Features of Human Language by Hockett PDF

# FEATURES OF HUMAN LANGUAGE BY HOCKETT ## 1. The Vocal-Auditory Channel * Refers to the use of sounds produced by the mouth (vocal) and heard through the ears (auditory) as the primary mode of human language communication. * This is the standard channel for spoken language. **Example:** When a...

# FEATURES OF HUMAN LANGUAGE BY HOCKETT ## 1. The Vocal-Auditory Channel * Refers to the use of sounds produced by the mouth (vocal) and heard through the ears (auditory) as the primary mode of human language communication. * This is the standard channel for spoken language. **Example:** When a teacher gives instructions in a classroom, they use their voice to communicate, and students listen with their ears. **For example:** > When the teacher says, "Please open your books to page 10," the message is conveyed through sound, which the students hear and respond to by opening their books to the correct page. * This is a straightforward example of the vocal-auditory channel in action, as the teacher's spoken language is transmitted through sound and received via the students' hearing. ## 2. Broadcast Transmission and Directional Reception * Means that when someone speaks, the sound waves spread out in all directions (broadcast transmission), so anyone within hearing range can potentially perceive the signal. * However, listeners are able to determine the direction the sound is coming from (directional reception). **Example:** Imagine you're at a party, and someone across the room calls out your name. The sound of your name is broadcast in all directions, so others around may also hear it. However, you can pinpoint where the voice is coming from and look in that direction to locate the person calling you. * This ability to identify the direction of a sound allows us to focus on relevant signals in an environment with multiple voices, background noise, or competing sounds. ## 3. Rapid Fading, or Transitoriness * Refers to the fact that spoken language signals (sound waves) disappear almost immediately after being produced. * Unlike written language, which can be preserved on paper or a screen, spoken words are gone as soon as they are spoken, requiring listeners to process and remember them in real-time. **Example:** When giving verbal directions, such as "Turn left at the next street, then go straight for two blocks," the listener needs to remember and act on these instructions quickly because the spoken directions fade immediately after being heard. * If the listener doesn't pay attention or remember the directions right away, they may need to ask for the instructions to be repeated since there is no lasting record of what was said. * This temporary nature of speech is why memory and attention are so important in spoken communication. ## 4. Interchangeability in Language * Refers to the ability of individuals to both produce (send) and understand (receive) the same types of messages * In human language, any speaker can generally say what another speaker can say, and vice versa. * This is unlike some animal communication systems, where only certain members (such as males or dominant individuals) produce specific signals. **Example:** > In a conversation, one person might say, "I like ice cream." The other person can respond with, "I like ice cream too." * Both individuals are able to express the same message and understand each other's statements * If the first person had instead said, "I don't like ice cream," the other could still respond with, "I don't like ice cream either." * Each participant can freely express agreement, disagreement, or any sentiment in response, showing that they can both send and receive the same types of language signals. * This flexibility allows for rich, reciprocal communication in human language. ## 5. Total Feedback * Refers to a speaker's ability to hear and monitor their own speech as they produce it, allowing them to make immediate adjustments * This is different from something like a traffic sign, which cannot detect if it's functioning properly or if people are responding to it correctly. **Example:** Imagine you're giving a presentation. As you speak, you hear yourself and notice that you're speaking too quickly. * You can immediately slow down to ensure your audience understands you better. * Similarly, if you accidentally say "Friday" instead of "Saturday," you can correct yourself on the spot because you heard the error. * This self-monitoring aspect of spoken language helps speakers correct mistakes, adjust their tone, and control their speech volume in real time. ## 6. Specialization * Refers to the idea that different parts of the human vocal tract, such as the lips, tongue, and throat, each have specific roles in producing speech sounds. **Here's a concrete example:** * **Lips:** The lips are crucial in producing bilabial sounds (sounds formed by bringing both lips together), such as the "p" sound in the word "pat" or the "b" sound in "bat." When we make these sounds, the lips are specifically brought together or allowed to part. * **Tongue:** The tongue plays a major role in creating a wide variety of sounds, especially alveolar sounds (made with the tongue against the roof of the mouth). For example, the "t" sound in "top" and the "l" sound in "lip" are produced by the tongue's contact with the alveolar ridge, just behind the upper front teeth. * **Throat (or Larynx):** The larynx contains the vocal cords, which vibrate to create voiced sounds. For example, the "g" sound in "go" or "z" in "zebra" involves the vocal cords vibrating as air passes through the larynx. * Each of these body parts is specialized to produce different speech sounds, making human speech communication possible. ## 7. Semanticity * Refers to the idea that each signal (whether it's a word, gesture, or sound) has a specific, understood meaning * This means that for every linguistic signal, there is a concept or object it refers to. **Concrete Example:** * The word "tree" in English is a signal (a string of letters or sounds) that corresponds to a specific meaning: the tall, woody plant that typically has branches and leaves. * The signal "tree" doesn't just exist as a random collection of sounds; it specifically refers to the object we see in nature, and anyone who speaks English will understand what "tree" means. * This principle of semanticity applies to all languages—every word or symbol has a meaning that speakers of the language associate with it, which is why communication is possible. For example, the signal "apple" in English corresponds to the fruit, while in Spanish, the equivalent signal would be "manzana," both carrying the same meaning in their respective languages. ## 8. Arbitrariness in Language * Refers to the fact that there is no inherent connection between the form of a word (its sound or structure) and its meaning. * The relationship between a word and the thing it represents is conventional and agreed upon by speakers of the language, but it could have been different. This arbitrary relationship allows different languages to have entirely different words for the same thing. **Concrete Example:** * The word "bird" in English refers to a small flying animal, but there is no intrinsic reason why that particular combination of sounds ("b-i-r-d") should represent that animal. Other languages use different sounds for the same animal: * **In Spanish, the word for "bird" is "pájaro."