Language Acquisition Essay

It is beyond any doubt that language should be seen as a characteristic feature of the humans. However, there are still competing views on the true nature of it. Some argue that people are genetically predisposed to speaking while others insist that it is a product of nature and learning. Given all available facts, one might assume that the latter view is more correct.

To begin with, one might refer to the phenomenon of feral children to prove that language is the product of nature and learning. If people were genetically predisposed to speaking, then it would have been possible to teach feral children to speak, but so far no successful attempts have been made (Singleton & Ryan, 2004). This means that language is closely related to learning and not genes.

Secondly, children who represent one cultural background can speak a completely different language without an accent if they were brought up in that country. If people were indeed predisposed to speak a particular language, then it would be impossible to get rid of accent even though a person had been brought up in a particular linguistic environment (Perdue & Watorek, 2012).

Finally, the phenomenon of bilingual people shows that it is possible to acquire two languages simultaneously and use them equally proficiently. If people were genetically predisposed, they might be predisposed to a single language, but in reality, it is possible to bring up a person that would speak two and more languages equally well (Clark, 2016). That is why language should be regarded as the product of nature and learning.

Having examined all the points that were mentioned in the paragraphs above, it is clear that language is the product of nature and learning because of the abundance of evidence such as the phenomenon of feral children, lack of accent during first language acquisition, and the existence of bilingual people.

References

Clark, E. V. (2016). First language acquisition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Perdue, C., & Watorek, M. (2012). Comparative perspectives on language acquisition. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.

Singleton, D., & Ryan, L. (2004). Language acquisition: the age factor. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

[Accessed: March 19, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016.

[Accessed: March 19, 2024]

freeessays.club (2016) The terms offer and acceptance [Online].
Available at:

[Accessed: March 19, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 19, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 19, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 19, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 19, 2024]
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