Cognitive Studies: Bulletin of the Japanese Cognitive Science Society
Online ISSN : 1881-5995
Print ISSN : 1341-7924
ISSN-L : 1341-7924
Debate: Symmetry: The Search for the Foundation of Thinking, Language, and Communication
Why Do Linguists Not Show Interest in “Symmetry”?
Tsutomu Sakamoto
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2009 Volume 16 Issue 1 Pages 142-147

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Abstract
Although “symmetry in language” may be related to the origin of the language, many linguists do not seem to show interest in this problem. Why do linguists not show interest in symmetry? There seem to be at least three reasons. (1) Concerning “reference”, there have been many disputes in the philosophy of language. Nowadays, more complex problems than symmetry attract researchers in the field of semantics. (2) Saussure pointed out that the system of language does not concern the symmetry between “thing and name”. (3) For linguists, a more important research theme is the elucidation of the relationships between the elements inside the language structure.
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© 2009 Japanese Cognitive Science Society
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