'Language Is Not an Instinct'

Paper Summary:

Is language an instinct? This paper examines Michael Tomasello article, "Language Is Not an Instinct" in which he disagrees with Chomsky's theory of generative grammar. The paper explains Tomasello's argument that language is not an instinct because it has not been studied scientifically and many of the main points required for something to be an instinct do not apply to language.

From the Paper:

"Michael Tomasello proves that language is not an instinct and he offers alternate explanations concerning language. Language is not an instinct because it does not have a set of behavior competencies (Tomasello 1995, 132). It does not have specific expressions nor does it have species-typical sets of expression (Tomasello 1995, 133). Language has thousands of different types of expressions depending on the country, gender, ethnicity, race, etc. "

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• Research Paper # 135865 : "The Psychology of Language"
• Analytical Essay # 142047 : "Gendered Use of Words and Phrases"

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