: Linguistic Relativism and Linguistic Determinism

Two different languages employ a vision of reality in different ways, all this is due to the fact that both realities are true, it has subjective aspects, it all depends on the focus in which that hypothesis or reality is reflected, in this case we have a linguistic relativity which is that the way of thinking of the speaker and the linguistic determination determines how culture influences the way the speaker constructs knowledge.

Totally, this theory refers that our thoughts create a reality and that precisely with it we can condition our thoughts to improve our reality.

▪ What do you think?
I consider that this type of study is very important since linguistically for the human being it is very useful since language helps us to understand the reality that is in our environment and allows us to communicate with people. In addition, that language has to do with everything we think about since it is related to our environment.

▪ Are you convinced by this experiment and its explanation?
This type of experiment is important to identify the influence that the language has on a person, and I consider that it is much easier for anyone when there is a word in the language to be able to name exactly the color or the exact word in this case. that we are referring to.

By Kelly Yohana Barrera Gomez
What do you think?
I agree with what is posed with relativism and determinism, it has happened to me that the place I live is not where I come from (although it is the same country), and for me, some words do not have as strong a meaning as it has for the people here, It is because of the context, the culture and its way of perceiving things, for me language do modify my perception of things.

▪ Are you convinced by this experiment and its explanation?
Yes, I would like to know more about this subject, I feel that although language changes my way of thinking does not prevent me from dialogue and understanding another language or a second language, but I do firmly believe that it is necessary to carry out a process of cultural immersion and to know very well the place of the second language you are learning, know and recognize contexts and customs in order to be more assertive in the process of learning and even teaching that second language.

Angélica Julieth Usma Ariza:                 ▪ What do you think?                        Ans.: I think that the experiment was made in order to understand in a deep way the linguistic relativism and linguistic determinism, the English speakers don’t have a distinction between light blue and dark blue, thus, it’s more difficult to identify them, while the Russian speakers have the distinction between those terms, so they can’t avoid this difference. In short, this would lead to it being embedded more strongly in the conceptual system of a Russian speaker than of an English speaker.     
▪ Are you convinced by this experiment and its explanation? Ans.: Yes, I am. Actually, I think the experiment was really interesting and it helped to verify the structures of the language, it also rectifies the Whorfian ideas, as the linguistic system can embed habits of understanding in our brains.    
        

In our language, because it´s a multicultural country, there are words that are used in one region but that in another can be a “bad word”, sometimes passing for bad manners. I don´t have in mind at this time a word that may have had experience of this. There is the name of a special bread that is used in Bogotá and in Neiva it is a bad word that is rarely used.

 

If it was a difficulty since in my concept that word is used in a very vulgar way and trying to explain the person. But the context of the words and the culture must be taken into account.

 

The truth in this case, especially since I´m in another region, I must ask and inquire more about the use that is given to this word. It was something curious that he taught me that I must take into account the context and the culture in which I find myself, since they can be misinterpreted and their use cumbersome.

Angélica Julieth Usma Ariza
-What experiences have you had of type-token mismatches, where someone else’s understanding of a concept hasn’t aligned with your own?
Ans.: Especially in Spanish, I have had many type-token mismatches, I remember that a friend from Cali told me “Mis amigos y yo haremos una torta”, in my city we use the word “torta” to talk about a cake, but he used that word to talk about a meeting, so the difference between the signifier was really big. Furthermore, between English and Spanish there are similar words but with a different signifier.

▪ Was this a difficulty in communicating concepts across different languages, or in the same language?
Ans.: Yes, it was. Because the other person is misunderstanding your words, so it generates confusion and chaos. It’s important to clarify the words used in the conversation, just as a precaution and to anticipate possible misunderstandings.

▪ How did you resolve this? What changed, and for whom?
Ans.: In these cases, I try to ask the most, if I don’t understand something I just ask it, and they are always willing to answer and clarify all of my doubts. Moreover, I study the culture of anglophone countries in order to avoid type-token mismatches.

▪ How is the ‘type-token relationship’ useful in helping us to communicate with each other?
Ans.: When a word is delimited, its meanings are also limited, so it is much easier to memorize and when talking to someone, this "list" of possible meanings can be used, thus facilitating assertive communication.

By Kelly Yohana Barrera

What experiences have you had of token-like misalignments, where someone else’s understanding of a concept has not aligned with their own?
Several, as I mentioned before I live in a different place from where I am, in my city I understand the word "Pan" as a different pot, from other heavy and deep material, here for them is "paila" And for me the paila is where you can fry different types of food like stews or prepare eggs, they are special for that and they are not deep as the pan, so I told someone pass me the paila and passed me a pan; various situations like this I have lived.

Was this a difficulty in communicating concepts through different languages, or in the same language?
The same language, Spanish.

How did they solve this? The truth is that I adopted the meaning and adapted to what a certain word means to them. 
What changed and for whom? My way of seeing everything, I know that here the paila is a frying pan, things changed for me.

How is the token-like relationship useful to help us communicate with each other?
Because we relate that word to its context and this is a plus to interpret what they tell me and understand it.

