Language as a tool of communication and characteristics of language

Language as a tool of communication and characteristics of language:

When we try to define language, the first thing that comes to mind is words. Language is a system of words and sounds to communicate ideas in a meaningful way. By changing the word order in a sentence, one can change its meaning, or even make it meaningless.

Language arose out of the human need to communicate. It is a well-established fact that effective communication is made possible with the help of language. One does not have to be a good linguist in order to acquire good language skills. However, a basic knowledge of the theory of language will certainly help to understand the intricacies of writing and speaking clearly. Though it is accepted that language is universal, it cannot be denied that it is also specific to individuals. Our use of language reflects our personality and gives an insight into our thinking.

People use language to express their experiences. Since language is not exact, many a time it leads to misunderstandings. Being aware of the basic characteristics of language can help us understand this better and communicate more effectively.

Famous linguists Noam Chomsky and Ferdinand de Saussure classified language as

·         Artificial

·         Restricted

·         Abstract

·         Arbitrary

·         Creative

·         Redundant

·         Recursive

Language as artificial:

Language is created by people. It does not exist in isolation or outside the minds of people. It is created by humans based on their needs. Every symbol is attached to a particular thought or thing, called a referent.

Let us take the word AIDS, which did not exist until people were infected by this contagious disease. The process of how this word was created is easy to trace. But this is not always possible. Now, let us consider connotation of the word gay, although it originally meant ‘uninhibited and carefree’, somewhere in the twentieth century it came to mean ‘a homosexual’. Humans attach meanings to words according to needs, and modify these meanings according to changing needs.  This is why we say that the language is artificial.

Language is restricted:

When we think and translate our thoughts into language, some meaning is lost in the process. No symbol or word can transmit our exact perception. That is one reason we sometimes find ourselves saying that we cannot find words to express our feelings. This is because language is restricted.

In other words, it has limitations. To overcome the limiting quality of language, people add meaning to their words with non-verbal cues to explain things better.

Language as abstract:

To be abstract is to generalize, and to generalize is to leave out many details. Language is abstract because it represents generalized ideas of things or thoughts. A word could represent different ideas at different times.  For example, ‘dress’ can represent anything from a frock to a sari.

Abstractness is an important feature of language. It is this feature that makes all generalization possible. When we talk about a number of similar items, such as paper clips, pins, staples, etc., we can group them through abstraction, labeling their common features. This makes it possible to not to constantly redefine the new information we receive.

Language is arbitrary:

How did words acquire their meanings? There is no direct relationship between a word and the idea or object it represents. Language has evolved as a cultural system of agreements in which words represent certain symbols, thoughts, or they may have been onomatopoeic, i.e., the words might have contained sounds similar to the noises they described (ex: buzz, drizzle, murmur). Learning these agreements is part of learning a particular language.

To summarize, language keeps changing to include new concepts, and words can assume a number of specific and arbitrary meanings.

Language is creative:

Language is indeed creative, and its ability to generate so many words every day is a marvel. Every year innumerable words are added to the dictionary. These words can be added by different processes: borrowing – taking over words from other languages such as ‘alcohol’ from Arabic and ‘boss’ from Dutch, constructing portmanteau words – words made by combining the sound and meaning of two different words, ex: Edutainment = education + entertainment, back formation – where a word of one type is reduced to a word of another type, ex: ‘opt’ for option.

Language is redundant:

Whatever language you use, it has the capacity for redundancy or repetition. This may either improve or impede effective communication. A closer look at the sentence, a couple of girls are riding their bicycles indicates that repetition of information makes the meaning clear. On the other hand, excessive and unnecessary repetition may lead to verbosity or wordiness without contributing to the meaning.

Language is recursive:

Recursion is the characteristic of language which enables one to generate any number of sentences using the same basic grammatical templates. It also allows one to express any idea, thought, or feeling with immense freedom. It implies that there is no limit to the potential length of a sentence.

Reference:

Raman, Meenakshi, Sharma, Sangeetha. Technical Communication: Principles And Practice. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2011.