Module PHIL3061: LANGUAGE AND MIND

Department: Philosophy

PHIL3061: LANGUAGE AND MIND

Prerequisites

• At least one Level 2 module in Philosophy OR in the History and Philosophy of Science and Medicine, OR other appropriate evidence.

Corequisites

• None.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None.

Aims

• To offer a detailed survey over the essentials of human language. The course aims to cover everything a philosopher (or any other interested party) should know about human language, in order to assess its role for human nature and its significance for philosophical inquiry. The course primarily looks at language as an expression of the human mind, covering the aspects that make language unique among animal communication systems, its biological basis and neurological aspects, its social significance, and its embeddedness in the world at large. Continental traditions in thinking about language are dealt with along with the analytic tradition. New focal points, with which we aim to open up the field of the philosophy of language towards the currently highly topical field of biolinguistics, are basic conceptions of the architecture of the human language faculty, and what we know about language evolution.

Content

• Cartesian linguistics (Descartes, Humboldt, Herder, Chomsky)
• Behaviourism and the Chomskyan revolution
• The analytic tradition in the philosophy of language
• The nature of meaning and reference
• Language acquisition: some basic findings
• Language and the brain: some basic findings
• Language evolution: what we know
• Conceptions of the architecture of the language faculty
• Language as a window to the human mind

Learning Outcomes

• By the end of the module students will have knowledge and understanding of some of the central movements and controversies in our recent understanding of language, and of the philosophical standpoints and technical innovations from which they have developed.

• correctly utilise specialist vocabulary
• grasp, analyse, evaluate and deploy subject-specific concepts and arguments
• locate, understand, assess and utilise pertinent philosophical (and, where appropriate, historical) sources
• ability to make first steps in philosophical and interdisciplinary research programs studying the origin and nature of human language.

• express themselves clearly and succinctly in writing
• comprehend complex ideas, propositions and theories
• defend their opinions by reasoned argument
• seek out and identify appropriate sources of evidence and information
• tackle problems in a clear-sighted and logical fashion.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Lectures deliver basic module-specific information, and provide a framework for further study.
• Tutorials provide opportunities for students to test their own understanding of the material studied, and defend and debate different opinions.
• Guided reading provides a structure within which students exercise and extend their abilities to make use of available learning resources.
• The Formative essays provide the opportunity for students to test their knowledge and understanding of the module content, and their ability to present and defend relevant arguments and theories, uninhibited by the need for summative assessment.
• The unseen examination tests students' overall knowledge and understanding of the module content at the end of the module, and their ability to bring it to bear on new problems under pressure of time.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Two essays of 2000 words each

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University