMUNICATION
A. Robot-Like Devices
Technology can simulate human-like communication.
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) Assistants – Devices like Alexa
and Siri respond to human commands.
• Social Robots – Robots that mimic emotions and
interactions.
EXPERIMENTS ON ANIMAL LANGUAGE
A. Viki the Chimpanzee
• One of the first attempts to teach an ape human speech.
• Raised as a human infant and given speech therapy.
• Learned four words: "mama," "papa," "up," and "cup."
B. Kanzi the Bonobo
• Learned to communicate using lexigrams (symbols
representing words).
• Understood spoken English commands.
• Demonstrated problem-solving skills through language
use.
EXPERIMENTS ON ANIMAL LANGUAGE
C. Gua the Chimpanzee
• Raised alongside a human child to compare development.
• Learned to understand some human words but couldn’t
vocalize them.
D. Koko the Gorilla
• Learned over 1,000 signs in American Sign Language (ASL).
• Understood spoken English and could express emotions
through sign language.
• Showed affection toward pet kittens and engaged in
meaningful conversations.