All right, I missed the boat on the blog for the first week. So, we'll catch up.
Since Monday is MLK day, we'll say this blog is due on TUESDAY, JAN 18 -- that's 4 days from now. And Week 2's blog will be up on Monday, so that will catch us up.
Since we're all waiting for the textbook to come in from Amazon, I've got this assignment, which we can start today and have ready by TUESDAY, JAN 18.
Click this link here to read this article. Be sure to read all of this article...it's a little bit longer.
Be prepared to discuss this information in class as well on Wednesday. There will probably be an in-class writing assignment on Wednesday, to get us all loosened up -- and we're going to talk about the near future in a few seconds, soon as I finish typing this...
MP
Hello everybody, I guess I'll be the first one to submit my thoughts on the article. I do agree with the idea that language shapes the way that people think and speak. The section of the article talking about the Australian aboriginal tribe using directions to describe where any object is located really spoke to me. I'm from Lakewood Ohio and around town, when describing something located to the north we usually say that it is towards the lake. I used to work at a grocery store and dealt with people from many different towns asking for directions. When I would tell them that something was located towards the lake, they would look at me dumbfounded. Knowing that this is just an example of using different words for directions around Ohio, it isn't very hard to believe that people from different states or countries would describe directions using different words. I also took Spanish for about 6 years and never could quite grasp the idea of an inanimate object being described as male or female because of my native tongue. Well I think that just about wraps up my thoughts on the article.
ReplyDelete-David Hacker
After reading the article, I agree that language shapes the way you percieve things. I was really interested in how the the article talks about how spanish and german laguages present objects as either female or male. When scientist observed spanish and german speaking people describing diffrent objects, a german speaking person would describe a bridge as a female and a spanish speaking person would describe a bridge as a male because thats how each of there languages percieved that object. I also though it was interesting when the article talked about the boy who went to another villege to learn how to dance, but ended up losing interest for dancing because he couldn't understand instructions given in cardinal directions rather then how we would use the egocentric system. This sparked my interest becuase it shows how a simple directions can be so hard to be understood becuase it's said a different way then what you are use to.
ReplyDelete-Stephen Streets
This is an interesting topic to discuss, mostly because I doubt most of us stop and think about how our speech might affect our thought process. The only time I have ever given it much thought was when I was attempting to learn Spanish. As stated in the article, I had to remember that in Spanish inanimate objects are assigned a gender. And even if the way gender is assigned seems random to me, it makes sense to the people speaking the language, also even though I do not assign gender to objects I was able to comprehend the idea of it. I can see how they can view one object as more feminine or masculine, even if I disagree and believe it should have been assigned the opposite gender. And I understand that Spanish speakers know that the objects are not alive and therefore, do not have a sex.The idea of space in different languages was more interesting because I never really thought about how the description changes and how confusing that change would be. For the most part I use a egocentric way of describing where things are, except when I’m home and then I will use directions like north,south,east and west based on Lake Erie. But, when I move away from the lake I lose my sense of direction, because I am used to the lake being my focal point. Like the boy who changed villages to dance, when I leave my area I am disoriented. I am then forced to use a egocentric way of describing where things are. Also, it is strange to think there was a time when people accepted and believed Whorf’s theory. The idea that the mother tongue could so greatly impact people’s ability to understand what is going on around them, seems ridiculous especially after reading the entire article and having the idea of speech put into perspective , with useful examples.
ReplyDelete-Michelle Dawe
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ReplyDeleteLanguages do have an impact on how we think and act. I had always wondered why other languages would be distinctive by giving words and male or female gender, and why it was not present in English. Growing up with different languages, I noticed that when I am learning a new language, I pick it up a lot quicker. The concept of how time and space was always specified in certain languages was really interesting and I had never thought of it that way. It was also interesting to read about the Australian people using more of a geographical way of describing locations. I guess if you were raised on that way of thinking and just have a distinct way of knowing where North, South, East, and West are at all times, then it would just be second nature to you. I have always used the egocentric way to describing things, but that is the only way that I have known of. Languages can adapt to areas and change over time.
ReplyDelete-Lucy Ho
After reading this article, I agree with the idea that language does shape how we think. The main focus that I realized throughout the article was comparison between various languages and opinions on how things are comprehended. However, going hand in hand with language is cultural background for that particular region. For example, those who speak Spanish give almost all words a male or female brand by using el or la before the phrase. This is something that we would not use in the English speaking culture by saying something like "she fork" or "he tree" because it just simply does not make sense or fit into context with our culture or language. I thought Guugu Yimithirr was quite interesting, but also made very valid points that can be comprehended by English speaking citizens. This form of language seems to be predominantly aimed for those who use nature and wild-life markers as means of not only location but life. Although this does reflect English, it only accommodates part of the speakers based upon the context in which it is used. Language is something that differentiates many different learning styles and means of observation from culture to culture.
