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Language Learning

Using a wide variety of sources that deal with different types of populations, Donna Jo Napoli argues that a specific language mechanism exists for language learning, which is independent of any other type of brain functions. In the book, Language Matters, Napoli begins her argument by citing atypical cases of abnormal language development. First, she discusses the unusual cases of the Wild Boy of Aveyron and the Genie, in which neither were able to develop language, in spite of repeated training. Napoli argues that their failure to develop language in later life suggests that the language mechanism becomes undermined after the critical period (6). At this point, her statement about the language learning mechanism is highly speculative.

Then Napoli widens the scope of her evidence by moving from these highly unique and unusual cases to data of people who suffer from illnesses that cause linguistic damageĆ¹a larger population. According to Napoli, scientific evidence indicates a strong relationship between a specific site of the damage in the brain and the type of language deficits. Specifically, damage to different parts of the brain's left hemisphere will result in an individual's inability to produce language in a specific way (6). Even though Napoli does highlight the relationship between the site of the brain and language pathologies, her evidence is still primarily limited to an atypical population.

It is only when Napoli presents evidence about children who suffer from congenital problems and Specific Language Impairment that her argument becomes more convincing. In these examples, Napoli is able to show that language learning occurs independently of other types of brain functions such as learning in other areas. For example, she talks about children who are able to speak age appropriately, even though they are suffering from retardation due to spina bifuda. Napoli also introduces a population of children wh...

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Language Learning. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 15:23, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1687724.html