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- Volume 3, Issue, 1976
Historiographia Linguistica - Volume 3, Issue 3, 1976
Volume 3, Issue 3, 1976
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The Semantic Theory of James Harris: A Study of Hermes (1751)
Author(s): Joseph L. Subbiondopp.: 275–291 (17)More LessSUMMARYAlthough the semantic theory proposed by Harris in Hermes (1751) was not well received in 18th-century England and has been generally neglected by scholars ever since, it is certainly deserving of our attention because it is a perceptive analysis of the logico-semantic structure of language. In the tradition of philosophical or universal grammar, Harris argued that the subject matter of the linguist should be the conceptual level or the deep structure of language rather than the utterance or the surface structure. Therefore, Harris reasoned that an adequate explanation of meaning required a description of the relationship of language and thought. Furthermore, since he recognized that the study of language was necessary for the advancement of learning, which he considered to be the essence of science, he regarded the limits of 18th-century science too narrow in that they excluded semantics. Harris' theory advanced that an analysis of the sentence, the basis of the synthesis of the mind and language, was crucial to a semantic theory. Since the number of utterances is infinite, Harris attempted to discover a finite and universal set of psychological principles which he believed generated sentences. Although he concluded that a notion of general and particular ideas would ultimately explain verbal communication, he hoped that identifying the source of these ideas would be the work of future scholars.RESUMEBien que la theorie semantique proposee par James Harris (1709-80) dans Hermes (1751) n'ait pas ete bien reÇue au XVIIIe siecle en Angleterre, et meme ait ete en general negligee par les specialistes jusque la, elle merite certainement notre attention en tant qu'analyse perceptive de la structure logique ou semantique du langage. Se situant dans la tradition de la grammaire universelle ou philosophique, Harris soutenait que l'objet d'etude du linguiste devait etre le niveau conceptuel, autrement dit la structure profonde du langage plutot que son expression orale ou structure superficielle. Cependant, Harris demontrait qu'une explication convenable du processus de signification necessitait une description des relations existant entre le langage et la pensee, et meme, dans la mesure ou il reconnaissait que l'etude du langage etait necessaire pour le progres de l'ensignement (qu'il considerait comme etant la science essentielle), il indiquait que les limites de la science du XVIIIe siecle etaient trop etroites en ce qu'elles excluaient la semantique. La theorie de Harris a mis en evidence qu'une analyse de la phrase — ce fondement de la synthese de la pensee et du langage — etait essentielle a une theorie semantique. C'est parce que les possibilites d'expression orale sont infinies que Harris a tente de decouvrir un nombre fini et universel de principes psychologiques dont il pensait qu'ils engen-draient les phrases. Bien qu'il ait conclu qu'une connaissance des idees generates et particulieres put en definitive expliquer la communication ver-bale, il esperait que l'identification de I'origine de ces idees serait la tache des specialistes des genérations futures.
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Samuel Greene: The First Transformationalist?
Author(s): Alan M. Perlmanpp.: 293–314 (22)More LessSUMMARYIn his studies of the structure of the English language, Samuel Green, a 19th-century grammarian and educator, made extensive use of paraphrase as a descriptive device. This paper argues that in doing so, Greene anticipated some of the methods and concepts of early transformational theory — and even some of the transformations themselves. It first presents a short history of the concept "transformation", then discusses the transformations in four of Greene's works. Greene's use of transformations follows plausibly from his view of language, as is shown by excerpts from the prefaces to his books. Greene's status as a transformationalist is then reconsidered with reference to the characteristics of transformations as inferred in the early part of this paper. Comparisons with other 19th- and early 20th-century grammarians demonstrate that Greene was unusual in his concern for underlying meaning and in his use of process in linguistic description.RESUMEDans ses etudes sur la structure de la langue anglaise, Samuel Greene, un grammairien et pedagogue du XIXe siècle, fit un emploi intensif de la paraphrase en tant que moyen descriptif. Cet article montre que Greene, en agissant de cette facon, annoncait quelques-uns des concepts et des methodes des debuts de la theorie transformationnelle — et meme quelques-unes des transformations elles-memes. II donne d'abord un apercu de revolution du concept de 'transformation', examine ensuite les transformations telles qu'elles apparaissent dans quatre ouvrages de Greene. L'utili-sation que Greene fait des transformations decoule logiquement de ses idees sur le langage, comme le demontrent des extraits des prefaces de ses livres. L'appartenance de Greene a la famille des transformationalistes est alors revue a la lumiere des caracteristiques des transformations, telles qu'analysees au debut de cet article. La comparaison avec les autres grammairiens du XIXe et du XXe siecle etablit la position originale de Greene dans son utilisation de la notion de signification implicite et des procédures de description linguistique.