ReplyDelete-Kaitlyn Huml
Language shapes how we think and perceive the world and people around us, showing a hint of our culture. As an international student from China, I indeed find many interesting facts and differences between Chinese and English. For instance, when a person from China talks about himself he tends to use the word "us" instead of "I" because, unconsciously, he wants to persuade others to follow him by shortening the distance between them. Behind this is a culture of collectivism and a tendency to conformism, while America has a culture of individualism. Another example worth noting is that the answer to a disjunctive question is entirely different from an American, whose answer is based on the fact ("Yes, it is" indicates you agree with the fact while Chinese would mean the same by answering "No, it is"). Because Chinese are used to response in other person's stances so the answer is based on what people he talks to said, not fact.
ReplyDeleteBesides that, I also discover that religions also impact language. And language influences our thinking. When we talk about death, for example, Chinese are likely to say "go west" or "go back into the earth". They are derived from Buddhism's cosmology, which believes that all the living creatures are born from the earth and will go back to the earth after death, for life is a constant recycle where human’s deaths are considered natural and obscure; even most people are not actual Buddhists. In comparison, some of the words and phrases and metaphors used by western people are originally from the Bible.
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThroughout the course of reading the article, I found myself constantly trying to remember its purpose. Although I have a decent knowledge of psychology and linguistics, I still felt overwhelmed by the plethora of information. As I was reading, I forced myself to remain aware of the thesis but found it difficult to recall. My problem reminded me of what Professor Parsons said in class about focusing. He mentioned that it is possible to stay on topic without being completely straightforward the entire time. I am not insulting the writer’s abilities; I merely intend to state that as a reader with a shaky opinion on the subject, it was easy to become enveloped in my own confusion.
ReplyDeleteI was very intrigued by the author’s mention of gender in language. In a previous class, I was taught that English uses natural gender. In our language, the third person pronouns (he, she, it) are assigned according to biology; objects not referred to “he” or “she” are classified as “it”. Because English speakers identify nouns by using “the”, it is easy for them to become confused by the classification system of other languages. As the article states, everyday speakers of English have a difficult time understanding the assignment of gender to regular nouns in other languages, such as ”chair” or “spoon”. When I began taking French classes, I had a difficult time understanding why “le chemisier” was a woman’s blouse, but “la chemise” was a man’s shirt.
In regards to the actual topic of language shaping one’s thinking, I feel that although the article has specific points, the question itself is too broad and ambiguous to answer and build a solid argument. It is fair to say that language has some influence on how one thinks, but it is also possible that a particular topic can be interpreted in several ways, but still reach the same conclusion, or have the same outcome. Our language does not prevent us from creating certain ideas, but it can make us lean towards a particular way of wording something. I suppose it’s fair to say that language is not a manipulative, demanding, or persuasive concept that attempts to control what we think. Instead, it can be thought of as a tool to get where we’re going, though the destination is the same. In other words, language has the ability to make certain ideas more prominent than others, but does not restrict us from learning or understanding other cultures’ ideas about language.
-Katelyn Stouffer
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ReplyDeleteWhen I first read the opening paragraph, I thought it was going to be another reading assignment filled with scientific jargon that I knew little about. I thought it would be written by a graduate from some prestigious college, who would insist on loading it full of fancy words that I would have a difficult time pretending to understand. But I was wrong. As much as I mildly despise reading assignments, this topic actually caught my attention.
ReplyDeleteThe whole idea of a language shaping how you view the world, or even having a basis in how you think in general, seems like a very far-fetched concept at first, but after further thought, it does seem to make alot of sense. It reminded me of "1984" by George Orwell, in which the government controlled the language, Newspeak, and simply changed words or eliminated words and concepts in order to limit they ways people could express themselves or thoughts through language. What a diabolical scheme to make our vocabularies and brains turn to mush! That however is a more dystopian view on this concept, but it made me connect with the idea.
I was fascinated by how German and Spanish speakers had different ideas of cartoon voices for a fork, or other objects, depending on masculine and feminine word endings. I also found it very interesting that the author referred to the English language being stuck using the monochrome "it's" which I feel have a sort of impersonality to them. With other romance languages, words are given masculine or feminine word endings that almost indirectly make the speaker personify them instead of them being inanimate objects with a lack of personality. In a way I can picture this idea, it kind of makes me think of a Pee Wee Herman’s Playhouse kind of world, but then when I think of that, I become deeply terrified of the concept in hindsight.
