All of the Other Ways of Knowing Are Controlled by Language.¡¨ What Does This Statement Mean and Do You Think It Is a Fair Representation of the Relationship Between Perception, Emotion, Reason and Language?
Language is such a universal phenomenon in human society. Whenever we write or speak, we use it; whenever we make a promise or ask a question, we use it. In the statement ¡§All of the other ways of knowing are controlled by language¡¨, language is defined as ¡§words¡¨ and this ¡§control¡¨ can be defined as ¡§dominate¡¨. Then this saying seems not so fair to represent the relationship between the four ways of knowing. It is more sensible to say language gives some support or limit to our reason¡Aperception and emotion. It may influence them, but not only one way ¡V the four ways of knowing interact with each other.
The function of language is particularly relevant in reason. We should believe our application of reason is within our mind before we express it into words. Most natural science is called logic facts and we often use the name of theories to represent our reason instead of explaining the essence in details. For example, if your hand pushes against the edge of a desk, the desk pushes against your hand. Probably we will tell others this phenomenon is because ¡§Newton¡¦s third law of motion¡¨ but won¡¦t explain the content of this theory word by word. In this case, language has no meaning itself, but it is more like a symbol to represent reason. Another example is ¡§Chaos Theory¡¨. Ten years ago, Chaos is just a simple English word, but as Chaos theory become part of modern science, people easily associate the idea of ¡¥finding the order in random data¡¦ when they see the word ¡§Chaos¡¨. However, reason requires precision. Scientists use scientific language to give strict definition of a theory before they name it. Newton¡¦s third law of motion states: ¡§Whenever one object exerts a force on a second object, the second exerts an equal and opposite force on the first.¡¨ (Isaac Newton 1687) People must have the sense of reaction before this theory is built, but it needs a medium to become verbalized and communicated in order to evaluate its validity.
The function of language is particularly relevant in reason. We should believe our application of reason is within our mind before we express it into words. Most natural science is called logic facts and we often use the name of theories to represent our reason instead of explaining the essence in details. For example, if your hand pushes against the edge of a desk, the desk pushes against your hand. Probably we will tell others this phenomenon is because ¡§Newton¡¦s third law of motion¡¨ but won¡¦t explain the content of this theory word by word. In this case, language has no meaning itself, but it is more like a symbol to represent reason. Another example is ¡§Chaos Theory¡¨. Ten years ago, Chaos is just a simple English word, but as Chaos theory become part of modern science, people easily associate the idea of ¡¥finding the order in random data¡¦ when they see the word ¡§Chaos¡¨. However, reason requires precision. Scientists use scientific language to give strict definition of a theory before they name it. Newton¡¦s third law of motion states: ¡§Whenever one object exerts a force on a second object, the second exerts an equal and opposite force on the first.¡¨ (Isaac Newton 1687) People must have the sense of reaction before this theory is built, but it needs a medium to become verbalized and communicated in order to evaluate its validity.
References: „« Isaac Newton and Andrew Motte (Translator), 1999 ¡¥Newton¡¦s third law of motion¡¦ The principia, University of California Press. „« James Conachy ¡¥Japanese history textbook provokes sharp controversy¡¦ 7/7/2001 . (3/4/2004) „« Martin Luther King, 28/3/1963 ¡¥I have a dream¡¦, delivered on the steps at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. . (10/4/2004) Bibliography: „« Cashdan and Elizabeth Grugeon, 1972 Language in education The Open University Press. „« Carissa, J. Wells ¡¥The perception of Dominance in Nonverbal Behavior¡¦ 4/22/2003 . (10/4/2004) „« Gentner, D. and Ratsman, M. J. 1991, Language and social influences London: Cambridge University Press. „« G. Lee Bowie, Meredith W. Michaels and Robert C. Solomon, 1998 ¡¥Does language make me think the way I do?¡¦ in Twenty Questions¡Xand introduction to philosophy 4th Edi, Harcourt College Publishers pp. 271-319