1. 雅虎在线翻译What is language?
“Language is system of arbitrary vocal symbols ud for human communication. It is a system, since linguistic elements are arranged systematically, rather than randomly. Arbitrary, in the n that there is usually no intrinsic connection between a work (like “book”) and the object it refers to. This explains and is explained by the fact that different languages have different “books”: “book” in English, “livre” in French, “shu” in Chine. It is symbolic, becau words are associated with objects, actions, ideas etc. by nothing but convention. Namely, people u the sounds or vocal forms to symbolize what they wish to refer to. It is vocal, becau sound or speech is the primary medium for all human languages. 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 (and read) also indicates that language is primarily vocal, rather than written. The term “human” in the definition is meant to specify that language is human specific.
2. What are design features of language?
“Design features” here refer to the defining properties of human language that tell the differ
ence between human language and any system of animal communication. They are arbitrariness, duality, productivity, displacement, cultural transmission and interchangeability
3. What is arbitrariness?
By “arbitrariness”, we mean there is no logical connection between meanings and sounds. A dog might be a pig if only the first person or group of persons had ud it for a pig. Language is therefore largely arbitrary. But language is not absolutely em to be some sound-meaning association, if we think of echo words, like “bang”, “crash”, “roar”, which are motivated in a certain n. Secondly, some compounds (words compounded to be one word) are not entirely arbitrary either. “Type” and “write” are opaque or unmotivated words, while “type-writer” is less so, or more transparent or motivated than the words that make it. So we can say “arbitrariness” is a matter of degree.
4. What is duality?
Linguists refer “duality” (of structure) to the fact that in all languages so far investigated, one finds two levels of structure or patterning. At the first, higher level, language is analyz
leaveouted in terms of combinations of meaningful units (such as morphemes, words etc.); at the cond, lower level, it is en as a quence of gments which lack any meaning in themlves, but which combine to form units of meaning. According to Hu Zhanglin et al., language is a system of two ts of structures, one of sounds and the other of meaning. This is important for the workings of language. A small number of mantic units (words), and the units of meaning can be arranged and rearranged into an infinite number of ntences (note that we have dictionaries of words, but no dictionary of ntences!). Duality makes it possible for a person to talk about anything within his knowledge. No animal communication system enjoys this duality.
5. What is productivity?
Productivity refers to the ability to the ability to construct and understand an indefinitely large number of ntences in one’s native language, including tho that has never heard before, but that are appropriate to the speaking situation. No one has ever said or heard “A red-eyed elephant is dancing on the small hotel bed with an African gibbon”, but he can say it when necessary, and he can understand it in right register. Different from artisti
gardensc creativity, though, productivity never goes outside the language, thus also called “rule-bound creativity” (by N.Chomsky).
6.What is displacement?
“Displacement”, as one of the design features of the human language, refers to the fact that one can talk about things that are not prent, as easily as he does things prent. In other words, one can refer to real and unreal things, things of the past, of the prent, of the future. Language itlf can be talked about too. When a man, for example, is crying to a woman, about something, it might be something that had occurred, or something that is occurring, or something that is to occur. When a dog is barking, however, you can decide it is barking for something or at someone that exists now and there. It couldn’t be bow-wowing sorrowfully for a bone to be lost. The bee’s system, nonetheless, has a small share of “displacement”, but it is an unspeakable tiny share.
7.What is cultural transmission?
This means that language is not biologically transmitted from generation to generation, but that the details of the linguistic system must be learned anew by each speaker. It is tr
all wellue that the capacity for language in human beings (N. Chomsky called it “language acquisition device”, or LAD) has a genetic basis, but the particular language a person learns to speak is a cultural one other than a genetic one like the dog’s barking system. If a human being is brought up in isolation he cannot acquire language. The Wolf Child reared by the pack of wolves turned out to speak the wolf’s roaring “tongue” when he was saved. He learned thereafter, with no small difficulty, the ABC of a certain human language.
8. What is interchangeability（互换性）?
Interchangeability means that any human being can be both a producer and a receiver of messages. Though some people suggest that there is x differentiation in the actual language u, in other words, men and women may say different things, yet in principle there is no sound, or word or ntence that a man can utter and a woman cannot, or vice versa. On the other hand, a person can be the speaker while the other person is the listener and as the turn moves on to the listener, he can be the speaker and the first speaker is to listen. It is turn-taking that makes social communication possible and accept
able. Some male birds, however, utter some calls which females do not (or cannot). When a dog barks, all the neighboring dogs bark. Then people around can hardly tell which dog (dogs) is (are) “speaking” and which listening.
9.Why do linguists say language is human specific?
First of all, human language has six “design features” which animal communication systems do not have, at least not in the true n of them. Secondly, linguists have done a lot trying to teach animals such as chimpanzees to speak a human language but have achieved nothing inspiring. Washoe, a female chimpanzee, was brought up like a human child by Beatnice and Alan Gardner. She was taught “American sign Language”, and learned a little that made the teachers happy but did mot make the linguistics circle happy, for few believed in teaching chimpanzees. Thirdly, a human child reared among animals cannot speak a human language, not even when he is taken back and taught to do so.
