Noam in a Nutshell

Noam Chomsky is known for many things, but his contributions to the fields of linguistics and cognitive science are ones that people should pay most attention to.

In the 1950’s, Chomsky challenged the behaviorists, led by B.F. Skinner, on their explanation of first language acquisition. The behaviorist explanation, in brief, was that toddlers babble and try to imitate language in their environment. When they produce recognizable language, experienced language speakers praise them and encourage them to do more of the same. When they make errors or fail to produce recognizable language, they are ignored or discouraged from repeating the sounds they have made. This dynamic of experimentation by the toddler and feedback by experienced speakers results, according to the behaviorists, in increasing proficiency over time.

Chomsky argued that toddlers display, at various stages of development, vastly more linguistic knowledge than their example set would predict. That is, toddlers seem to know much more about language than what can be observed in the surrounding samples. Additionally, they make errors that seem to stem from the inappropriate application of rules rather than mistaken imitation.

Chomsky concluded that toddlers are not imitating experienced language users in their environment, but exhibiting knowledge that they are born with. This rationalist explanation of language acquisition has had profound implications for the study of all areas of human cognition.

Additionally, Chomsky argues that all human languages currently in use share so many structural characteristics that they should be considered variations on a single language. This insight inspired him to posit that all humans have a specific area of their brain devoted to the acquisition and production of language.

The deeper implications of Chomsky’s insights and research are that language is not an invention of humans any more than legs are; it is a manifestation of the physical evolution of our brain.

I cannot say whether all of Chomsky’s insights correspond to truths about our nature and heritage, but they have had wide-ranging effects on our linguistics, philosophy, pedagogy, and cognitive science.