Well, my first post did not work so I'll try this again. I really enjoyed this article as a psychology major. I'm taking a class called perceptions that is all about how humans see the world but I'd never thought about how people perceive words. I think that everyone associates certain feelings or emotions with words that are different to everyone, although the English language does not assign gender to inanimate objects, word association, be it good bad or even indifferent, still exists. The article definitely provoked a lot of thought. It's interesting to think about how different languages decided which objects were male and which were female. I'm sure we would have gained a lot more insight into this topic if the process were documented. Why did Germans decide that the word "bridge" should be described as feminine while spanish speaking people describe the same word as masculine? Another point I found particularly interesting is that some cultures use geographic directions; I've never been good with any kind of directions let alone where north south east and west are. However, it isn't surprising to me that English uses egocentric directions, since we are one of the most egocentric cultures around.
ReplyDelete-Zoey Sollisch
Though this article didn't capture my attention at first, I am a little more interested in the subject. I also agree that language shapes the way you perceive things to be.
ReplyDeleteI took Spanish in middle and high school and I have never thought about the whole "feminine-masculine" topic compared to English.
I have never really thought about how people use directions differently than Americans either, so I also thought it was kind of cool how a speaker of a geographic language would see two separate hotel rooms.
After reading this article I think it's weird to sit here and think we were "tricked" in our language to think and speak a certain way. It's interesting to know that not everyone thinks about the simplest things in the same manner. For example, I definitely don't think about a fork as a feminine or a masculine object.
-Christy Lough
Overall, I enjoyed reading this article. It generally and pretty broadly covered the differences that pertained to the distinction of reason influenced by different languages. Just like the author said, it's not "what our language allows us to think but rather because of what it habitually obliges us to think about". Not being a native English speaker, I can obviously relate. A big distinction that is highlighted between languages is, for example, the interaction with inanimate objects, which shapes our perception rather than shaping our way of thinking. Relatively, the author mentions how French and Spanish speakers were asked to assign human voices to inanimate objects and of course the diversity of linguistic influences played a significant role here. Personally, I don't have that problem because I learned English from a relatively young age, so my mind is able to function just fine "in [the] monochrome desert of 'its'". But speaking of shaping our perception, what better way to expand upon that to discuss the language of space? It fascinated me to learn that there were languages that fixated on geographical directions rather than egocentric ones. Then again, this would be another great contributing factor to shaping one's outlook and interaction with their surrounding environment, or when encountering a completely new environment. I believe the author used valid examples, but many more sides could be taken on this topic. Lack of scientific data also does not benefit this article, but then again, this is a pretty loose topic to delve into scientifically anyway.
ReplyDelete-Leonard Mdzinarishvili
After reading this article I got a lot of insight on how language is really broken down in our world. I do not believe it shapes our mind and our outlook on life in any way. Yes, people do have their own set language that they speak but this should not limit them from learning new languages and being able to experience those languages as well. I never really thought about how one sentence could be said the same way but interpreted differently in different languages. When the article gave the example of saying “I spent the evening with a neighbor” I thought that sentence could only be thought of in one way. That would be done by not asking questions about the sex of the neighbor, just leave it what was said. Then as they went on talking about how other languages would need to know the sex of the neighbor or the time the neighbor was there, it really made me think why does the listener need to know so much information? That is just how certain parts of the world would handle that comment and it is interesting to see such a difference one sentence can make in people’s lives around the world. As the article started talking about the term “geographic language” I was slightly confused. Did other parts of the world really talk like that? I cannot imagine using the words north, south, east, and west in my sentences unless I was talking about certain driving directions. I felt the little boy’s pain in the story that was told when he did not understand the concept of using those terms to learn to dance instead of right, left, front, back. I would be in the same position he was because I am not used to using those terms. What struck my attention the most is when they said this language was far from egocentric and the main difference between our language and this one is that ours is always focused on the self. I feel this is very true, we are always focused on our world and do not spend much time thinking about others. This article was very intriguing and learning about other languages really opened my eyes to the world around me and how everyone interprets their world.
ReplyDelete-Kati Justus
After reading this article, I think language does shape how we think. I think even in different cities around Kent people talk in all different forms. I know when I came to Kent, I was told I talked different and had an accent and I only live an hour and a half away. I think it's also how people are brought up. I know I find myself talking like my mother does and other people go why do you talk like that or why do you say that. I think it is interesting how people do interpret things as simple as telling directions which were explained in the article. I know I am one of those people who just go turn left then right etc. So when I heard people use turn south then west etc. I thought "yeah that is another way, I just never think to talk like that." It also seems like it's dealing with the different generations. Nowdays, hardly anyone talks with the compass directions,but in the older days people had to so I think it has to do with that as well. Overall, I think language varies in so many ways,but I did like this article and how it made you think about all the other options there are to "talk" in the world and to get informed on how other people view languages.
