Grammar assignment 1 Date: 23rd April 2024
Student: Mariela Stronati
1) Consider these two statements: “I learned a new word today.” “I learned a new sentence today.” Do you think the
two statements are equally probable, and if not, why not?
The probability of the two affirmations, "Today I learned a new word" and "Today I learned a new sentence," is not
equal, and this is due to the nature of language acquisition.
As Fromkin explains, "Knowing a language means being able to combine sounds to form words, words to form phrases,
and phrases to form sentences" (Fromkin, 2011). While learning a new word is a common occurrence in language
learning, understanding and learning a new sentence involves more than just acquiring a single word; It is a deeper
understanding of grammar, syntax, and the organization of words to convey meaning.
To sum up, while acquiring new vocabulary is a frequent occurrence in language learning, no matter how many words
you learn, you would not be able to form the simplest sentence if you do not know the grammar, syntax and the
conventions of the language.
2) Relate the situation in the following cartoon to the notions of competence and performance.
In the Tarzan and Jane comic strip, we can clearly see a contrast between Tarzan's competence of language theory and
his practical communication skills or performance.
Let's start with Tarzan's linguistic competence, which refers to his internal understanding of language – the grammar,
vocabulary, and rules he's learned. This is evident when Tarzan thinks about various polite greetings for Jane. His mind
is filled with sophisticated phrases, showcasing his extensive linguistic knowledge and ability to construct complex
sentences.
However, when it comes to real-life interaction, Tarzan's linguistic performance falls short of his competence. Despite
his rich linguistic knowledge, Tarzan's actual communication with Jane is rudimentary, limited to the basic expression:
"Me Tarzan, you Jane." It's as if he forgets all the phrases he had in mind.
Taking everything into consideration, what the comic shows is that knowing a language and using it in real life are two
different things. Even though Tarzan knows all these complex language rules and words, when he has to use them, he
ends up speaking in a much simpler way.
3) “How comes it that human beings, whose contacts with the world are brief and personal and limited, are
nevertheless able to know as much as they do know?” (Bertrand Russell). What would Chomsky reply to this?
According to Chomsky's theory of Universal Grammar, humans are born with an innate linguistic faculty that provides
them with a set of cognitive structures and principles for language acquisition. He would argue that humans possess the
ability to acquire language because they have a biological predisposition to do so, despite the limited and personal
nature of individuals' experiences with the language.
Chomsky suggests that even though people's experiences with language are limited and personal, their natural linguistic
abilities enable them to derive general principles and rules from these interactions with the outside world.
