English 165/ Wong
Essay #1: Reconstructing the Lost Tribe
Clyde Kluckholm claims that "Every language is also a special way of
looking at the world and interpreting experience. Concealed in the structure of
language are a whole set of unconscious assumptions about the world and the
life in it." Keeping his theory in mind, imagine that a previously unknown
civilization has been discovered and that linguistic anthropologists, after
observing the civilization for awhile, have delineated the following characteristics
about the society's language.
Write an essay in which you characterize the society that uses this
language. Your analysis will require that you classify the data, and then draw
inferences from the data given-- a minimum of four categories for this
assignment. Assume that your audience has not seen this tribe, nor do they have
any first-hand evidence about it; it is up to you, therefore, to cite all the specific
evidence to justify your inferences. In other words, explain how and why the
evidence led you to those inferences. Because the data are very limited, bear in
mind that you will have to use qualifiers such as "perhaps," "possibly," " most
likely," "the evidence suggests," and "one might conclude."
As for mechanics, use the organizational structure I will teach you in class,
as opposed to writing a simple narrative or description.
Finally, note that you get to exercise some creative license in this project,
adding one of your own linguistic characteristics to highlight some aspect of this
culture.
I will be taking into consideration these qualities:
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Sophistication and insight
A thesis that proposes an argument
Thorough development of the thesis
Logical organization
Reference page according to APA format
A snappy introduction
An original and creative title
Spelling, grammar, sentence variety, etc.
DUE DATE: Tuesday, September 7th , the beginning of class. The peer
response workshop is on Tuesday, August 31st.
LENGTH: 3-4 pages
Three words for terrain, designating "absolutely flat," "rolling," and "slightly hilly."
No word for ocean.
Dozens of terms for grains, including eight for wheat alone.
Several words for children, some of which translate as "wise small one,"
"innocent leader," and "little stargazer."
Seven terms to describe the stages of life up to puberty; only one term to
describe life from puberty to death.
The word for sex translates as "to plant a wise one."
Terms for woman are synonymous with "wife and mother."
Terms for man are synonymous with "husband and father."
Twenty words for book.
No words for violent conflict or war.
Nine words for artist.
Terms for praise translate as "peacemaker" and "conciliator."
Words designating cow, pig, calf, and sheep, but no terms for beef, pork, veal,
leather, or mutton.
Several words for precipitation, most translating as "rain," only one meaning
"snow."
Several words for leader but all are plural.
Four words meaning theater.
Your addition: _____________________________________________________