Interrelation between Language, Communication, and Culture - Essay Example

Language, Communication and Culture Introduction There is no single definition that is in existence that can completely define language to give it a comprehensive meaning that is acceptable universally (Arianrhod 14). There are many definitions that have been stated by different people that have all been geared towards elaborating the meaning of language. All in all, Language can be viewed in various angles that focus on its core foundations. One of the angles is the use of language as a cultural tool that defines identity of a group of people or a society. The groups of people or society are bound to similar cultural values and practices and their understanding is enhanced by sharing a common language. This establishes a unique identity for the assemblage of inhabitants. Language can also be perceived as a platform for communication not only among a group of people, but also among different people with unique cultural backgrounds and ethnicity. A single language can form a link between different communities since it establishes a channel of communication hence enhancing understanding between different groups with unique ideologies. Therefore, language can be perceived as a tool that enhances inter-cultural interactions and co-existence between different communities and races through communication. Although there are different forms of languages across the globe, any language is characterized by certain features. These should be present for a language to conform to acceptable standards. The features that define any language include its grammatical structure, diction, dialect, and others which are unique to various communities. Language is a mental function that is among other functions of human beings. Language is associated with all the other mental functions of human beings but in different ways. The other higher mental functions have an impact on language or language has an influence on them. Language and Self-consciousness Consciousness is a feeling in a human being that is initiated through various modes. It can be initiated either internally or externally depending on the actions that lead to its initiation. Although it is difficult to establish a strong relationship between language and self-consciousness, researches have shown that a strong link exists between the two elements. The development of conscience has been shown to result from the response by others to our actions or from personal reactions to our own actions. This development is what defines either internal or external consciousness. Internally, self-consciousness can be perceived as personal reflection. This is the ability of human beings to think of themselves as doing or feeling something, and then initiate personal reflection that will eventually lead to communication. Externally, human beings communicate through actions, thus people will react differently to their actions based on the response given to their actions by others. It is therefore, evident that other people play a vital role in shaping an individual’s conscience. Either internally or externally, self consciousness is stirred by thoughts, which are basic structural units of a language. Thoughts are therefore, the link between language and self-consciousness. According to (Fromkin 111), language forms the key components for the infrastructure of thoughts of human beings. Human thoughts are thus the link that demonstrates the relationship between language and self-consciousness. It is still difficult to establish which element has a greater authority on the other, but it is apparent that a strong relationship between the two exists. Language and Autonomy Independence and freedom in decision making is what defines autonomy of an individual. Research has been conducted by various researchers that try to establish the relationship between autonomy and language. The aspect of language that focuses on this relationship is communication. Decision making is a critical process in any human being that requires a deep understanding which in turn depends on efficient communication. The elements of understanding and communications are all components dictated by language. Therefore, they are vital in demonstrating the relationship that exists between language and autonomy in human beings. The relationship is reaffirmed by a research that was conducted in the United States in the year 2009. The research was aimed at establishing the level of understanding of students in relation to their performance. The group of students used as sample all used English as their second language. The research involved a group of first year Japanese students studying in different colleges in the United States. The study focused on the studies of the students in English as well as other courses that were offered in English. The research established that the level of mastery of English language by the students played a vital role in their understanding of the subjects that were offered in English. The high level of understanding was attributed to the flexibility in decision making by the students in terms of implementing the various language rules in their readings. In addition, the study ruled out that access of materials played any role in shaping the autonomy of the students in class work. Therefore, it is correct to conclude that understanding of a language enhances the autonomy of an individual in various perspectives. Language and Imagination Difficulties in reading and creative writing are directly related to underdeveloped language, this is one of the most accepted facts in the modern psychology (Pinker 94).It is evident that creative writing requires high levels of imagination and thus its relation to understanding of a language. It is also difficult to demonstrate how one’s ability to think critically is associated with their level of understanding or mastery of a language. However, this can be shown by establishing a connection between various factors that are related to each other. For instance, various language processes such as fluency in decoding unknown words, associations between sounds and letters, letter naming are critical in determining the ability of an individual to read and compose creative writing. Although the level of creativity or imagination of an individual cannot be solely be determined by these language processes, they play a significant role in shaping the skill. Creativity whether in writing or any other field is a true measure of an individual’s level of imagination. Therefore, language processes are fundamental elements in the relationship between imagination and language. It is correct to say that language and imagination are positively correlated. Memory and Language Memory of an individual plays a vital role in language acquisition especially a second language. Therefore, in this case it is the memory that impacts the language. However, the language also influences memory in certain aspects. This relationship has initiated a number of debates especially among teachers who teach students with different levels of understanding of a certain language. Some teachers have supported the notion that memory is heavily influenced by language mastery, and thus have used the understanding of a language by students in placing them in different class levels. An experiment was carried out by a group of teachers that was aimed at establishing this relationship. The experiment was designed in such a way that a group of students were given a passage to read within duration. After reading, the students were asked various questions about the passage so as to determine how much of the content they could remember. The students were a mixture of native English speakers and others who were not native speakers, but were all given a passage written in English. The results showed that the native speakers grasped more content and could remember much content, this was attributed to the fact that they focused less on the form and more on the meaning. On the other hand, the other students focused on the form of the passages in order to get the meaning. Therefore, memory and language have