** * **In French, it's "oiseau."** * **In German, it's "Vogel."** * Each language assigns its own arbitrary sound structure to refer to the same concept, showing that the connection between words and their meanings is based on social convention, not a natural or necessary link. The word "bird" could have been something else entirely, and other cultures or languages have chosen different sounds to refer to the same animal. This is what makes language arbitrary. ## 9. Discreteness in Language * Refers to the idea that speech sounds can be clearly categorized into distinct units or phonemes, without any gradual blending between them. * This allows us to differentiate between one sound and another, even though the real-world production of speech may involve subtle variations. **Concrete Example:** The sounds "p" and "b" are distinct phonemes in English. In the words "pat" and "bat," the only difference between them is the first sound: "p" vs "b." These sounds are discrete because we can clearly categorize them as separate units. There's no gradual sliding from "p" into "b"; they are distinct categories, and we can hear the difference very clearly. * In the physical world, speech sounds may involve slight variations (such as how someone's vocal cords vibrate slightly differently, depending on the speaker), but in language, these sounds are treated as discrete units because we categorize them as distinct phonemes. * This is different from a continuous spectrum (like a color gradient), where it's hard to pinpoint exactly where one color ends and another begins. In contrast, discrete phonemes allow us to draw clear lines between different sounds in a language. ## 10. Displacement in Language * Refers to the ability to talk about things that are not immediately present in time or space. * This includes discussing events in the past, future, abstract concepts, or even imaginary things. * It's one of the features that sets human language apart, allowing us to communicate about things that are not directly experienced in the present moment. **Concrete Example:** * **Past:** We can speak about events that have already happened, like "Yesterday, I went to the park." Even though the event is over and we are no longer at the park, language allows us to convey this past experience. * **Future:** We can also talk about things that have not yet happened, like "Tomorrow, I will visit my grandmother." The language lets us discuss a future event, even though it hasn't occurred yet. * **Imaginary or Distant Things:** We can talk about fictional characters like "Jack Frost" or "The Tooth Fairy," even though these are not real, or discuss distant planets like "Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun," even though we may never physically visit it. * Displacement allows us to transcend the limitations of the present moment and engage in complex conversations about things that are abstract, hypothetical, or distant in time and space. This ability to discuss the non-present is crucial for planning, storytelling, and conceptual thinking. ## 11. Productivity in Language * Refers to the ability to create new, never-before-heard utterances by combining existing linguistic elements (such as words, phrases, and sentences) in novel ways. * This allows us to express an infinite number of ideas and concepts, even ones that have never been spoken before. **Concrete Example:** The sentence you provided, "The lady who lived in my closet told me that Mer who is in Jupiter will come and celebrate the birth of the emperor of the Earth and free all prisoners in jail," is a perfect example of productivity. The sentence is entirely new and likely never uttered by anyone before, but it's still grammatically correct and understandable. * The speaker combined: * Known words (e.g., "lady," "closet," "celebrate," "prisoners") * Familiar structures (e.g., relative clauses like "who lived in my closet") * Creative, novel elements (e.g., "Mer," "emperor of the Earth," "Jupiter") to form a completely original sentence. * Through this combination, language allows us to invent new thoughts, stories, and ideas on the fly, giving us the flexibility to communicate an unlimited range of concepts. This creativity is what allows languages to evolve and adapt to new contexts over time. ## 12. Traditional Transmission * Refers to the idea that language is not innate or instinctive; instead, it is learned through social interaction and exposure. * Humans acquire language through communication with others, and this process requires effort and learning over time. **Concrete Example:** * A child born into a community that speaks English will not automatically know English. Instead, the child must learn English by listening to the people around them, mimicking their speech, and gradually understanding the rules and structure of the language through interaction. This process involves effort, as the child has to be exposed to language and engage with others in order to learn how to speak, understand, and use language appropriately. * Similarly, a child in a Spanish-speaking environment will learn Spanish in the same way, not because the ability to speak Spanish is hardwired into their brain, but because they are surrounded by the language and learn it through observation and interaction with caregivers and peers. * This concept highlights the role of social and environmental factors in language acquisition—language is passed down through generations, learned from others, and shaped by the community in which an individual is raised. It's not an automatic skill but a learned one. ## 13. The Duality of Patterning * Refers to the way that language has two levels of structure: * **The first level:** involves the combination of distinct, meaningless units (like sounds or phonemes) to create words. * **The second level:** involves the combination of these meaningful units (words, phrases) to form new, more complex meanings or ideas. The key idea here is that small, discrete units can be recombined systematically to create new forms and meanings. **Concrete Example:** * **Phonemic Level:** At the first level, the sounds /b/, /a/, and /t/ are meaningless on their own, but when combined in a specific order, they form the word "bat." This word has meaning, but the individual sounds don't. * **Word Level:** At the second level, we can take the word "bat" and combine it with other words to form new phrases or sentences. For example: * "The bat flies" (subject + verb) * "A bat in the cave" (article + noun + prepositional phrase) * "The black bat" (adjective + noun) * In these examples, the basic speech units (the phonemes) are recombined in different ways to create new words, and these words are recombined to form new ideas. This duality allows for immense creativity in language, as a limited set of sounds or words can be rearranged to express an almost infinite number of ideas.