by Talilah C | May 2, 2021 | What is the effect of language on a society?
“Languages are semiotic systems, that is, systems that create meaning (through concepts for instance). These work as patterns of relevance and thus point out what “matters” to the speakers (ex: there exist several spectrums of colours described by different languages). Words and metaphors bear meaning and direct the attention of speakers to precise phenomena. Thus, a language may to a certain extent reflect a society’s practice of the world, as a certain variation of a language may impact and redirect the society’s attentive Energy to other phenomena (ex: gender neutral pronouns). Still, there are no “pure” language in the sense that languages are based on a multiplicity of variations that differ according factors such as geography, identities, social-class, and so on.”
by Martin G | May 2, 2021 | What is the effect of language on a society?
“First. There is no communication without language, even when you move you express something, you have a body language. And you might think, but that’s natural we are talking about the constructed language.
Body language is a construction too, it has some base on nature (you don’t great people hitting them in the face), but kisses have diferent meanings in diferent countries, smiles too, and look into the yes can be a good or bad thing depending where you are. So, there is no way to express anything without a language. Umberto Eco has even said that there is not such a thing like a iconic sign, meaning every sign is related to a learnning process and a society.
Language is the way we organize the world, the way we make sense of anything that happens to us by link it to a category, idea or meaning.
Second. Language is the way we fit in a society, by sharing meanings and a way of think. Let’s think about hierarchy.
In Spanish you have “Usted” for when you talk to a person you think really reserve respect. Que es lo que usted piensa? (What do you think?). Then there is “Tu” that means you have confidence with the person you talk. Tu que piensas?. And then you have “Vos”, that is use in some countries, like Argentina and Colombia, and means you are very confident with someone.
I know there is some form more respectful than “You” in english, but i have hardly ever seen them in use. It seems to me, even when i am not an expert, than english language generally imply higher level of respect than spanish for people you talk with.
And then we got japanesse, that not only ask you to change the way you talk to another depending their rank, but also the way you talk about you (the I) according your position.
Third. Language tell a lot about how we see the world and life. This is a very complex point, but i would like to give just one small example. Even when i am not a feminist, neither a machist, there is a word that say a lot about machism, at least in spanish speakig culture. That word is “puto”.
You might know words in spanish have a feminine way and a male way. So there is “puta” and “puto”. Now “both have a negative connotation, but the denotation of the words differs.
Puto: Is the man who have sex with other men. Sometimes also a coward. But the first meaning is a clear insult and express the way the societies look at gay people. Man shouldn’t have sex with man, that is the idea.
Puta: is the woman who have sex with a lot of men. So, women shouldn’t do that.
This is interesting. Because man who have sex with a lot of women are ok. You are not call puto because of that, you are call puto when you actually don’t have sex with women. Also, it seems lesbianism it is not in the same negative level as homosexuality among men.
Of course, a word it is not enough to analize a society. Don’t ever do that, it is lazy and silly. But i hope this examples give you and idea of all the forces and meanings that are in the work in any language.
Yes, the language rules your thinking, even when you rebel to the meanings the language have, you do with the tools it gave you.”
by Lisa L | May 2, 2021 | What is the effect of language on a society?
“SOCIETY AND LANGUAGE
Society refers to a group of individuals bound by a set of relationships, whether functional or personal, public or private, they generally involve a balance of language.
Within groups, social and language can be interpreted in many situations, ranging from chatter to speech or from advertising pamphlets to literary novels. It is true that the faculty of language is linked to various cerebral centres that command the different organs, but all these centres control only parts of the language, because the synthesis only takes place at the social level of exchange, learning and actual practice of the language. Language is therefore a social function, made possible by biological functioning.
Omnipresent in society, it is elaborated, preserved and modified by social interactions, and constitutes an integral part of collective representations. In the same way, society is conditioned by language, since social communication determines the daily conduct of its members and constitutes the main point of social organization. Language is therefore a social phenomenon which is the indispensable instrument of society and on which it acts continuously. Even if it is the founding phenomenon of society, it sometimes becomes a divisive factor, hence the need for an ethic of communication.
RELATIONSHIP AND QUESTIONING
The links between society and language are very close, it is even difficult to imagine one without the other. While animals have only the voice, human beings have language – some philosophers will say that it is to distinguish between the just and the unjust. Having notions like language and society are what makes a family, a homeland.
The relationship between these two notions is complex and has always been so for decades. Between theories and hypotheses, many intellectuals have asked themselves questions about these existential subjects. For example, the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis tries to explain how language influences the world view. One could also ask the question of what comes first between society or language? Is your worldview influenced by your knowledge of the language or is your language influenced by the culture you live in? Indeed, we have the eternal debate of the chicken or the egg.
REAL-WORLD EXAMPLE
For example, there are many differences between languages in categorizing identical things, like river and river in English they are not identified in the same way as in French for example. For example, when in English we focus on the size of the river to determine if it is a river in France, we focus on the flow of the water to identify which river it will flow into afterwards. But is this due to the different geographical characteristics of each country or is it due to the way words have shaped the way these two peoples perceive water bodies differently?
It would seem that societal factors play a more than an obvious role in our way of speaking, there is one area to study it which is sociolinguistics. Age and gender are considered important factors that can have an impact on language use, but context and circumstances often determine what is or is not appropriate in a conversation.
Sometimes you may notice cultural differences when you are trying to understand your client, for example, and he uses one word rather than another to express a task and you would have used a different word to translate the same thing.
LANGUAGE DEFINES THE WAY OF THINKING
Scientists have conducted various studies on how language influences society, what people think and how they behave. Culture affects the way a person speaks and language is part of the culture.
An American behavioural economist asked whether a person’s ability to save is affected by language. He found that the language gap also shows economic differences. It would appear that people who do not strictly define time in their language, as is the case with Chinese, tend to save more than those who speak languages that distinguish between past, present, and future actions.
The way we interpret the things we feel and hear is influenced by personal experiences, norms, cultural rules, traditions and languages. Thoughts come from words and they initiate behaviour.
INTERNATIONAL LANGUAGES
International communication and global trade are also influenced by languages, to do business effectively in other countries the company must be able to convey messages to its employees and target customers in clear and understandable language. Indeed, all forms of communication must be translated into the local language so that the interpretation is clear. It is also important to adapt its employees to local and corporate culture. This training must be highly personalised according to the experience and culture of the people.
If you really understand a language and the differences it has, you will be better able to understand and discover clues about what constitutes correct and incorrect behaviour for the local culture.
LANGAGE ET COMPORTEMENTS
According to a scientific study, it seems that adults do not realize the impact of their words on children, the younger the child, the greater the effect. Indeed a very young child has no sense of time, denying him or her something could mean a protest through bad behaviour.
As the ability to express oneself in a language develops, the child’s behaviour improves.
A language is a communication tool, it is also very important for showing social behaviour. It is used to interact with the rest of the world and self-regulation of behaviour requires the presence of language. The child learns to use language to influence the behaviour of others and expresses feelings and emotions through language. These are the same rules that also apply to adults.”
Recent Comments