Reflections on Language

Chomsky’s linguistics work has revolutionized our understanding of language. These nontechnical Reflections consider the point & purpose of studying language, exploring some of the more general intellectual implications that result from linguistic study. The considered are classical ones. From Plato to the present time, philosophers have been baffled & intrigued by how humans, with limited personal experience, achieve such rich systems of knowledge, beliefs & values—systems that guide their actions & interpretations of experience. In answer to this fundamental question, he argues that the growth of language is analogous to the development of a bodily organ & is in large measure predetermined by genetic factors. These Reflections offer incisive analyses of the controversies raging today among psychologists, philosophers & linguists over the acquisition of cognitive structures, the way language interacts with other mental organs & the way cognitive structures enter into & guide activity. He explores the social & intellectual factors that have led to the dominance of certain ways of thinking, & asks why the study of mind & behavior has so often followed a path remote from the general approach of the natural sciences. In examining some of the implications of recent work, he suggests that the conception of humans as totally malleable isn’t only false but also serves to support reactionary social doctrines.