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The Language Instinct by Steven Pinker Summary

The document discusses Steven Pinker's theory of language presented in his book The Language Instinct. Some key points: 1) Pinker argues that language is an innate, instinctive ability rooted in the biology of the human brain rather than being solely a learned cultural phenomenon. 2) He believes humans possess a "universal grammar" that allows children to quickly and efficiently learn the structure of any human language without conscious instruction. 3) Differences in languages arise from variability, inheritance, and isolation over time, but they all share common elements like subjects, objects, verbs and an underlying pattern system governed by universal rules. 4) The human brain has specialized structures and mechanisms that allow for the natural analysis

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82 views

The Language Instinct by Steven Pinker Summary

The document discusses Steven Pinker's theory of language presented in his book The Language Instinct. Some key points: 1) Pinker argues that language is an innate, instinctive ability rooted in the biology of the human brain rather than being solely a learned cultural phenomenon. 2) He believes humans possess a "universal grammar" that allows children to quickly and efficiently learn the structure of any human language without conscious instruction. 3) Differences in languages arise from variability, inheritance, and isolation over time, but they all share common elements like subjects, objects, verbs and an underlying pattern system governed by universal rules. 4) The human brain has specialized structures and mechanisms that allow for the natural analysis

Uploaded by

Tazeen Anwar
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Language Instinct by Steven Pinker Summary

Humans have a unique ability to influence the thoughts of others. This ability is acquired mainly through
the tongue. Language is not learned through culture, but arises as a result of the biological predisposition
of the human brain. Pinker calls it "instinct," arguing that humans learn language in the same way that
spiders can spin webs. All people have a universal grammar, a blueprint for language acquisition and that
children learn the language quickly and without formal instructions.

Even without the presence of intelligence or guidance, children are constantly reinventing language. It just
happens, which suggests that the language is universally complex. Studies of people with language skills
but other cognitive impairments support the idea that language is separate from intelligence. To master a
language, you need the right genes and the correct functioning of certain parts of the brain. Culture and
education are not essential to complex language use.

Language is innate. All languages have "possessions that can reasonably be called subjects, objects, and
verbs," and these categories operate according to schemas governed by rules. The pattern system is coined
as the X-bar system. These common elements are found in all human languages, but not in musical or
computer languages. Differences in languages result from the effects of variability, inheritance, and
isolation over time. Different languages are the result of the impact of innovation, learning and migration.

To be considered an instinct, language must be located somewhere on the brain. Paul Broca's work with
patients with aphasia helped highlight the left hemisphere as closely related to language abilities. The left
hemisphere of the brain seems to contain the basic grammar of language, including the abstract rules for
forming words and sentences. Regarding genetic variation, Pinker believes that the basic concept of
language must be common to all people, otherwise language would not exist. This basic design will include
X-bar system and Universal Grammar rules.

Language is a social activity. The predisposition to learn a language is programmed into the human brain.
Neither memorization nor repeated practice helps develop grammar. Since languages are endless and
childhood is not, children have to take the "data" they observe from others and generalize it to create new
sentences faster than adults. The structure of the brain provides a "model" for grammar, that is, for a
Universal Grammar. This model limits the types of generalizations children make to what is possible in all
languages. By limiting the ways in which words can be combined, the child can focus on the types of
combinations that will work. This limitation is important because the possibilities for constructing new
sentences are endless.

Communication is much more complex than the two-way transfer of information. The human brain
understands speech not only effectively, but also efficiently. Understanding sentences starts with analysis.
The human brain has a "mental program" that analyzes the structure of sentences, called the "parser".
The brain analyzes the speech and then finds the subjects, the verbs and the other fragments of speech
naturally and instinctively. Understanding a sentence is the result of analysis and reasoned inferences
based on context. Sentence fragments must be integrated into the mental database not as a list, but as
part of a complex structure.
Thought does not depend on language and neither does it define language. Language is not enough to
understand everything that goes on in the mind. People "think in the language of thought", which Pinker
says is a universal human trait, even among those who cannot speak. Thought operates independently of
language.

Although humans are naturally predisposed to the perception of language, which occurs through phonetic
inputs, hearing and perception are separate and sometimes competing processes. Writing is not intended
to represent the actual sounds of speech, but to represent the abstract units of language that underlie
speech.

Pinker believes that the language instinct is the result of natural selection. Human language is unlike any
other animal or artificial communication system. Individuality comes mainly from two factors. The first is
the concept of human language, i.e., the discrete combinatorial concept of grammar, which results in an
infinite number of possible utterances and a second division of factorial language in the brain. Gradual
improvements associated with the better reproductive abilities of human ancestors resulted in more and
more human descendants continually improving their language skills.

Pinker argues that neither heredity nor environment is sufficient to explain language ability, the "nature
and nurture" view is equally inadequate. Language behavior varies considerably from person to person
due to the discrete combinatorial system that underlies human language. While languages seem to vary
greatly, they all share the underlying concept of a Universal Grammar. For the linguist, the differences
between the world's languages are only "superficial" because the linguist knows that the underlying
Universal Grammar complex is common to all human languages.

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