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Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis (view source)
Revision as of 15:00, February 27, 2009
, 15:00, February 27, 2009Quote from student term paper - clearer than anything else I've come across on this topic
The '''Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis''' states that [[language]] is not merely a way to express ideas, but that it determines the range of ideas we can have. If there's no word or term for a concept, it's hard even to conceive of it, let alone to communicate it to another person.
The '''Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis''' states that [[language]] is not merely a way to express ideas, but that it determines the range of ideas we can have. If there's no word or term for a concept, it's hard even to conceive of it, let alone to communicate it to another person.
*"... words don't merely match pre-existing things in the world. Rather, they shape and encapsulate ideas about things--how they are categorized (compare dog vs. canine), how we are interacting with them (compare sheep vs. mutton), how the word functions grammatically (compare the noun cow vs. the adjective bovine), and how we wish to represent our attitudes about them (compare critter vs. varmint)." [http://www.ecst.csuchico.edu/~atman/Misc/eskimo-snow-words.html]
*"... words don't merely match pre-existing things in the world. Rather, they shape and encapsulate ideas about things--how they are categorized (compare dog vs. canine), how we are interacting with them (compare sheep vs. mutton), how the word functions grammatically (compare the noun cow vs. the adjective bovine), and how we wish to represent our attitudes about them (compare critter vs. varmint)." [http://www.ecst.csuchico.edu/~atman/Misc/eskimo-snow-words.html]
*Rebecca Ash wrote, "The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis theorizes that [[thought]]s and [[behavior]] are determined (or are at least partially influenced) by language. If true in its strongest sense, the sinister possibility of a culture controlled by [[Newspeak]] or some other language is not just science fiction. Since its inception in the 1920s and 1930s, the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis has caused controversy and spawned research in a variety of disciplines including [[linguistics]], [[psychology]], [[philosophy]], [[anthropology]], and [[education]]. To this day it has not been completely disputed or defended, but has continued to intrigue researchers around the world." [http://www.angelfire.com/journal/worldtour99/sapirwhorf.html]
==Eskimo words for snow==
==Eskimo words for snow==