Credits: 3 (3-0-0)
Description
The course starts with a central tenet of language from the perspective of generative grammar, which is: recursion. We discuss the definition of recursion, differences between direct and indirect recursion, and its correlates to actual biological processes. We then move on to discuss if the same property defines other communicative systems, including those of non-human primates, insects and birds. Drawing on studies conducted on tamarin monkeys, ants, bees and zebra finches, we try to answer if the structure of the human mind is different from non-human minds, and if so, how. Are computational processes any less or more complex in the two sets of minds under consideration here? Some overarching themes running through the course are: (i) how does the nature-nurture debate play out in human and non-human linguistic systems, (ii) which parameters result from maturational processes that are innately specified, and which parameters are acquired by learning, (iii) whether the mental space is carved into modular compartments, where each module is an adaptive specialization to a particular problem or whether a non-modular mind serves as a general-purpose learning mechanism, (iv) what are the determinants of errors and (v) the constraints on imitation and production of language constructs when placed in contact or non-ideal situations.
Prerequisite Tree
flowchart TD
HSL747-402[HSL747]
HSL747-402 --> HSL541-402[HSL541]
HSL747-402 --> HSL521-402[HSL521]
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