Connection between language,culture and identity - Essay Example

d accent, be the words written or in an electronic form, however in Hall’s view “Language is one of the ‘media’ through which thoughts, ideas and feelings are represented in a Culture” (Hall, 1968, p. 1), which is true since language is the only mode of transportation in a culture and for these thoughts and ideas to be transported from one person to another it is necessary that the individuals or people between whom thoughts have to be transported speak and understand the same language thus enabling them to decipher each other’s thoughts, feelings and ideas.

When we discuss language as the only means of transportation of thoughts and feelings from one person to another we not only speak of words spoken or written but also of symbols and signs and any other means which we classify into one word ‘language’ to simplify things a bit. Hence language is a mode of representation; this representation may be in any form, including symbols, words, sounds, musical notes, body language or facial expressions. As Stuart Hall explains about the relation between language and representation; insisting that languages ‘utilise’ representation and are in fact methods of representation which, not only in written form or through dialogue, help in expressing ourselves be it an idea or a feeling.

Hall further debates that all of the languages function on similar elements feeding their own creation by the need of people to express and communicate. Therefore all our actions or gestures represent something and ‘language’ is what delivers that representation though the case may be that a particular language delivers the representation of a particular culture. Moreover Hall points out that apart from us people, industries such as fashion industries also use representation through clothing and hence a language to express their ideas, but what factor it is that gives ‘meaning’ to these ideas and thoughts and even to people and language?

Hall clarifies that;