Teaching aims: let the students have the general idea about language and linguistics.
Teaching difficulties: design features of language ; some important distinctions in linguistics
Teaching procedures
1. language
1.1 Why study language?为什么学习语言
A tool for communication交流的工具
An integral part of our life and humanity 人类生活和人性中不可或缺的一部分.
If we are not fully aware of the nature and mechanism of our language, we will be ignorant of what constitutes our essential humanity.如果不能完全理解语言的本质和结构,我们就会对人类的本质一无所知.
1.2 What is language?什么是语言
1.2.1 different senses of language 语言的不同意义
1. what a person says( concrete act of speech)
a person’s consistent way of speaking or writing
a particular level of speaking or colloquial language
an abstract system
2. A webster’s New Dictionrary offers a frequently used sense of the word “language”:
a. human speech 人类的言语
b. the ability to communicate by this means 通过言语来交流的能力
c. a system of vocal sounds and combinations of such sounds to which meaning is attributed, used for the expression or communication of thoughts and feelings; 用来表达或交流思想和感觉的一套声音及这些声音互相结合的系统
d. the written representation of such a system 系统的文字表达
3. the barest of definition, language is a means of verbal communication.最简洁的定义:语言是言语交流的一种方式.
Language is instrumental in that communicating by speaking or writing is a purposeful act. It is social and conventional in that language is a social semiostic and communication can only take place effectively if all the users share a broad understanding of human interaction including such associated factors as nonverbal cues, motivation, and socio-cultural roles. Language distinguishes us from animals.因为说和写的交流方式是一种有目的的行为,所以语言是实用性的;因为语言是社会符号,语言的交流只能在所有参与者广泛理解了人类的那些非言语的暗示,动机,社会文化角等等互相关联的因素之后才能有效进行,因此语言又是社会的,约定俗成的.语言使人嗲鹩诙?
1.2.2 definitions
一.Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication.
What is communication?
A process in which information is transmitted from a source (sender or speaker) to a goal (receiver or listener).
A system----since elements in it are arranged according to certain rules systematically, rather than randomly. They cannot be arranged at will. e.g. He the table cleaned. (×) bkli (×)
Why do we say language is arbitrary?
Arbitrary----there is no intrinsic (logic) connection between a linguistic form and its meaning, between the sounds that people use and the objects to which these sounds refer. This explains and is explained by the fact that different language have different words for the same object, it is good illustration of the arbitrary nature of language . it is only our tacit agreement of utterance and concept at work and not any innate relationship bound up in the utterance. A typical example to illustrate the arbitrary of language is a fam
ous quotation from shakepeare’s play:” Romeo and Juliet: A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.一朵玫瑰不管它叫什么名字,闻起来都是一样香的.
Symbols----words are just the symbols associated with objects, actions, and ideas by nothing but convention. Namely, people use the sounds or voval forms to symbolize what they wish to refer to.
Vocal-------- the primary medium for all languages is sound, no matter how well developed their writing systems are. 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 or read also indicates that language is primarily vocal, rather than written.
Writing systems came into being much later than the spoken forms.
People with little or no literacy can also be competent language users.
Human ----language is human-specific.
Human beings have different kinds of brains and vocal capacity.
“Language Acquisition Device”(LAD)
二.What characteristics of langauge do you think should be included in a good ,comprenhensive definition of language?
Language is a rule-governed system; langauge is basically vocal; langauge is arbitrary ; langague is used for human communication.
1.3 Design features of language 语言的结构特征
Design features------ refers to the defining properties of human language that distinguish it from any animal system of communication. They are arbitrariness, duality, creativity/ productivity, displacement, clutural transmission and interchangeability.
Design features----- are features that define our human languages,such as arbitrariness,duality,creativity,displacement,cultural transmission,etc.(指决定了人类语言性质的特征.例如任意性,二重性,创造性,移位性,文化转移性等.)
The American linguist Charles Hockett specified twelve design features.
design翻译
What is arbitrariness?任意性

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