A Dialectic and Materialistic Criticism of Innateness Hypothesis

【作者】 杨松；

【导师】 楚军；

【作者基本信息】 电子科技大学 ， 外国语言学与应用语言学， 2006， 硕士

【摘要】 乔姆斯基的语言天赋论认为,人脑中有一种天生的普遍语法,这一普遍语法存在于人脑中一个叫做语言习得机制的地方。儿童语言中的语法就是来自这一天生的普遍语法,而不是从其周围的语言环境中归纳概括而来。儿童周围的语言环境也是必要的,但其作用仅限于在普遍语法转变为儿童个体语法的过程中起激发作用。乔姆斯基语言天赋论的观点有些违背常理,甚至有些神秘色彩。那么,他为什么要提出这一理论呢?本文认为,首先是由于他没能找到人类语言中语法的现实根源,或者说他知道语法的现实根源但却否认儿童直接从语言中获得语法的可能性;其次是孤立地、静止地、片面地理解儿童语言习得,而不是视之为一个辩证的发展过程,因而难免对儿童语言习得过程中出现的诸多问题困惑不解并进而把这些问题归结到语言的天赋性上去;另外,受西方哲学唯理主义思想传统的影响也是重要原因之一。本文主要围绕这三个方面进行论证,首先揭示语言产生过程中语法的原型即现实根源并进而论证儿童语言习得过程中语法的现实根源;其次以儿童语言习得过程是一个辩证的发展过程这一观点来解释儿童语言习得过程中出现的令乔姆斯基困惑的主要问题,并据此逐一批驳乔姆斯基语言天赋论的主要论据,试图对儿童语言习得过程做出新的解释;最后以西方哲学唯理主义的思想传统作参照来看待乔姆斯基的语言天赋论,力图找出其提出这一理论的深层次思想根源。更多还原

【Abstract】 In Chomsky’s Innateness Hypothesis, it is held that, in human brain, there is innate Universal Grammar which lies in one part of human brain called language acquisition device (LAD). Children’s grammar is from the innate Universal Grammar instead of from the real language around them by induction or generalization. The real language around them is also necessary, but what role they play in children’s language acquisition is no more than a trigger of the transformation from the innate Universal Grammar to their particular grammar.Chomsky’s Innateness Hypothesis sounds unreasonable and even mystic. Then why does Chomsky put forward Innateness Hypothesis? In my view, three reasons can be stated as follows. Firstly, he fails to find out the realistic origin of grammar or he may have found out the realistic origin of grammar, but denies the possibility that children can learn grammar from real language. Secondly, he takes an isolated, static and one-sided view of children’s language acquisition instead of taking it as a dialectical and developmental process, and therefore it is inevitable that he is puzzled about many phenomena arising in children’s language acquisition and attributes them to the innateness of language, i.e. the innate Universal Grammar. Thirdly, Chomsky’s theory is heavily influenced by the traditional western rationalism.This thesis centers on the three respects. Firstly, the prototype or the realistic origin of grammar is revealed in the process of the language formation, and also in the process of children’s language acquisition. Secondly, the phenomena that puzzle Chomsky all the time in children’s language acquisition are explained one by one based on the grounds that children’s language acquisition is a dialectical and developmental process, thus the main arguments that Chomsky uses to support his Innateness Hypothesis are disproved. Thirdly, the deep ideological origin is found out of Chomsky’s Innateness Hypothesis by tracing it back to the traditional western rationalism.更多还原