Everything starts from the reality of each individual and how he/she perceives his/her reality, that is where the point of analysis of concepts is, how a word can be related to what surrounds us, objects, movements, gestures and others, which encode, that is why it is very important in our first years of life to work on knowledge through the association of concepts.

In this case it seems perfect to me, acts such as addressing our pets, living beings, who feel and react to situations, but are not thinking beings.

Significant Act: The sounds we use to call them or the name we use to address them.

The Meaning: The mental information received by the individual, who reacts to it.

According to Saussure the two parts of a sign are the signified and the signifier, the signifier is the set of codes issued by a third party, to refer to said concepts.

The Signified: It is the information that is persisted from those codes emitted by a third party, since it has been able to relate to its environment.

By Kelly Yohana Barrera
Thinking about the idea of semantic space, can you think of similar examples of how the space is divided differently across languages that you know?
An example could be: "Doctor" this word we associate with hospital, sick, nurses etc. Or when we say "Farm" we think of sheep, chickens, pigs etc.

▪ According to Saussure, what are the two parts of a sign? How do they differ?
The parts of the language sign are: Signifier and signified
-  The symbol we use to refer to the concept in the world. (signifier)
-  The concept itself. (signified)

Angélica Julieth Usma Ariza
* Thinking about the idea of semantic space, can you think of similar examples of how the space is divided differently across languages that you know?
Ans.: Yes, for instance, in French they use “bonjour” to say “buenos días” y “buenas tardes”, but in Spanish we have two different ways to say it. It’s not only a different word, but also a different concept.
▪ According to Saussure, what are the two parts of a sign? How do they differ?
Signifiant (signifier) and signifié (signified) are the two parts of a sing, signifier refers to a symbol, and signified refers to the concept, for example, the word “book”, the signifier is the strings of sounds you use to say “book”, and the signified is the diagram of the book, it’s what you imagine when you think in a book.

Socio-linguistic variation attributes to the cultural differences of each region, using language as a source for the general study of culture.

Language determines thought, that is to say that we think according to the categories that we recognize in our thinking and that are related to the context of daily life, which feed our language and language.

According to the theory of Benjamin Lee Whorf, a scholar of languages, after his research on the auto Aztec language, known as Hopi, from which a linguistic line, known as linguistic relativity, emerges, teaches us that language does condition our thinking, but more than that, thinking conditions our language, because everything that surrounds us creates a reality, which is reflected in our language, creates a reality, which is reflected through the act of speech, using terms and codes already established by members of our social group, which allows us to relate in different social environments that share the same reality, which makes us understand the way they see the world and why they refer to certain contexts of life with a language they share with each other; This makes us think that for speakers of different languages it is of great importance to understand the culture, to induce the knowledge of the language, understanding its reality and context.

One of the hypotheses against it is that it limits the possibility of understanding a language because the information to be given is not clear and may fall into misunderstandings altering the meaning to be transmitted.

As a hypothesis in favor is that, to understand a language other than our own, we must find that there is a linguistic relativity, which we must examine to understand and comprehend the world of each person, this shows us how the speakers of a language think, how they address things, with what words, intonation and action, this will help us to get closer to the reality of the native speaker.

With respect to the reading and research on language control, I realize that all the pieces fit perfectly, because this theory not only shows us a philosophical point of view of the subject, but it confirms truths that have been in our environment, but mental blindness has not let us see, by this I mean that culture modifies our way of thinking and therefore our language, or that our language feeds on information collected by the surrounding environment, creating new linguistic codes every time your mind and culture renews its information.

For me, as a future teacher and professional in the area of language, I am very connected to the educational and communication environment, which requires me to have assertive communication tools with society, this information is of vital importance when learning new languages not only from other countries and continents, but also the languages of the different tribes and ethnic groups of our country.

 

By Kelly Yohana Barrera
How much does language shape the way we think?
It influences a lot, since our language is always related to the context in which we live, even traditions, customs, socioeconomic strata, all these factors are thought modifiers.
▪ What do you think might be the arguments for and against this?
In favor, that in a certain way language also gives identity, you can identify someone by their speech, their way of thinking or speaking you realize where a certain person is, On the other hand, the disadvantage is that we may become confused or misunderstood because of differences in thinking and different interpretations.
▪ What is your viewpoint?
I believe that differences affect our communication with others, however it is not impossible to understand or communicate with others, this leads me to think that to really learn a second language, I need to be immersed in their culture.

Angélica Julieth Usma Ariza
 How much does language shape the way we think?
Language is too important in our lives, we use it at every moment and it greatly shapes our way of thinking, that is why in places where they speak different languages, they also have different culture and according to Benjamin's theory to learn a language as well it is easier to get involved with culture, because that different way of communicating will always affect our thinking.
▪ What do you think might be the arguments for and against this?
I think that just as the colleague Nina said, the fact that there is so much difference in languages and cultures makes it more difficult to understand the terms used in a conversation, so it would be necessary to adjust our own thinking to that of the other person and that way they can be better understood.

What is your viewpoint?
As I said before, it is necessary to know well the other cultures and the way in which the language has appropriated the same linguistic customs, is the way in which it can be communicated.