ANTH 252: Language in Human and Non-Human Animals

Reading

Hauser, M. D., Chomsky, N., and Fitch, W. T. (2002) The Faculty of Language: What Is It, Who Has It, and How Did It Evolve? Science, 298:1569–1579. Available here.   Wednesday 20 September.   Presented by Devin.

Assessment #1 Question

What is the essential feature of human language that Hauser, Chomsky, & Fitch claim is not shared by other species? Explain.

Suggestions for Further Research

An earlier version of this course made extensive use of the book Kanzi: The Ape at the Brink of the Human Mind, by Sue Savage-Rumbaugh and Roger Lewin. (I have a copy you can borrow.) Compare the claims made by Savage-Rumbaugh & Lewin in 1994 with those made more recently by Chomsky, Hauser, & Fitch. You may also want to draw on material from the Origins of Language section of the course.