a concrete association. Language and Reason In addition to the above mentioned examples of higher mental functions, reason is also among them. It’s first known use can be dated back to the early 13th century. It is sometimes referred to as argument, account, explanation or rationale. Reason can be broadly defined to as a declaration offered with the aim of giving a justification or an explanation. It gives the power to comprehend, infer or think in an orderly and rational way. In my own opinion, reason is the basis for rational thinking and consequently the explanation as to almost all forms of revolutions over the recent years. There are two known types of reason, rational and irrational. Humans are considered to be rational beings since everything that they do they have the capability to make an informed decision through the use of informed reason. This is unlike animals that apparently lack this form. There is a close relationship between reason and language. Language being both a tool of communication and a form of culture, to a very great extent has been linked with reason by a number of scholars, philosophers, linguistics, psychologists and anthropologists in the past. However, it was until recently that it was finally established with a elevated degree of certainty that diverse people, speaking different languages, as a result, end up thinking differently (Gentner & Susan 79). They different ways people speak end up shaping the way they see the world, the way the live their lives and lastly they way they think. It is my opinion that, from the above research, even the different flukes in grammar can indeed to a great extent affect the way we perceive the world. Language and Morality Morality can be described as a set of rules and regulation that govern the way a person should behave in a social set up. They are considered to be the right things that everyone should adhere to in order to live and relate to well with each other. Some acts are usually considered wrong that is immoral such as killing, stealing and committing adultery among others while others such as taking care of the sick and giving back to the less fortunate among others, are considered to be moral acts. A person who is able to manifest moral acts is considered to practice morality. In the early nineteenth century, individuals tend to commonly state and perceive the link between language and morality. In my own opinion, language plays a significant part in the social order, and it has to be properly taught in schools. Language is considered to contain an accurate record of all the evil and good which have been running in the hearts and minds of men and thus can be regarded as a moral barometer. Language plays a key role for human groups to enhance genuine altruism and unify them to and consequently outcompete harsh conditions of the environment, adversaries and concepts that would end up enhancing selfishness sometimes considered unethical (Das & Anirban 342). Therefore, human morality and language mingle two crucial, interconnected and intriguing traits. This is because people usually use language to codify, create and depict moral values and thus explains the strong dependence of morality on language. Language and Perfection Perception can be described as the consequence of perceiving. It is different from the act of perceiving. This is because it involves the application of senses or the mind. When a person perceives something or someone, he / she is considered to be aware. Language also has a strong connection with perception. The relationship comes about from how people perceive the human race and, consequently, how they converse their awareness. First and foremost, the key link to focus on is that people always talk about what they perceive. One of the key reasons, why perception and language have a strong relation is that the system of perception if the key means via which language gets semantics. Without one component, either body of data or language processor, then the whole system fails as a consequence of not being able to know what one is talking about. Language does molds one’s thinking in different ways. One man difference between perception and language is best manifested in bilinguals. They believe that both an idea and a word go hand in hand as they are more open to ideas. Therefore, for a system to have proper semantics, it must have the component of perception. Language and Learning Learning is the practice of attainment of knowledge, skills, behavior and values. This can be in the form of observation, training or experience. It is a process that chiefly involves a change in understanding or behavior. This includes getting that knowledge from the class set up, trainings, seminars or individually. The use of language in the development of learning is inevitable. This is because one compliments the others that is, language facilitates the process of learning (Rhyner 154). Everyone has to go through this process from the children in kindergartens, the young people in high schools and universities and, lastly, to the adults in the on job trainings and seminars. Adults enable children to be able to acquire knowledge in a much easier way, which is something children are considered not to be competent to do on their own. Children tend to do things much easier when in a group as compared to when alone. Children who end up developing their language much later in life end up experiencing too many delays when trying to learn. The acquisition of this knowledge and understanding is effected via the use of language. This is irrespective of what and where the person is undergoing the leaning process. This consequently leads to learning disabilities. Therefore, according to my own opinion, I think without language then learning can never be materialized. The two have to go hand in hand in order for them to coexist. Through the use of language, one is able to communicate and disseminate knowledge for him or her and others. Language and Speech Speeches are normally given in front of crowds and gatherings. It is considered as a vocalized tool or form of passing information from one person to another or from groups of people to others groups. In comparison to the above mentioned examples of higher mental functions described, the relation between speech and language is not mutual. Speech can be completely separated from language. It is very possible for one to be able to learn any language, irrespective of its complexity and also without the use of speech. Conclusion Language can be perceived in a number of forms but it’s main element remains formation of a platform for communication between different groups of people. Although there are thousands of languages across the globe, this has not created segregation of communities, but instead, some languages have become fundamental in plying the roles of enhancing inter cultural co-existence by enhancing understanding of each other. Language is one of many higher functions of a human being. It plays a critical role of connecting all the other higher mental functions and fostering some of them, which are essential in fostering understanding of various phenomenon in the human environment. Works cited. Arianrhod, Robyn. Einstein's Heroes: Imagining the World Through the Language of Mathematics. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. Print. Top of Form Das, Kanti L, and Anirban Mukherjee. Language and Ontology. New Delhi: Northern Book Centre, 2008. Print. Fromkin, Victoria, Robert Rodman, and Nina M. Hyams. An Introduction to Language. Boston, Mass: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, 2011. Print. Bottom of Form Top of Form Meadow. Language in Mind: Advances in the Study of Language and Thought. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press, 2003. Print. Pinker, Steven. The Language Instinct: How the Mind Creates Language. New York, NY: Perennial Classics, 2003. Print. Bottom of Form Top of Form Rhyner, Paula M. Emergent Literacy and Language Development: Promoting Learning in Early Childhood. New York: Guilford Press, 2009. Print. Bottom of Form Top of Form Bottom of Form Bottom of Form Bottom of Form Read More