Language Is a System.

 

外语系  孟唯唯

                                       

The Outline:

 

•             What is a language?

•             What is a system?

•             Is language a system?

•             Some properties of a system:

1. The property of being an entirety

2. The property of having a certain level

3. The property of being open

4. The property of having a purpose

5. The property of being steady

6. The property of organizing itself

The conclusion

What is a language?

 

“Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication.”

       —Ronald Wardhangh

 

What is a system?

 

   “System is a set arrangement of things so related or connected as to form a unity or organic whole.”

             ----Webster’s New World Dictionary

 

Is Language a System?

YES!

        

    Language is a system. Because it shares the same properties with system.

Let’s take some properties for example.

 

The Property of Being an Entirety

 

System is an organic whole made up by some elements but its new function is not simply equal to the result of these elements adding together.

Language fits that property of being an organic whole.

   Language is made up of symbols and vocals but language expresses more meanings than symbols and vocals can do.

   For example, some local accents have just vocals but as  language  they express meanings and some gestures have just symbols but as  language they express meanings.

System is an entirety made up by its elements at the same time those elements themselves can be systems.

   Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols while vocals and symbols themselves are both systems.

 

The Property of Having a Certain Level

 

    Among the elements in a system there exists a certain level.

In language there exists level too. Morphemes make up words and words to sentences and sentences to paragraphs.

What’s more, language has a design feature of duality which means the property of having two levels of structures, such that units of the primary level are composed of elements of the secondary level and each of the two levels has its own principles of organization.

 

The Property of Being Open

 

This property means that a system exchanges its elements with its outer surroundings continuously.

   As for a language, it’s obviously that new words keep entering and those old-fashioned words dying.

 

The Property of Having a Purpose

 

This purpose has something to do with the property of being open for once something has a purpose it will try to adopt something beneficial and abandon those which are not.

And language is used for human communication.

 

The Property of Being Steady

 

This property refers to the ability that an open system has to adjust itself to its basic principles under the action of its outside and inner elements.

     In a language, with new and old elements coming and gone, a language tries to keep its logical and grammatical rules steady.

 

The Property of Organizing Itself

 

  This property means that an open system enables itself to rearrange the order in the system when the outside elements come in or the inner elements go out or when some elements deviate from its principles.

The above can also be applied to language. With many elements coming and gone, languages, such as internet language, which accords more with descriptive linguistics than prescriptive linguistics appear. Those languages, often deviate from a language’s normal principles, are also accepted.

From all the above analysis, we can easily see that language fits many of a system’s features and properties.

   So language is a system.