ReplyDeleteI thought this article was very interesting. At first it didn't seem to grab my attention, but as I kept reading I got into it.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading how German and Spanish speaking people call inanimate objects "male" or "female". I speak spanish so I realized that when speaking you really do without realizing it. At first when learning the language it may seem weird but then it just comes to you.
I enjoyed this article and I thought it was very interesting. It gave different perspectives on ways of speaking that you wouldn't really think of unless you really sat down and thought about it.
I really liked learning about how others speak and how they percieved things through their own languages.
( Just wanted to say I posted this earlier but it wouldn't post for some reason. )
ReplyDeleteThe first thing that caught my eye about this article was the idea of gender being attached to inanimate objects. Although I took Spanish in high school, this way of thinking was never really ingrained in me. Until reading this article, I never truly imagined what it would be like to always have gender assigned to things, and how that might effect my thinking on a daily basis. Thinking about this further, I realized that I seem to do this in my own thoughts, but obviously not because of my language. It brought me to wonder if people would have a more personal or even contradicting way of looking at things if they did not have a language that was specific on gender.
Even more interesting was the idea of a geographic language. As someone studying geology and being a nature lover, I find direction and orientation to be very important things to understand. It is inspiring that people who speak these languages are aware of this from age 2 and on. I agree with the article that this kind of thinking places emphasis on the person as part of the environment, instead of seperate from it, and this creates a less egocentric sense of self in the world.Geographical language could potentially be benefical for everyone, and the Earth itself. Not to mention it might help when the GPS gives out.
-Casey Lubin
having read this article i've learned alot more about the differences in languages. for instance on the first page of the paper it talked about the masculine and feminine version of sayings in different languages. i didnt know Languages like Spanish, French, German and Russian not only oblige you to think about the sex of friends and neighbors, but they also assign a male or female gender to a whole range of inanimate objects. What, for instance, is particularly feminine about a Frenchman’s beard (la barbe)? Why is Russian water a she, and why does she become a he once you have dipped a tea bag into her? i took spanish in high school and i learned about the masculine and feminine ways of saying words but i dint know that other countries went that far with it. I also didnt know that psychologists have even shown that “gendered languages” imprint gender traits for objects so strongly in the mind that these associations obstruct speakers’ ability to commit information to memory. i didnt know that language could have an effect on the memory of an individual. i also learned about the egocentric and geocentric ways of telling directons where egocentric coordinatesdepend on our own bodies: a left-right axis and a front-back axis orthogonal to it and geographic directions do not rotate with us wherever we turn. it talked about how people from different countries like mexico have a better sense of direction because they use the geocentric way. i thought this article was very informative about the differences in the way people speak around the world
ReplyDeleteLanguage is probably one of the most influential pieces in our life. When you actually think about language is involved is so much of what we do. Whether it be telling someone what we would like to eat, or using landmarks as a way of telling people directions, the name given to an object in a language is able to do so much. Seeing differences in other languages was also very interesting to me. The masculine and feminine qualities that other languages such as French and Spanish are very interesting. This is something that I had previously learned in high school Spanish classes. However, the article was able to put it in a different thought than the ways that we learned about it in high school.In the English language we would never really assign a gender to an inanimate object, especially with the woman's rights groups that exist here in the United States, but for other languages it is just a common idea that is part of their language. Another idea is the different terminology that can be used in so many languages. There are so many different names given to objects than what you and all the people you know say. Coming to Kent for me it was easy to see that people talked differently than the way people from my hometown do, and the article helped put this into perspective for me. Coming from the a small town in the northwest of Ohio, I had never once heard someone say the word "yinz," but as soon as I arrived in Kent I heard it more and more. The last point that I found really interesting was the "geographic language." The fact that people actually use the terms North, South, East, and West other than for giving directions amazed me. I would be far from able to figure out which way is which if asked to point them out.
ReplyDeleteIt’s obvious that languages and how we speak do have a tremendous impact on how we think and act. People who speak different languages also typically have much different cultural practices and values. When you learn a new language one of the first things you need to learn is some history on the people who speak it and the inner workings of their culture. Our culture impacts our language more than our language impacts our culture though. With the spread of technology and how much our culture has evolved, our language has expanded and changed accordingly. If we were to talk to someone from a hundred years ago, time may provide a language barrier. The way we talk also impacts how we act, from what words we say to how we say them. The English spoken in Boston is much different than that spoken in San Diego, as the cultures are different too. I think our culture ultimately determines our language and how we speak it.
ReplyDelete-DylanPalchesko