Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Does Language preform Thought?

Gadamer seems to suggest that yes, language preforms thought. He talks about how people are incapable of having thoughts without words. He says "We think with words. To think is to think something with oneself; and to think something with oneself is to say something to oneself" (491). This passage shows that people use language even on the nearly subconscious level and that language seems to be unavoidable. People are born with it and it's a tool that comes naturally to them to use.
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1 comment:

  1. UnknownJuly 18, 2013 at 6:57 PM

    I have to disagree, my dear.

    Culture molds the language, then language affects the tenants and future inheritors of said culture.

    I have to disagree with strong Whorfianism solely because of my own experience with language. As a child, I was able to possess and understand concepts and thoughts without the use of language; but, to be fair, I believe that the sensations I felt from these wordless concepts are in themselves a language.

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