11/2/2016 Language 1
“He who defines the terms wins the argument” 2 1 11/2/2016 What is Language?
Language is a system of symbols
for thinking and communicating.
 Language is a tool we have been using to understand
and develop our thinking. We have been:
 Learning about the thinking of others by reading
 Expressing our own thinking through writing
 Exchanging ideas with others by speaking and listening
 Thought and language can contribute to clear, effective thinking and communication. 3 Language as a Tool Language is a powerful tool:  To Clarify Thinking  For Social Communication  To Influence People 4 2 11/2/2016 Clarify Thinking
 Language represents your thoughts, feelings, and experiences symbolically
“I know what I want to say, but
I just can’t find the right words.”
The relationship between thinking and language is
interactive; both processes are continuously influencing each other in many ways.
Clear and precise language leads to clear and precise thinking. 5 Clarify Thinking Clear Language Clear Thinking Specific Specific Distinct Distinct Precise Precise Accurate Accurate 6 3 11/2/2016 Clarify Thinking  Vague language - using words that are very
imprecise and general. Vague words are words that
lack a clear and distinct meaning.
 A word (or group of words) is vague when its meaning is fuzzy, blurry, or inexact.  Examples:
 I had a nice time yesterday
 That is an interesting book  She is an old person  She is a beautiful girl 7 Clarify Thinking
 Words are vague if they have fuzzy or inexact
boundaries and hence give rise to unclear borderline cases.
 Words are over general if the information they
provide is too broad and unspecific in a given context. Examples: A: B, What is seven plus five B: More than two 8 4 11/2/2016
 Mother: Where are you going?  Teenager: Out
 Mother: When will you be back?  Teenager: later Overgenerality 9 Clarify Thinking
 Ambiguous language - also interfere with the
clear expression of thoughts. An ambiguous word
is a word with more than one (1) meaning that is
open to different interpretations.
 A word or expression is ambiguous if it has two or
more distinct meanings and the context does not
make clear which meaning is intended. Examples: Sometimes words  She went to the bank. have two meanings  The duck is ready to eat
 Flying planes can be dangerous 10 5 11/2/2016 Clarify Thinking
Here are some rules that can be adopted to achieve clear communication: Rules
1. Tell listeners what you believe they want to hear
2. Don't tell listeners what they already know
3. You should vary the style of your communication,
depending on the knowledge, age and status of your listeners 4. Tell the truth
5. Use a simple straightforward style
6. Utilize manner and context to clarify meaning 11 Types of definitions
 Stipulative definitions: create a new words or
used an old word in an entirely new way. 12 6 11/2/2016 Persuasive definitions
 Persuasive definitions: arguer defines a term in
an effort to persuade a reader or listener to
agree with the arguer’s point of view regarding the thing being defined 13 Lexical Definitions
 Lexical Definitions: a word is defined in the way it
is standardly used in the language. The purpose
of a lexical definition is to state the conventional, dictionary meaning of a word. 14 7 11/2/2016 Precising definitions
 A precising definition is intended to make a
vague word more precise so that the word’s
meaning is not left to the interpretation of the reader or listener.
 EX: “A heavy smoker”, for purposes of this
clinical trial, is anyone who smokes more than
twenty-four cigarettes per day. 15 Strategies for defining  Ostensive
Definitions: Simply pointing to, or
demonstrating, the thing being defined.  Enumerative Definitions: providing specific
examples of what the word refers to EX: football player: means
 Definitions by Subclass: A definition by assigns a
meaning to a word by listing subclasses of the
general class to which the word refers.
EX: Mammal means gorilla, horse, lion, whale, and so forth. 16 8 11/2/2016 Strategies for defining
 Etymological definitions: tell what part of
speech a word is, how it is commonly
pronounced, and whence it came. (Etymology = ancestry). EX: Automobile
Auto: from Greek, mean “self”
Mobile: from French, meen “move” 17 Strategies for defining
 Synonymous Definitions: assigns a meaning to a
word by offering a synonym – that is, another
word that has approximately the same meaning as the word being defined.
 Definition by Genus and Difference: assigns a
meaning to a word by identifying a general class
(genus) to which things named by the word
belong and then specifying a differentiating
quality (difference) that distinguishes those things
from all other things in the class. EX: buck means male deer Calf means young cow 18 9 11/2/2016
Rules for constructing good lexical definitions
 Don’t make the definition too broad or too narrow.
EX: A definition of automobile as “ a vehicle with four wheels” : too broad
EX: A definition of sibling as “ brother” : too narrow.
 Convey the essential meaning of the words being defined.
EX: horse: the animal ridden by Napoleon during
the battle of Waterloo: poor definition. 19
Rules for constructing good lexical definitions
 Provide a context for ambiguous words.
 Avoid slanted definitions (biases,
emotionally charged definitions)
 Avoid figurative definitions.
 Avoid needlessly obscure definitions (
include a lot of big words or technique
jargon that readers aren’t likely to understand).
 Avoid circular definitions: 20 10 11/2/2016
The important of precise definitions
 A convincing argument often depends on the clear
and accurate definition of language.
 The failure to define terms carefully can result in a
messy battle with some participants struggling to find
the truth and others fighting to avoid it. 21 Social Communication
 Language is always used in context.
 We should use the language style that is appropriate to the social situation.
 Language styles vary from informal to formal.
Language styles –used in a context. You always
speak with a person in mind, according to the
situation. You may converse differently with friends, colleagues, parents and relatives. 22 11 11/2/2016 Social Communication Remember
 The ability to think critically gives you the
insight and the intellectual ability to:
 Distinguish people’s language use from their individual qualities.
 Correct inaccurate beliefs about people.
 Avoid stereotypical responses. 23 Influence People  The intimate relationship between language and
thinking makes it natural that people use language to
influence the thinking of others.
 Two types of language are often used to promote the
uncritical acceptance of viewpoints:  Euphemistic language  Emotive Language
By developing insight into these language strategies, you will
strengthen your abilities to function as a critical thinker. 24 12 11/2/2016 Influence People
 Euphemistic language - to speak with good
words and involves substituting a more
pleasant way of saying something instead of a blunt way. Examples:
To disguise the unpleasantness of death, we could say:  ‘She passed away’
 ‘She departed this life’ 25 Influence People  Emotive Language - Language that would probably stimulate certain feelings in you.
Language that evokes feelings in others. - The
emotional dimension of language. Example:
What is your immediate reaction to the following words:  Ronaldo  Freedom  Terrorist  Peaceful  Democracy 26 13 11/2/2016 Influence People
 Emotive language often plays a double role – it
not only symbolizes and expresses our feelings but
also arouses or evokes feelings in others (E.g. “ I Love You!”)
 The presence of emotive words is usually a sign
that a personal opinion or evaluation rather than a fact is being stated.
Emotive language usage can be misleading and even dangerous
when speakers do not identify their opinions as opinions because
they want you to treat their judgments as facts. 27 References 14