General linguistics 178
What are the functions of human language?
• Language is the means or instrument of which makes encoding possible and the
transfer of thoughts into a perceptible code.
• Language is the means or instrument of which makes decoding possible and the
unpacking of imperceptible ideas/thoughts from a perceptible code.
o “Code”
- Perceptible sound
- Writing
- Signs
• Verbal communication has an informative function, made possible by the encoding
and decoding of linguistic meaning.
• Language can indeed be used to convey factual information.
This function can be described as:
• 1. Representational: describe things or states of affairs, report or record events
― make statements that can be judged true or false.
• 2. Persuasive: persuade someone to think, believe, decide, accept something;
try to influence someone’s attitude towards something.
• 3. Instrumental / performative: use language not only to say something, but
also to do something that can result in a new situation; e.g. use formal or ceremonial
language which serves to bring about changes in reality.
• 4. Regulating: regulate / influence someone’s physical, non-linguistic
behaviour.
• 5. Conceptual / denotative: form concepts / mental representations of things,
thus making it possible to refer to (and think about) such things.
• 6. Metalinguistic: refer to and talk about elements of language itself.
• 7. Social / phatic: create, confirm or sever social relationships.
• 8. Expressive / emotive: express emotions, feelings, sensations, etc., or try to
influence those of someone else.
• 9. Aesthetic: create linguistic things that others find beautiful, pleasing,
thought-provoking, interesting, etc.
• 10. Ludic / playful: take part in amusing language games.
, • 11. Identifying / personative: express your identity, e.g. geographical origin,
social group, ethnicity, age, gender, educational level, occupation, beliefs,
idiosyncrasies, etc.
• 12. Questioning: attempt to elicit / get information from someone, typically by
means of questions.
The message model of communication
• Container metaphor – linguistic expressions (words and sentences etc.) are like
containers into which information is packed (encoded) and which can be sent to
someone else and from which the information can be unpacked (decoded) exactly as
it was sent.
• Examples: “Her words carry no meaning” & “I got the message”
• Within the message model, misunderstandings and communication breakdowns can
be ascribed to imperfect, sloppy, careless encoding or decoding.
The problems with the message model
• Besides the representational use of language, verbal communication has several
other functions ― which cannot be accounted for within the Message model.
• Verbal communication involves more than the mere encoding / decoding of
linguistic meaning. Speakers / writers normally “mean” more – and sometimes
something completely different – than what their words and sentences “mean”.
o Distinguish between linguistic meaning, and the speaker’s (or
writer’s) meaning – i.e. what the speaker / writer intends to
communicate with her utterances.
o Linguistic meaning is but a sketch, a bare outline of what the
speaker has in mind and intends to communicate.
o To recover speaker’s intended meaning, the hearer has to make
use of facts / clues / guidelines provided by the linguistic
utterances used by the speaker, and the context in which they
have been used.
Types of Context :
1. Linguistic context
2. Physical context
3. Social context
, Non-communicative uses of language
• Language can also be used non-communicatively, i.e. without the intention to convey
thoughts, ideas, information, feelings, etc. to someone else.
• 1. Compulsion: language use that falls outside the control of the sender;
usually found with people who have a physiological or mental problem, e.g. people
who have become senile or who have suffered a stroke.
• 2. “Practise” function normally found with young children who are in the
process of acquiring a language; language often forms part of a game – used as
“plaything”, similar to physical toys;
in the process the child “practises” his/her linguistic and social skills.
What does it involve knowing a language?
Knowledge of a language
• There are two main types of a knowledge:
o The structure of the language (grammatical knowledge).
o The use of the language (pragmatic knowledge).
Grammatical knowledge
o First component: knowledge of the speech sounds and sound system of the
language - phonetic-phonological knowledge
o knowledge of a (spoken) language includes knowledge of the separate
speech sounds that occur in that language and knowledge of the permissible
sound distribution patterns of that language.
• Separate speech sounds investigated in the broad study area of Phonetics.
o There are three sub-areas
- Articulatory phonetic
- Auditory phonetics
- Acoustic phonetics
What are the functions of human language?
