| Title & Author | Abstract | |
|---|---|---|
| 11(082) | THE ORIGINS OF COMPLEX LANGUAGE
[Oxford University Press 1999, ISBN 0-19-823822-3, 0-19-823821-5] Precis of Carstairs-McCarthy on Language-Origins Andrew Carstairs-McCarthy University of Canterbury Department of Linguistics Private Bag 4800 Christchurch New Zealand a.c-mcc@ling.canterbury.ac.nz |
Abstract:
Some puzzling characteristics of grammar, such as the
sentence/NP distinction and the organization of inflection classes,
may provide clues about its prehistory. When bipedalism led to
changes in the vocal tract that favoured syllabically organized
vocalization, this made possible an increase in vocabulary which in
turn rendered advantageous a reliable syntax, whose source was the
neural mechanism for controlling syllable structure. Several
features of syntax make sense as byproducts of characteristics of
the syllable (for example, grammatical 'subjects' may be byproducts
of onset margins). This scenario is consistent with evidence from
biological anthropology, ape language studies, and brain
neurophysiology.
Keywords: ape, aphasia, brain development, evolution of language, grammar, language, larynx, noun phrase, predication, principle of contrast, reference, sentence, sign language, speech, syllable, truth |
| 11(114) | CALLS AREN'T WORDS, SYLLABLES AREN'T SYNTAX
Review of Carstairs-McCarthy on Language-Origins Derek Bickerton University of Hawaii bickertond.@prodigy.net |
Abstract:
Carstairs-McCarthy's (1999, 2000) novel proposal to
account for the evolution of syntax contains too many flaws to win
acceptance. The attempt to derive a presyntactic language from a
primate call system ignores the most crucial distinctions between
the two, while trivializing others. The comparison between
syllabic and syntactic structure hardly works even as an analogy;
it fails as an explanation because it fails to deal with the most
basic properties of syntax, in particular recursion. The supposed
problems that motivated the work large vocabulary size, duality of
patterning, and the NP-S distinction--are not really problems at
all.
Keywords: ape, aphasia, brain development, evolution of language, grammar, language, larynx, noun phrase, predication, principle of contrast, reference, sentence, sign language, speech, syllable, truth |
| 11(115) | LINGUISTICALLY GROUNDED LANGUAGE-EVOLUTION THEORY
Review of Carstairs-McCarthy on Language-Origins Cedric Boeckx Oxford University Press Department of Linguistics University of Connecticut, U-1145 Storrs, CT 06269-1145 (USA) |
Abstract:
I summarize the major conclusions of Carstairs-McCarthy's
1999 book, and show how it differs from other evolutionary accounts
of the human language faculty. On that basis I recommend the book.
I then raise several arguments (commonality vs. influence;
languages without onsets; nature of phonological vs. syntactic
representations) that deserve further discussion in the context of
Carstairs-McCarthy's proposals.
Keywords: ape, aphasia, brain development, evolution of language, grammar, language, larynx, noun phrase, predication, principle of contrast, reference, sentence, sign language, speech, syllable, truth |
| 11(126) | FROM SYLLABLE TO SYNTAX: STRUCTURAL CONTINUITY OR COMMON
COGNITIVE CAUSE? Book Review of Carstairs-McCarthy on Language-Origins Chris Westbury Department of Psychology, P220 Biological Sciences Building University Of Alberta Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2E5 chrisw@ualberta.ca |
Abstract:
In his book, Carstairs-McCarthy (1999, 2000) attempts to
ground language evolution in syllabic structure, by emphasising the
similarities between syllabic and syntactic structure. Syntactic
structure universally instantiates a difference between reference
and truth, which has been much examined in philosophical circles.
Carstairs-McCarthy demonstrates that this universal difference is
not necessary for a workable language, raising the question of why
it should have come to be the linguistic universal that it is,
encoded into the syntax of all languages. His answer to this
question is that the distinction reflects the roots of syntax in
syllabic structure. The argument depends on making a strong analogy
between syllabic and syntactic structures. The problem is that the
simplified syllabic and syntactical structures compared may both
have roots in more general cognitive information-management
principles, weakening the key claim of a direct line of descent
from syllables to syntax. Indeed, Carstairs-McCarthy provides
arguments in favour of this cognitive interpretation. Although
readers may not, therefore, be wholly convinced by the main
argument of this thought-provoking book, they will certainly come
away educated on a wide range of issues relevant to language
structure and evolution.
Keywords: ape, aphasia, brain development, evolution of language, grammar, language, larynx, noun phrase, predication, principle of contrast, reference, sentence, sign language, speech, syllable, truth |
| 11(127) | THE SYLLABIC ORIGIN OF SYNTAX:
A RESPONSE TO BICKERTON ON LANGUAGE ORIGINS Reply to Bickerton on Carstairs-MaCarthy Language-Origins Andrew Carstairs-McCarthy Department of Linguistics, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand http://www.ling.canterbury.ac.nz/adc-m.html a.c-mcc@ling.canterbury.ac.nz |
Abstract:
Bickerton (2000), reviewing my book The Origins of
Complex Language (1999), accuses me of failing to explain certain
aspects of language, especially recursion, and of offering
explanations for other aspects of language that really do not need
any explanation, notably the syntactic distinction between
sentences and noun phrases. I argue that these criticisms are
misplaced. They reflect partly a misunderstanding of the logic of
my argument and partly a confusion between semantics and syntax.
Keywords: ape, aphasia, brain development, evolution of language, grammar, language, larynx, noun phrase, predication, principle of contrast, reference, sentence, sign language, speech, syllable, truth |
| 12(020) | SYNTAX BEFORE SEMANTICS, STRUCTURE BEFORE CONTENT
Book Review of Carstairs-McCarthy on Language-Origins Daniel D. Hutto Head of Philosophy Department of Humanities University of Hertfordshire Watford Campus, Aldenham, Hertfordshire WD2 8AT England http://www.herts.ac.uk/humanities/philosophy/hum-phil.html phlqddh@herts.ac.uk |
Abstract:
Carstairs-McCarthy's book sets out a bold proposal that
constitutes an exciting challenge to the idea that the development
of modern syntax was driven by the contentful divisions of
language. Instead he posits a physiological cause in order to
explain why the core aspects of modern syntax are as they are. It
is a great virtue of the book that it carefully reviews a vast
interdisciplinary literature encompassing biology, anthropology,
neuroscience and the study of apes to support this startling
hypothesis. Moreover, the author does a good job of raising doubts
about the handful of views that would otherwise contradict it. I
conclude the review by arguing that the hypothesis has merits
beyond its ability to provide potential answers to the main puzzles
raised in the book. Specifically, it fits well with a rejection of
a purely communicative model of language, according to which it
functions simply to provide a public code for the expression of
pre-existent conceptually based: thoughts. In this respect, it is
in line with cutting edge work in cognitive science, concerning the
relation of connectionist models and nonconceptual content, which
suggests that cognitive processes are not initially structured
after the fashion of language. However, I end by sounding a note of
caution about some of the author's wider philosophical
conclusions.
Keywords: ape, aphasia, brain development, evolution of language, grammar, language, larynx, noun phrase, predication, principle of contrast, reference, sentence, sign language, speech, syllable, truth |