The Role Of Language Essay - 2544 Words

The Role of Language Can contemporary discourse presume a community of interest? In order to answer this question, one is forced to first answer the question, can language be used to reveal anything new? If the answer is yes, then how can it do this and how can we employ it to do this for us. Also, one is forced to ask what is it exactly that we are looking for? Once we’ve found it, how can we use it to improve our present condition? Plato and Descartes both believe that language can indeed improve our conditions through it’s revelation, and both give methods to attain new knowledge. Although vastly differing, in that Descartes builds knowledge from the ground up, while Plato works from a distorted view, and seeks to clarify it, their†¦show more content†¦In Plato’s most recognized work, the Republic, his cave analogy describes a prisoner who has spent all of his life in bondage looking at nothing but shadow puppets on the back of a cave wall. For him, all, which he believes to be true, are the actions and reactions of the shadow puppets. His entire reality is essentially a shrouded image of the truth. Somehow it comes to pass that the prisoner is released from bondage and, for the first time, stands up, exits the cave and sees the light of the sun. The prisoner will gaze on his body and on all things in the suns light and for the first time see the truth of what actually is and realize the falsities with which he has lived for all of his life. In a sense, Plato is using the sun as a metaphor for the focusing lense provided by dialectic. In the prisoner’s case, the sunlight provided the ability to see the incompleteness of his reality. For Plato and Socrates, language enables us to see the incompleteness of our own way of thinking and provides a means with which to fill in the blanks or see things in their completeness. Socrates devised a method of argumentation, now called the Socratic method, in which he uses language in argument to enhance an d expound upon a given definition, and then to amplify and refine what is said until all parties understand and agree. Language, in Protagoras’ view, is nothing more than a tool of power, capable of creatingShow MoreRelatedRole Of Language Teaching And Learning Language1941 Words   |  8 PagesROLE OF CULTURE IN LANGUAGE TEACHING Introduction Language is a means of expression. We express our feelings, emotions, thoughts, needs, desires etc. in words, symbols and gesture which is considered as language. Language can be defined as verbal, physical, biologically innate, and a basic form of communication. Culture is the characteristics of a particular group of people, defined by everything from language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts. Thus culture finds its expression inRead MoreThe Role of Language in Communication Essay781 Words   |  4 PagesThe Role of Language in Communication The role of language is crucial in this process of relationships. Language shapes reality, and it limits what ideas and concepts are available in a particular situation. In all aspects of our lives we engage with, resist, reframe with, the meanings available through language, to give meaning to every aspect of our lives. Ideas and understandingsRead MoreThe Role of Language in Communication and Culture923 Words   |  4 Pagesconcept and theory, Wierzbicka determinedly defended the notion of culture and the necessity of culture theory to clarify different and similar (if any) cultural behavioral and conceptual characteristics of a specific culture. Unlike the definition of language, the term culture is an ambiguous one. On this base, Barron (2003:24) confirms that culture is a notion which does not have undisputed definition. However , there is a wide range of definitions argue that culture refers to everything that humansRead MoreThe Role Of Culture Of Teaching Foreign Languages1518 Words   |  7 Pages The role of culture in teaching foreign languages There are a lot of cultures in the World. All of them have their own values. It is very interesting to note that the culture we belong to affects how we think, interact, communicate and transmit knowledge from generation to generation. The aptitude to ask and answer questions based on our own culture enables the process of making connections across cultures. It is worth pointing out that English teachersRead MoreRole Of English As A Global Language Of Communication998 Words   |  4 PagesWhat is the role of English as a global language of communication? The role of English as a global language in the past, present and future has changed over the year especially in areas such as politics, medicine and law. 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Literacy in the modern world is the ability to read, write, design, speak, listen and view in a way that allows you to communicateRead MoreDiscuss the Roles of Language and Reason in History1695 Words   |  7 PagesTOK- Essay Question 9 â€Å"Discuss the roles of language and reasoning in history† 1451 words Nadia Lotze 000 865-015 Mr Skeoch History is the past written by the present. The very nature of this statement creates the predicament of historical knowledge. The historians of the present are under constant pressure of rapidly changing society; therefore what we discover from the past is dependent on our perceptions that are forever changing. History and historical explanations are deduced and manipulatedRead MoreDiscuss the Roles of Language and Reason in History1311 Words   |  6 Pages Discuss the roles of language and reason in history. History as the area of knowledge is virtually indivisible from language and reasoning. Language is one of the most potent means of interpreting and reporting historical information that is derived from the sources pertinent to the events and occurrences. The sources themselves, in their turn, are frequently presented by the written documents, recorded anecdotal experiences, and works of art, archeologyRead MoreThe Role Of Consciousness And Second Language Learning Essay1624 Words   |  7 PagesNoticing The role of consciousness in learning has been a heavily debated topic. Many researchers have been hesitant to even use the term â€Å"consciousness† when discussing the topic due to its vague nature and its difficulty to operationalize. Schmidt (1992) was one of the first researchers to explore in depth the true relationship of consciousness to second language learning. He operationalized the construct of consciousness under the umbrella term awareness. 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