Sapir Whorf Hypothesis
Autor: Jannisthomas • January 17, 2018 • 1,216 Words (5 Pages) • 826 Views
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After reviewing many different studies on the relationship between language and thought, I have run across a significant amount of criticism directed at the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, particularly the linguistic determinism hypothesis. Nevertheless it is difficult to ignore the findings presented above which openly suggest that there is in fact merit to the linguistic relativity hypothesis. The idea that distinctive native languages shape our perceptions of reality in different ways, and that as a result different language users think differently about the world is quite appealing to me. However we must always question the extent and type of impact that language has on thought and continue to empirically investigate this fascinating idea if we plan on gaining a clearer insight into this complex relationship between language and cognition. Exploring the way in which speakers of different languages mentally represent abstract concepts such as space and time is a great place to start looking for answers to these empirical questions, and one that has proved successful as evident in the studies mentioned above.
Despite the never-ending criticism, I firmly share anthropologist Whorf’s belief that language “is not merely a reproducing instrument for voicing ideas, but is itself a shaper of ideas, the programme and guide for the individual's meaningful activity” (Whorf, 1956, p. 212).
References
Boroditsky, L. (2001). Does language shape thought?: Mandarin and English speakers' conceptions of time. Cognitive psychology, 43(1), 1-22.
Casasanto, D. (2008). Who's afraid of the big bad Whorf? Crosslinguistic differences in temporal language and thought. Language learning, 58(s1), 63-79.
Fuhrman, O., McCormick, K., Chen, E., Jiang, H., Shu, D., Mao, S., & Boroditsky, L. (2011). How linguistic and cultural forces shape conceptions of time: English and Mandarin time in 3D. Cognitive science, 35(7), 1305-1328.
Hickmann, M. (2000). Linguistic relativity and linguistic determinism: some new directions. [Review of the book Rethinking Linguistic Relativity. Studies in the Social and Cultural Foundations of Language, by J.J. Gumperz & S.C. Levinson]. Linguistics, 38, 409-435.
Hömke, P., Majid, A., & Boroditsky, L. (2013). Reversing the direction of time: Does the visibility of spatial representations of time shape temporal focus?. Proceedings of the Master's Program Cognitive Neuroscience, 8(1), 40-54.
Hoosain, R. (1991). Psycholinguistic implications for linguistic relativity: A case study of Chinese. Psychology Press.
Kay, P., & Kempton, W. (1984). What is the Sapir‐Whorf hypothesis?. American Anthropologist, 86(1), 65-79.
Whorf, B. L. (1956). Language, thought and reality. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
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