Anthropology Optional (Social context of language) by Sourabh Mishra

Model Answer

Question #1. Sapir-Whorf hypothesis. 10 marks (150 words)

Approach

1. Introduce the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis
2. Edward Sapir- Language Influences Human Thought
3. Conclusion

Hints:

Introduction: Linguistic anthropology focuses on how people use language in a particular culture. Linguistic anthropologists often work with people who have unwritten (purely spoken, or oral) languages or with languages that very few people speak. Linguistic anthropological work may involve developing a way to write a formerly unwritten language. Some linguistic anthropologists specialise in reconstructing dead languages (languages no longer in use) and their connections to living languages, a study known as historical linguistics.

Edward Sapir- Language Influences Human Thought:

• It is important to note that language, to some extent, shapes the way people view and think about the world.
• Culture is directly related to human thought. Some Linguists even say that language actually determines thought. It also shapes behaviour and culture.
• The concept related to this outlook is termed as Linguistic Determinism. This is associated with the research of anthropologists, Edward Sapir (American Linguist and student of Franz Boas) and his student and American linguist Benjamin Whorf.
• Based on their research, they proposed Sapir - Whorf hypothesis, in which they proposed how language determines human thought.
• For example if a language has no word to denote ‘snow‘ as used in English, then a person brought up in that culture cannot think of snow as it is implied in English.

 Conclusion:

Thus, Linguistic determinism proposes that language, to some extent, determines the way we think about the world around. As the thought pattern changes, the cultural situation of that society also changes accordingly.  

Question #2. State the theories regarding the origin of spoken languages in human societies both from biological and cultural point of view. 15 marks (250 words)

Approach

1. Introduction
2. Theories of Origin of Language
3. Thinkers' hypothesis
4. Conclusion

Hints:

 Introduction:

There are different beliefs and theories regarding the origin of language. Linguists earlier found it difficult to arrive at a conclusion about the origin of language due to the absence of adequate evidence. But today, we have more evidence including genetic data.

As per the archaeological records, archaic humans like Neanderthal had the neural development and the anatomical features necessary for linguistic communication. But there is a difference of opinion about the use of language by Neanderthals.

Theories of Origin of Language:

• It is assumed that gestural communication (Communication through gestures) started initially. It later on, changed to spoken languages. It was important to spare our hands to use tools for survival.
• So, in earlier times instead of hand gestures, humans began to use sound for communication. Along with sparing their hands, it enabled humans to talk in the dark. They were also able to communicate about past incidents.

But it was not known, when humans started using language. Possibly it evolved with the Homo sapiens in the Stone Age. Following are some of the theories related to the speculative origin of language:

• The Bow Wow theory: It is said that speech is the imitation of the barking of dogs and other animals.
• The Pooh-Pooh theory: Speech is derived from the automatic emission of painful feelings.
• The Ding Dong theory: Speech is developed gradually by the harmonisation of sound and sense.
• The Yo-he-ho theory: Sound was produced by regulating the breath as a result of the strong muscular action of the mouth.
• Gestural theory: Humans used their tongues in the same rhythm with gesture and posture. It gradually helped to develop language.
• The Tarara- boom-de-ye theory: Speech is the result of the expression of joy. When earlier humans got big games in hunting, made different sounds of joy. It gradually became the basis of speech.

Thinkers’ hypothesis:

• John Locke proposed that the human mind at birth is like a blank slate (tabula rasa). Infants learn language through habit formation.
• B F Skinner developed this hypothesis further. He proposed that infants learn language through conditioned response.
• Rene Descartes proposed a contrasting view. According to him innate ideas or structures in the human mind provide the basis for language learning. Later on, it was identified that humans have the ability to acquire any language.

Human infants are born with the ability to speak. But they are not pre-programmed to speak a particular language like English or Malayalam. We learn our culture through the process of enculturation. Similarly, we learn the phonemes and morphemes of a particular language after being exposed to that. Different scholars have proposed different ideas regarding the acquisition of language.

Conclusion:

 People using a particular language may use it differently according to their social statuses, gender, and class. Language also acts as the medium for sharing cultural symbols and transmitting culture from generation to generation. The processes of enculturation, acculturation and cultural diffusion are also influenced by language.