Language x Communication

What is Language?

"Language is not merely a reproducing instrument for voicing ideas but rather is the shaper of idas...we dissect nature along lines laid down by our native languages"

Even though it is very natural to us, and we use it almost without thinking, language is a very complex concept, for it not only is used to convey ideas and other matters, but it also defined our life in a sense. Event hough we have created language, language is limited by our knowledge and what we have come to know of the world. This leads it to limit the our control over reality, for language in a sense limits our reality and sets boundaries for our mind, for our imagination span can not travel beyond language. It limits the human experience in the sense that we are not able to describe or understand anything perceived beyond our vocabulary span. To be considered language, a set of words or sounds must exist, that convey a meaning that is accepted by all that speak that language. As time progresses, language changes, as does the meaning of things. In the age of the internet for example, shortcuts have evolved and words have gained meanings that did not exist yet, for example cyberspace. Throughout the world civilizations have evolved language as a means of communication, yet they are specific to their own culture often, and clashes with other cultures can lead to misunderstandings, for different languages, have different meanings per se for the same thing. Language at the same time is not a perfect medium of communication due to its manipulative characteristics, vagueness and proneness to being biased, leading it to be a very subjective source of knowledge. Freedom fighter for example, to some represents one that fights for their country and dies for it, yet to others, a more appropriate term to describe the exact same person would be terrorist. Language on its own is a way of knowing, yet we use the other three ways of knowing to gain insight on language. Reason, perception and emotion play a vital role in our use of language. Without these three concepts we would not be able to build a stable foundation for language. When we say the word dog for example, we need reason to understand that something called a dog, assumes the characteristics of a dog, which we have previously perceived in other things called "dogs". Without language, there would be no generalization, and everything would be an individual thing. Everything that surrounds us would not be part of an object, rather its own, completely unique thing. One must differentiate between language and communication and the statement "all language is communication, but not all communication is language"is accurate in this circumstance. Yet, both communication and especially language are rule governed, based on the idea that everybody must be able to understand what is trying to be conveyed. For this to be possible, it all leads back to one idea, general agreement. This is the foundation for language and communication, because otherwise, if there were no agreement on the meanings of words for example, everyone would have their own individual opinion and the transferring of knowledge from one being to the other would not be possible.