On the acquisition and the creative aspect of language: Noam Chomsky's answers to Plato’s and Descartes’s problems

Authors

  • Caroline Toni Foppa Universidade de Passo Fundo

Keywords:

language acquisition, creative aspect of language, generative grammar

Abstract

This study intends to do a reading of what Noam Chomsky called the Plato’s Problem and the Descartes’s Problem. The first seeks to answer the question about how it is possible for adult human beings to possess such a complex and rich knowledge of the language system, since their contact with the world can be considered limited and the initial stimulus they receive during language acquisition are so poor; and the second is related to the creative aspect of language, which allows the elaboration of an infinite number of sentences from a finite number of elements and structures.

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Author Biography

Caroline Toni Foppa, Universidade de Passo Fundo

Jornalista, professora de língua inglesa no Programa de Línguas Estrangeiras da Universidade de Caxias do SUl.

Published

2011-11-25

How to Cite

Foppa, C. T. (2011). On the acquisition and the creative aspect of language: Noam Chomsky’s answers to Plato’s and Descartes’s problems. Letrônica, 4(2), 94–103. Retrieved from https://revistaseletronicas.pucrs.br/index.php/letronica/article/view/8355