10. What functions does language have?
Language has at least ven functions: phatic（交际）, directive, Informative, interrogativ
e（疑问）, expressive, evocative（唤起感情） and performative. According to Wang Gang (1988,p.11), language has three main functions: a tool of communication, a tool whereby people learn about the world, and a tool by which people learn about the world, and a tool by which people create art . M .A. K. Halliday, reprentative of the London school, recognizes three “Macro-Functions”: ideational, interpersonal and textual.
11. What is the phatic function（交际功能）?
The “phatic function” refers to language being ud for tting up a certain atmosphere or maintaining social contacts(rather than for exchanging information or ideas). Greetings, farewells, and comments on the weather in English and on clothing in Chine all rve this function. Much of the phatic language (e.g. “How are you?” “Fine, thanks.”) is insincere if taken literally, but it is important. If you don't say “Hello” to a friend you meet, or if you don’t answer his “Hi”, you ruin your friendship.
12. What is the directive function（命令功能）?
thfThe “directive function” means that language may be ud to get the hearer to do something. Most imperative ntences perform this function, e. g., “Tell me the result whe
n you finish.” Other syntactic structures or ntences of other sorts can, according to J. Austin and J. Searle’s “Indirect speech act theory” at least, rve the purpo of direction too, e.g., “If I were you, I would have blushed to the bottom of my ears!”
13. What is the informative function（信息功能）?
Language rves an “informational function” when ud to tell something, characterized by the u of declarative ntences. Informative statements are often labelled as true (truth) or fal (falhood). According to P. Grice’s “Cooperative Principle”, one ought not to violate the “Maxim of Quality”, when he is informing at all.
14. What is the interrogative function?
When language is ud to obtain information, it rves an “interrogative function”. This includes all questions that expect replies, statements, imperatives etc., according to the “indirect speech act theory”, may have this function as well, e.g., “I’d like to know you better.” This may bring forth a lot of personal information. Note that rhetorical questions make an exception, since they demand no answer, at least not the reader’s/listener’s answer.
15. What is the expressive function（表达功能）绯闻女孩第一季高清下载?
The “expressive function” is the u of language to reveal something about the feelings or attitudes of the speaker. Subconscious emotional ejaculations are good examples, like “Good heavens!” “My God!” Sentences like “I’m sorry about the delay” can rve as good examples too, though in a subtle way. While language is ud for the informative function to pass judgment on the truth or falhood of statements, language ud for the expressive function evaluates, apprais or asrts the speaker’s own attitudes.
16. What is the evocative function（情感唤起功能）fisting?
托福词汇速记精典The “evocative function” is the u of language to create certain feelings in the hearer. Its aim is , for example, to amu, startle, antagonize, soothe, worry or plea. Jokes(not practical jokes, though) are suppod to amu or entertain the listener; advertising to urge customers to purcha certain commodities; propaganda to influence public opinion. Obviously, the expressive and the evocative functions often go together, i.e., you may express, for example, your personal feelings about a political issue but end up by evoking the same feeling in, or imposing it on, your listener. That’s also the ca with the other wa
y round.
17. What is the performative function（行动功能）?
This means people speak to “do things” or perform actions. On certain occasions the utterance itlf as an action is more important than what words or sounds constitute the uttered ntence. The judge’s imprisonment ntence, the president’s war or independence declaration, etc., are performatives.
18. What is linguistics?
“Linguistics” is the scientific study of language. It studies not just one language of any one society, but the language of all human beings. A linguist, though, does not have to know and u a large number of languages, but to investigate how each language is constructed. He is also concerned with how a language varies from dialect to dialect, from class to class, how it changes from century to century, how children acquire their mother tongue, and perhaps how a person learns or should learn a foreign language. In short, linguistics studies the general principles whereupon all human languages are constructed and operate as systems of communication in their societies or communities.
19. What makes linguistics a science?
Since linguistics is the scientific study of language, it ought to ba itlf upon the systematic, investigation of language data which aims at discovering the true nature of language and its underlying system. To make n of the data, a linguist usually has conceived some hypothes什么是中专（假说） about the language structure, to be checked against the obrved or obrvable facts. In order to make his analysis scientific, a linguist is usually guided by four principles: exhaustiveness彻底, consistency（一致）, Economy（言简意赅）and objectivity（客观）. Exhaustiveness means he should gather all the materials relevant to the study and give them an adequate explanation, in spite of the complicatedness. He is to leave no linguistic “stone” unturned. Consistency（一致） means there should be no contradiction between different parts of the total statement. Economy（言简意赅） means a linguist should pursue brevity in the analysis when it is possible. Objectivity（客观） implies that since some people may be subjective in the study, a linguist should be (or sound at least) objective, matter-of-face, faithful to reality, so that his work constitutes part of the linguistics rearch.
20. What are the major branches of linguistics?
The study of language as a whole is often called general linguistics. But a linguist sometimes is able to deal with only one aspect of language at a time, thus the ari of various branches: phonetics语音学, phonology 音韵学cherylcole, morphology词态学, syntax句法学, mantics语义学, pragmatics语用学, sociolinguistics社交语言学, applied linguistics应用语言学, psycholinguistics心理语言学 etc.