• Language is the means or instrument of which makes encoding possible and the
transfer of thoughts into a perceptible code.
• Language is the means or instrument of which makes decoding possible and the
unpacking of imperceptible ideas/thoughts from a perceptible code.
o “Code”
- Perceptible sound
- Writing
- Signs
• Verbal communication has an informative function, made possible by the encoding
and decoding of linguistic meaning.
• Language can indeed be used to convey factual information.
This function can be described as:
• 1. Representational: describe things or states of affairs, report or record events
― make statements that can be judged true or false.
• 2. Persuasive: persuade someone to think, believe, decide, accept something;
try to influence someone’s attitude towards something.
• 3. Instrumental / performative: use language not only to say something, but
also to do something that can result in a new situation; e.g. use formal or ceremonial
language which serves to bring about changes in reality.
• 4. Regulating: regulate / influence someone’s physical, non-linguistic
behaviour.
• 5. Conceptual / denotative: form concepts / mental representations of things,
thus making it possible to refer to (and think about) such things.
• 6. Metalinguistic: refer to and talk about elements of language itself.
• 7. Social / phatic: create, confirm or sever social relationships.
• 8. Expressive / emotive: express emotions, feelings, sensations, etc., or try to
influence those of someone else.
• 9. Aesthetic: create linguistic things that others find beautiful, pleasing,
thought-provoking, interesting, etc.
• 10. Ludic / playful: take part in amusing language games.
, • 11. Identifying / personative: express your identity, e.g. geographical origin,
social group, ethnicity, age, gender, educational level, occupation, beliefs,
idiosyncrasies, etc.
• 12. Questioning: attempt to elicit / get information from someone, typically by
means of questions.
The message model of communication
• Container metaphor – linguistic expressions (words and sentences etc.) are like
containers into which information is packed (encoded) and which can be sent to
someone else and from which the information can be unpacked (decoded) exactly as
it was sent.
• Examples: “Her words carry no meaning” & “I got the message”
• Within the message model, misunderstandings and communication breakdowns can
be ascribed to imperfect, sloppy, careless encoding or decoding.
The problems with the message model
• Besides the representational use of language, verbal communication has several
other functions ― which cannot be accounted for within the Message model.
• Verbal communication involves more than the mere encoding / decoding of
linguistic meaning. Speakers / writers normally “mean” more – and sometimes
something completely different – than what their words and sentences “mean”.
o Distinguish between linguistic meaning, and the speaker’s (or
writer’s) meaning – i.e. what the speaker / writer intends to
communicate with her utterances.
o Linguistic meaning is but a sketch, a bare outline of what the
speaker has in mind and intends to communicate.
o To recover speaker’s intended meaning, the hearer has to make
use of facts / clues / guidelines provided by the linguistic
utterances used by the speaker, and the context in which they
have been used.
Types of Context :
1. Linguistic context
2. Physical context
3. Social context
, Non-communicative uses of language
• Language can also be used non-communicatively, i.e. without the intention to convey
thoughts, ideas, information, feelings, etc. to someone else.
• 1. Compulsion: language use that falls outside the control of the sender;
usually found with people who have a physiological or mental problem, e.g. people
who have become senile or who have suffered a stroke.
• 2. “Practise” function normally found with young children who are in the
process of acquiring a language; language often forms part of a game – used as
“plaything”, similar to physical toys;
in the process the child “practises” his/her linguistic and social skills.
What does it involve knowing a language?
Knowledge of a language
• There are two main types of a knowledge:
o The structure of the language (grammatical knowledge).
o The use of the language (pragmatic knowledge).
Grammatical knowledge
o First component: knowledge of the speech sounds and sound system of the
language - phonetic-phonological knowledge
o knowledge of a (spoken) language includes knowledge of the separate
speech sounds that occur in that language and knowledge of the permissible
sound distribution patterns of that language.
• Separate speech sounds investigated in the broad study area of Phonetics.
o There are three sub-areas
- Articulatory phonetic
- Auditory phonetics
- Acoustic phonetics
