VINNI NASRUL
SOCIOLINGUISTIC
Questions:
1. What inferences might you want to draw from Sapir's examples about the different cultures that are represented? How confident can you be about these inferences?
2. Language like English makes use of 'natural gender'; German and French employ ' grammatical gender'; and Chinese does without either. What do such facts tell us about the 'world-views' of those who speak English, German, French, and Chinese?
3. Many people in the world are completely bilingual or even multilingual in languages with very different structures. Consider this fact in relation to the Whorfian hypothesis. What are some of the implications? How might you attempt to test these experimentally?
My Answers:
1. The conclusion I can draw is that the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis is a principle and theory which states that there is a strong relationship between language, culture, and the mind of a speaker. Whorf's view of the interdependence of language and thought. The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis also states that a language structure, something that is used continuously, influences the way a person thinks and behaves. Based on the conclusion I believe it is true that through the use of language can change one's perspective of thinking, an educated student who is used to being in an educated environment and culture will always use polite language and his way of thinking will also be smarter.
2. As a matter of fact the use of English in France and Germany proves that there are gender differences between the designations for men and women. Meanwhile, the use of English in China emphasizes the use of equality between men and women when speaking
3.To related with the Whorfian hypothesis, it may be evaluated scientifically by confirming the theory's assertion that "people's thinking are determined by the categories offered by their language." So, whether a person is bilingual or multilingual is decided by the categories offered by their language. Although the structure of the language differs, when someone learns one or two languages, he will be able to absorb it well since it is offered by the language they encounter every day. It is highly feasible for someone to become bilingual or multilingual since their reliance on the language they use determines this. They can't discover huge things in their surroundings until they first master it. That is similar to Whorfian's theory, which states that "the constraints of my language are the limitations of my universe."