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Langue and Parole Since Saussure
Author(s): John Hewsonpp.: 315–348 (34)More LessSUMMARYIt is not possible and in fact not necessary to review everything that has been written since the publication of Saussure's Cours de linguistique generale concerning the languejparole diachotomy. What is attempted in the present article is first of all a concrete analogy for langue and parole, so that these two notions, which have been so often misunderstood, can be presented in as concrete a manner as possible, and secondly to follow certain interesting developments of the basic Saussurian notions. The concrete analogy which is used is that of the child's construction set, such as a Meccano set for example. The set itself is an analogy for langue, and the models, such as planes, cars, machines, etc., that the child makes are a model for parole or discourse. This concrete analogy also serves to illuminate 'the infinite use of finite means', the finite means being langue, and the infinite use parole. Next an examination ismade of certain of the Saussurean notions that have provoked discussion over the years:(1) langue as a pure form; (2) psychologism; (3) the sociological notions; (4) synchrony as static linguistics. Subsequent to (4) the notions of process and generation are examined, and this leads first of all to a critical examination of the terms competence and performance, along with their underlying notions, and then to a discussion of the psychomechanics of Gustave Guillaume. It is pointed out that Guillaume's theory is an interesting development' of the Saussurian notions and that some of the criticisms by Wunderli in HL 1:1/1974 are based upon a fundamental misapprehension of the notion of parole in Guillaume.RESUMEII est impossible et peu necessaire de passer en revue tout ce qu'on a ecrit depuis le CLG de Saussure sur les notions de langue et parole. Tout ce qu'on essaie ici, c'est de presenter ces deux notions, si mal comprises pour la plupart, d'une maniere aussi concrete que possible, et de suivre quelques developpements interessants des notions de base qu'on trouve chez Saussure. L'analogie concrete dont on se sert est celle d'un jouet d'enfant: un jeu de Meccano, un necessaire de construction (=langue) dont les petits garçons se servent pour construire des modeles d'avions, d'autos, de machines, etc. (Ces modèles=parole, discours). C'est de cette facon qu'on arrive a repre-senter concretement "l'utilisation infinie (parole, discours) des moyens finis (langue)". Ensuite, on examine quelques aspects des notions saussurien-nes qui ont fait couler de l'encre: (1) la langue comme forme pure; (2) le psychologisme; (3) les relations sociologiques; (4) la synchronic comme statisme. A partir de (4) on examine les notions de processus et degeneration, ce qui mene d'abord a un examen critique des termes competence/ performance et de leurs notions soujacentes, et ensuite a une discussion de la psychomecanique de Gustave Guillaume. On signale que la theorie de Guil-laume est un developpement interessant des notions saussuriennes, et que quelques critiques de Wunderli dans HL 1:1/1974 sont basees sur une meprise fondamentale de la notion de parole chez Guillaume.
Volumes & issues
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Volume 50 (2023)
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Volume 49 (2022)
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Volume 48 (2021)
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Volume 47 (2020)
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Volume 46 (2019)
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Volume 45 (2018)
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Volume 44 (2017)
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Volume 43 (2016)
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Volume 42 (2015)
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Volume 41 (2014)
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Volume 40 (2013)
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Volume 39 (2012)
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Volume 38 (2011)
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Volume 37 (2010)
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Volume 36 (2009)
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Volume 35 (2008)
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Volume 34 (2007)
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Volume 33 (2006)
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Volume 32 (2005)
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Volume 31 (2004)
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Volume 30 (2003)
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Volume 29 (2002)
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Volume 28 (2001)
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Volume 27 (2000)
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Volume 26 (1999)
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Volume 25 (1998)
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Volume 24 (1997)
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Volume 23 (1996)
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Volume 22 (1995)
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Volume 21 (1994)
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Volume 20 (1993)
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Volume 19 (1992)
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Volume 18 (1991)
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Volume 17 (1990)
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Volume 16 (1989)
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Volume 15 (1988)
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Volume 14 (1987)
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Volume 13 (1986)
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Volume 12 (1985)
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Volume 11 (1984)
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Volume 10 (1983)
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Volume 9 (1982)
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Volume 8 (1981)
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Volume 7 (1980)
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Volume 6 (1979)
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Volume 5 (1978)
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Volume 4 (1977)
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Volume 3 (1976)
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Volume 2 (1975)
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Volume 1 (1974)
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