Educating Eve: The 'language Instinct' DebateAre we creatures who learn new things? Or does human mental development consist of awakening instinctive structures of thought? A view has gained ground that language in much of its detail is hard-wired in our genes. Others add that this also holds true for much of the specific knowledge and understanding expressed in language. When the first human Eve evolved from pre-human apes (it is claimed), her biological inheritance comprised not just a distinctive anatomy but a rich structure of cognition. Despite the impressive roll of converts which these ideas have gained, there is no good reason to believe them. The arguments of Pinker and others depend on earlier and more technical contributions, by writers such as Noam Chomsky. Many readers take these foundations on trust, not realizing how weak they are. This book examines the various arguments for instinctive knowledge, and finds that each one rests on false premises or embodies a logical fallacy. |
Contents
The Original Arguments for a Language Instinct | 23 |
The Debate Renewed | 65 |
Language Structure Turns Queens Evidence | 107 |
Copyright | |
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academic acquire adult argues behaviour believe Bergson Berlin and Kay Bickerton brain Chapter child Chomsky's chunks claim clause cognitive common complex concept constraint creative cultural Derek Bickerton Descartes discussion dualism empiricist English speakers evidence evolutionary example experience explain fact genetic Geoffrey Pullum grammar Hanunóo human language hypotaxis hypotheses ideas individual inherited innate knowledge instance intellectual Jackendoff Karl Popper kind knowledge of language language acquisition Language Instinct language learning language universals linguistic nativism linguistic nativists logical means mental Mentalese mother tongue nature Noam Chomsky noun object organisms philosopher physical pidgin Plato plural Popper Popperian possible predictions properties protolanguage question quoted Ray Jackendoff reader reason refuted relevant Rules and Representations Russenorsk Science scientific seems sense sentence sequence Simon sort sounds specific speech statement Steven Pinker suggests theory things tree structuring true utterances verb vowels words writings X-bar X-bar theory