{Language can be acquired after the critical period.}
[E] Early views on language and thought
Mentalistà thought and language were identical, proposed by Plato
Empiricistà languages were signs of psychological experiences (Aristotle)
Bloomfield, American psychologist, founder of Behaviorism, supported the mentalist: thinking was a system of movements that had been reduced from actual speech to the point where they were no longer visible.
Violates the following two phenomena:
Non-speaking humansà display complex thought process
I didn’t mean to say that
The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis: (the American anthropologist-linguist Edward Sapir and his student Benjamin Lee Whorf)
“We cut nature up, organize it into concepts, and ascribe significance as we do, largely because we are parties to an agreement to organize it in this way—an agreement that holds throughout our speech community and is codified in the patterns of our language.”
Linguistic determination—the strong notion: Language determines thought
Linguistic relativism—speakers of different language perceive and experience the world differently, i.e. relative to their linguistic background
This hypothesis appears plausible, but its strong version has very few adherents today.
Whorf did not only depend too heavily on the literal use of words but also on grammatical structure.
The weaker version is accepted. Language may be used to provide ideas, bring about a change in beliefs and values, solve problems, and keep track of things in memory. Language does influence the perceptions, memory tasks, and other verbal and nonverbal behavior of human beings by its convenience, availability, and habitual use.
[F] Argues for and against the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis
① Words and meaning: Relation is arbitrary; without the particular words of snow doesn’t mean he can not perceive differences in varieties of snow…
② Grammatical structure
Many grammatical features of a language are purely superficial aspects of linguistic structure. They don’t have the kind of interdependent relationship with the perceptual system of the speakers of that language. (Grammatical gender)
③ Translation
Successful translation between languages can be made.
That he (Sapir) can explain/describe Hopi concepts in English for an average English speaker to understand easily fully proves that translation can be obtained.
④ Second language acquisition
Bilingualism: have a consistent conceptual-perceptual system of the physical world. Don’t have to have double minds.
⑤ language and world views
People who use the same language may have different world views.
People who use different languages may have the similar world views.
One language can describe many different world views.
[G] Understanding the relationship between language and thought
① functions of language:
Interpersonal communication: convey information, thoughts, feelings from one to another
Intrapersonal communication: language facilitates thinking, speech behavior, and action for the individual
Halliday: ideational, interpersonal and textual functions
a) Informative
b) Interpersonal function
(1) Performative function
(2) Emotive function
(3) Expressive function
(4) Phatic function
c) Recreational function
d) Metalingual function
② Language and thought may be viewed as two independent circles overlapping in some parts.
When language and thought are identical or closely paralleled to each other, we may regard thought as “subvocal speech”, and speech as “overt thought”
Nonverbal signals: facial expressions, grimaces, gestures, postures, or proxemic space can be used to express thoughts.
The relationship between the coding system of language on the one hand and the conceptualizing system of thought on the other is conventional rather than genetic. Bilingual speakers switch between the two languages concerned, not converting one mode of thinking into the other, but rather, making transition between the two linguistic coding systems.

Chapter 13  First Language Acquisition (FLA)
Language acquisition refers to children’s development of their first language, that is, the native language of the community in which a child has been brought up (naturally and successfully).
[A] The biological basis of language acquisition
What is meant by the biological, or nativist, view of language acquisition is that human are equipped with the neural perquisites for language and language use, just as birds are biologically “prewired” to learn the songs of their species.
No language is inferior, or superior, to any other language.
No single human is a better or worse language acquire than any other human.
Different languages have a similar level of complexity and detail, and reflect general abstract properties of the common linguistic system called the Universal Grammar (UG).
[B] Language acquisition as the acquisition of grammatical rules
Before 5, knowing most of the intricate grammatical system of their native language
What is acquired is not a bunch of utterances but a set of rules, conditions, and elements (fundamental grammatical rules) that allow one to speak and understand speech.
[C] The role of input and interaction, instruction, correction and reinforcement, imitation
① the role of input and interaction
Genetic predisposition + an appropriate linguistic environment
Access to language data and opportunities to interact with the input
Modified speechßrelationshipà language acquisition

Caretaker speech (babytalk, motheress, or parentese): without it doesn’t mean acquiring language slowly
Advantages: 1) help heighten its comprehensibility
2) make it easier for children to match linguistic forms with their meanings
② the role of instruction
“Children learn to speak because adults teach them to speak.”
1) this view overestimates what adults can do, and at the same time
2) this view underestimates what children can do, and what they actually do
Children require little conscious instruction. Parents often fail their attempt to teach children grammatical rules, and only playing a minor role at best
③ the role of correction and reinforcement
Assumption 1: children received constant correction for using a “bad” grammar and rewards when using a “good” grammar
Assumption 2: children learnt to produce sentence because they were positively reinforced when they said something right and negatively reinforced when they said something wrong.
Behaviorist learning theoryàa child’s verbal behavior was conditioned through association between a stimulus and a relevant response.
Correction plays a minor role; even when syntactic correction does occur, children often do not know what the problem is and are unable to make corrections.
④ the role of imitation
The hypothesis that children learnt language by simply imitating the speech of those around them is not true.
A more reasonable explanation is that: children are attempting to construct and generalize their own grammatical rules.
Besides, children who cannot speak can learn the language spoken to them and understand what is said.
Children don’t blindly mimic adult speech in a parrot fashion, but rather exploit it in very restricted ways to improve their linguistic skills
[D] Stages of first language acquisition
In general, children begin uttering their first words sometimes during the second year of life. During the following 4 to 5 years, linguistic development occurs quite rapidly.
① the prelinguistic stage (babbling age)
3 months: /k/, /u/
3-4 months: babbling speech like sounds
6 months: able to sit up; produce a number of different vowels and consonants (meaningless), deaf baby, baby born of non-speaking deaf parents also babble