...does the answers thought in words count?
... :)
2007-01-15 10:30:14 · 6 answers · asked by code2550 2 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
Yes. Because if there is no word for something it is hard to imagine it. Genius does that but the rest of us can't. Japanese people actually see colours differently because their language has words for colours we don't actually have.
2007-01-15 10:34:33 · answer #1 · answered by happyjumpyfrog 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Common confusion; thought conflated with language. We were thinking in representations long before we spoke. You forget sign language, which engages the same area of the brain as spoken language. This strongly suggests that language is the variable predicated on thought and is innately structured.The idea that thought is constrained by language is losing ground rapidly to Chomskyian theory. How would we invent entirely new words if language constrained thought as you suggest.
2007-01-15 11:23:03 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your language certainly would pose a strict limitation to your thoughts if you were incapable of having a thought that could not express in words.
I have yet to encounter even one person who has been in such a situation. Virtually all of us have experiences and ideas which are difficult to describe but which exist in our minds nonetheless. Even the most erudite of master wordsmiths can be heard to complain about their inability to truly capture the complete essence of experiences (though some come close with clever allusion).
Not to mention the fact there do exist people who DO NOT think in words. Some people have described thinking in thought-concepts instead of any language... this has been learned by some polyglots, artists, and others who regularly find themselves 'thinking outside of the box'. Consider, too, that infants can LEARN well before they develop language. They can be observed to be systematic and... well... THINKING. Without any words to think in.
Still, some languages are probably more conducive to certain kinds of thinking than others. In other words, I don't think there's a strict limit, but there are probably costs involved in some languages. The less you have to flail around for concepts, the more time you have to do other things with your mind. Some people have even gone to the trouble of constructing languages to aid cogent and rapid thinking. A most extreme example of this would be the language Ithkuil... which to my knowledge has NO fluent speakers because of its immense complexity.
2007-01-15 10:59:55 · answer #3 · answered by Doctor Why 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
No. I believe we have the capacity to think in any language. After studying Spanish in school for 5 years and then living in Spain, I got to a point where I didnt have to "think" in English, translate it in my mind, then speak it. I understood the language and formulated the reply automatically, in other words, not thinking in English any more. I believe that when one says they are fluent in a language, it includes the concept of thinking in that language, and not simply hearing the words and translating them.
2007-01-15 10:40:18 · answer #4 · answered by reallocojava 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
as for the first part, i sometimes think in English while my mother language is Greek. As for the second part,no..definately not.And as for the third part, yea..lol ;o]
2007-01-15 10:35:17 · answer #5 · answered by kittana! 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No. There is no limit to imagination. What we can concieve, we can do. Ever thought in pictures?
2007-01-15 11:24:42 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