Clues from the differences between signed and spoken language.
| Number | 321 |
|---|---|
| Year | 1980 |
| Drawer | 6 |
| Entry Date | 06/15/1999 |
| Authors | Studdert-Kennedy, M., & Lane, H. |
| Contact | |
| Publication | In U. Bellugi & M. Studdert-Kennedy (Eds.), Signed and spoken language: Biological constraints on linguistic form (pp. 29-39). Deerfield Park, FL: Verlag Chemie. |
| url | http://www.haskins.yale.edu/Reprints/HL0321.pdf |
| Abstract | The formational structures of signed & spoken language are compared in terms of their phonemes - or primes - & their features. This leads to the suggestion that the two levels of sublexical structure in both langs provide a kind of impedance match between an open-ended set of meaningful symbols & a limited set of signaling devices; & that while speech draws on a degree of parallel organization to implement a sequential linguistic structure, sign implements a parallel structure by a partially sequential organization of its gestures. Differences seem to arise because the hands have more degrees of motor freedom than the mouth &/or because the spatial patterns available to sight afford a richer simultaneous structure than the temporal patterns available to hearing. |
| Notes |
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