During the first half of the 20th century, linguists who theorized about the human ability to speak did so from the behaviourist perspective that prevailed at that time. They therefore held that language learning, like any other kind of learning, could be explained by a succession of trials, errors, and rewards for success. In other words, children learned their mother tongue by simple imitation, listening to and repeating what adults said.
1. Discuss briefly why language cannot be learned through simple imitation.
2. Read the assigned readings on Animal Language and provide 3 characteristics of human language that animal communication systems lack. Provide an example for each different feature to support this claim.
3. In a couple of sentences, give a reason why you agree or disagree that the human language capacity is different from the communication systems used by animals.