Chapter One Invitations to Linguistics.pptVIP

Linguistics:  A Course Book 语言学教程;Objectives: invite the students to be familiar with the features of such theoretical courses, LINGUISTICS as a typical example. Purpose of the chapter: Master the essential attributes of the term LANGUAGE Be familiar with the branches of LINGUISTICS;Chapter One Invitations to Linguistics; LINGUISTICS 语言学 a branch of study of language the scientific (or systematic) study of language. ;the study of language: WHY? ----- Why should we study language? WHAT? ----- What is language? HOW? ----- How does language work? ;Why study language?;WHAT HOW; ● Language ★ What is language? ★ Design features of language ★ Origin of language ★ Functions of language ;● Linguistics ★ What is linguistics? ★ Main branches of linguistics ★ Important distinctions in linguistics;What is language? ;LANGUAGE is far from easy to define. various answers Different emphasis laid on it different aspects of different scholars’ studies. Here are some definitions given by famous linguists. ;Sapir: Language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of voluntarily produced symbols. (Language 1921) Block Trager: A language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols by means of which a social group co-operates. (Outline of Linguistic Analysis 1942) ;Hall: Language is the institution whereby humans communicate and interact with each other by means of habitually used oral-auditory arbitrary symbols. (Essay on Language 1968) Robins: Languages are symbol systems… almost wholly based on pure or arbitrary convention. (A Short History of Linguistics 1979) ;Chomsky: From now on I will consider a language to be a set (finite or infinite) of sentences, each finite in length and constructed out of a finite set of elements. (Syntactic Structures 1957) 许国璋：语言是人类特有的一