Human & Animal Communication: Language, Thought & Reality
Human and Animal Communication
Animal Behavior and Communication
Stereotyped Behaviors:
Some animals exhibit learned and behavioral patterns without defects. These animals typically have simpler nervous systems (e.g., bees, ants).
Learned Behaviors:
In other animals, individual experiences leave a mark on memory and alter future conduct. These animals are capable of learning through experience.
Language learning enriches human communication behaviors and intentional intelligibility. It requires a specific type of intelligence, the need to communicate, and a good repertoire of signs.
The Emergence of Language
The relationship between humans and their environment has presented various challenges. Analogies can be drawn with the simple tasks of animals (e.g., caring for offspring, group hunting), which seem to encourage more elaborate communication and, consequently, the emergence of language.
Non-verbal Language
Different means of communication provide hints of sympathy, interest, etc. Involuntary movements may betray the verbal message. What differentiates human communication from other animals is language (oral, Morse code, etc.), which goes beyond simple gestures and posturing to convey coded meaning.
Human Language (Characteristics Unique to Humans)
Human language is a complex communication system used by various communities, comprising a set of signs and symbols organized according to specific rules.
Neurophysiological Aspects
Vocalization involves components of the articulatory system, including the upper respiratory tract and brain organization. Language disorders like aphasia are caused by lesions in Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas (brain regions responsible for language).
Stages of Language Development
Pre-linguistic Stage (up to 8 months):
Infants vocalize through repetition of sounds, cries, and screams. They observe adult vocalizations and attempt to imitate them.
Protolinguistic Stage:
Simple combinations of words (one-word sentences) emerge.
Linguistic Stage:
Phonetic clarity and articulation are achieved through encouragement and correction by adults. The elaboration of concepts involves three phases:
- Abstraction: Identifying common characteristics of multiple things to which a concept applies.
- Symbolization: Representing the concept through the creation of a symbol.
- Generalization: Applying the concept to describe all things possessing the properties it represents.
Classification of Signs (Indicators of Information)
Natural Signs:
Occur when there is a natural connection (e.g., disease-symptoms, cloudy sky-rain).
Iconic Signs:
Sensory images that refer to something else based on similarity (e.g., traffic signals depicting animals).
Symbols:
Conventional representations of something else (e.g., symbols in mathematics, chemistry).
Functions of Language
Language serves various functions, including:
- Phatic: Simple contact with others.
- Expressive: Communicating feelings and sensations.
- Conative: Seeking a response to a message.
- Referential: Communicating information.
- Poetic: Using aesthetic elements and language games.
- Metalinguistic: Language referring to itself.
Communication Scheme
A sender transmits a message to a receiver through a channel using a code that both parties understand.
Features of Human Language
Conventional Words:
There is no inherent link between a word and its meaning.
Double Articulation:
Clauses are formed from words, words from morphemes, and morphemes from phonemes, allowing for the generation of an infinite number of clauses.
Creativity:
The ability to generate entirely new sentences.
Displacement:
The ability to talk about things that are not present, explaining human progress.
Structured Reality:
We understand reality through the words that designate things, shaping our perception and understanding.
Thought as Language:
Language is the necessary vehicle for the transmission and formation of thoughts.
Metalinguistic Function:
Language can be used to discuss language itself.
Language, Thought, and Reality
Language and Thought:
Behind communication lies human intelligence, capable of thinking and conceptualizing the world. Language and thought interact, but we can think and communicate beyond verbal language.
Language and Individual Identity:
The subject emerges in language, enabling the structuring of memories. Only humans are conscious and aware of their capacity for rational thought.
Theories of Language:
The language-thought relationship raises questions about how we understand intelligible messages never heard before. Noam Chomsky proposes the existence of innate linguistic universals in the brain. Phenomena like child hypercorrection suggest grammatical rules with exceptions. Linguistic relativism asserts that learning within a social group shapes thinking, and linguistic predisposition depends on the language (not changing reality, but how we refer to it). Every language possesses mechanisms to meet its users’ needs and adapts to new requirements.
Symbolism
Cultural Symbolism:
A major difference between humans and animals is the human capacity for cultural symbolism. This encompasses a set of ways of doing and thinking that enable a community to adapt to the world.
Artistic Symbolism:
Expresses the ideological, social, religious, etc., content of the society it represents and the individual who uses these symbols, which are capable of being interpreted and understood.