Man Is the animal that speaks, Understanding language is thus the key to understanding man
by
jesspotz (student)
“Man is the animal that speaks. Understanding language is thus the key to understanding man.” – Thomas Szasz.
The well known psychiatrist and intellectual Thomas Szasz stated that “Man is the animal that speaks. Understanding language is thus the key to understanding man.” This quote uproots some important knowledge issues about language, words and the keys to understanding humans that surely need to be analysed in order to figure out to what extent we agree with Szasz and to what extent this is the reality of things. Furthermore, language is used by people in order to communicate with each other, whether it is through verbal ones such as English or non-verbal ones such as brail and sign language. In addition to this, it is important to notice that the two examples of communication given are very different as brail or sign language do not involve any sound but use the senses such as touch and sight. Nonetheless, these languages still allow people to communicate effectively, like verbal communicators, and allow people to convey messages. Equally, it is vital to realise what big assumptions and generalisations are made about language, one of which is that spoken language is the most effective form of communication. Whether this is true or not might be a matter of personal experience and opinion but we can come to some solid conclusions concerning such claims.
The knowledge issue “What is language?” is a very open ended question that can be looked at from multiple angles of examination. Firstly, we must establish a reasonable definition of language itself to avoid later confusion. However, the problem with definitions is that we are only using words to define more words, which causes difficulty in trying to find a good meaning or explanation to refer to. Even so, we can still identify the key characteristics of language which are that it is rule-governed, intended, creative, and open ended. While it is difficult to exactly pin-point the meaning of language, it can be described as a form of communication from one person to another that coherently conveys a message and allows an individual to articulate themselves if not fully, then to a great extent. Moving on, we must realise that language has many forms and is not just verbal or visual, such as speaking and writing. By having such varied forms of language present today, we are able to learn more about other people and study their backgrounds. However, this can also form a barrier to communication. By not knowing other forms and types of languages, we are limiting our ability to communicate effectively with others who do. For example, if there is someone who is going to France for a holiday and can only speak English, then they are most probably going to have a lot of difficulty in interacting with the native people and conveying their message to them. Yet, it is not to say that one must learn every language in the world, for that is very unrealistic and not a solution to such language issues. Nonetheless, learning a second language can really be a major advantage as it gives you another perspective on the ways of communication because you are able to express yourself in more than one language and you can also interact with other people who speak that second language. Defining the boundaries of what language is and isn’t, is important because incorrect use of language can lead to misinterpretation and confusion. When speaking, reading, writing or hearing another language, we must note that there are rules to be followed in order to make sense and these rules are usually the grammar of a language. By having rules in a language, we can deduce that there is a proper structure to it. Another aspect of language is that it is intentional. For example, when you glare at someone, you are angry with them and want them to notice you glaring, because when they do notice, a message will be communicated to the other person that you are glaring at them because you are angry with them. Lastly, with language comes creativity and open-endedness. This is because through language we can account stories that can then become novels and we can extend our imagination by reading non-fiction which allows us to conjure up new images and enjoy the text more because of its imaginative journey along the way. Also, coming back to Szasz’s quote about man, it is clear to see that he has left out the other types of language which also communicate with man, languages such as art or music. Though they may not be very precise, they still manage to convey a lot of information and as it is said in art, a picture paints a thousand words.
