Language as a social construct

(Video) Dr. Daniel Dor, a linguist, explores facets of most amazing invention humans have created collectively. 'By definition, language is something that is bigger than the individual person. The essence of language is in society - not the brain itself'

Leadel.Net |Published: 06.06.11 , 08:12

VIDEO - Ever feel or get to a point where words just aren't enough? Language, the most amazing invention that humans had created collectively, raises many questions.

Dr. Daniel Dor states that "by definition, language is something that is bigger than the individual person…the essence of language is in society - not the brain itself."

We are engaged in the ever changing dynamics of the language throughout our lives, creating and recreating ourselves and our identities all the while using language as a tool.

Dr. Dor sat down with Leadel as we explored the many facets of language – from its social role to its properties and its relation to the human mind and brain that allow us to communicate as we do.

Dor is a linguist whose research and theory uncover the social constructs of language. In this, Dor challenges Noam Chomsky’s theory of language - the leading linguistic theory of the second part of the 20th century – that explores language as a cognitive capacity.

Led by Intuition away from the norm of the discipline, Dr. Dor found himself in the less explored arena of questions such as what we do with language, how we communicate with language, and what language does for us as communicators. He considers the root causes and answers to these questions crucial in order to understand language.

Dr. Dor's work is inspired, among others, by Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (he refers to Nietzsche as an important friend in his project), the American philosopher John Dewey, and Edward Sapir, whom he considers the greatest linguist of the 20th century. Modern linguistics is the discipline that deals with the enormous complexity of language as an entity.

Reprinted with permission from Leadel.Net