Sneha Agarwal

Y9588

Homework: Cognitive Linguists

1. At first one would think that since the bird is in the center of the image, making it the focal point, it is natural to give priority to the bird in the sentence. But, had the bird been where the ledge is and vice versa, we would still have said that that the Indian roller is below the ledge rather than the ledge is above the Indian roller. So, clearly, there is a priority to the bird.

Probably, this has to do with animate and inanimate object distinction. The bird is capable of changing its position in the scene and hence it is more important to specify its position than that of ledge. And, probably this is the reason for figure-ground distinction, too and why the bird is the figure and ledge, the ground.

Both the sentences are equally correct, grammatically. Yet, one is more acceptable. This comes from knowledge of language. So, clearly there is something called Linguistic Evidence, i.e., our language is a reflection of the cognitive structures of our mind.

But, what if we would have been talking about the ledge (although, unlikely)? Then, that would have made the ledge the focus and the sentence would have seemed right in that context.

Hence, rephrasing Coventry, The existence of these contextual and communicative effects highlights the fact that language cannot be treated as an abstract, self-referential symbolic system.

(a.)  Participant 1
  language(s) spoken in first 5 years: hindi

parents mother tongues: sindhi

where they lived the first 5 years, and beyond: Kanpur

schooling in hindi till what class: 8th

	gayA	chalA	paRA	DaalA	uThA
nikal	1	0	0	0	0
keh	1	0	0	1	0
bol	1	0	1	1	1
ro	0	0	1	0	1
has	0	0	1	0	1

Random Examples

परेशानियों से तंग आकर वो रो पड़ा

विचित्र आकृति देखकर हंस पड़ा

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 Participant 2
 language(s) spoken in first 5 years: hindi

parent's mother tongues: hindi

where they lived the first 5 years, and beyond: Agra(->Banares->Delhi)

schooling in hindi till what class: 10th

	gayA	chalA	paRA	DaalA	uThA
nikal	1	0	1	0	0
keh	1	0	0	1	0
bol	1	0	1	0	1
ro	0	0	1	0	1
has	0	0	1	0	0

Random Examples

जैसे ही बारिश रुकी वो घर से निकल पड़ा

अरे ये तुमने क्या कह डाला

(b.) Examples of different LVs

Heavy Verb: Bol

Participant 1

1.	वो अपनी ज़िन्दगी की सारी बाते बोल गया	She said गया was a relatively mild word. Conveys gradual and natural situations.
2.	वो भावुकता में आके अपनी सारी बाते बोल पड़ा	पड़ा is abrupt. Sometimes, even rude.
3.	गुस्से में आके वो बहुत कुछ गलत बोल उठा	उठा made the verb soulful, sentimental.

Participant 2

1.	वो एक सांस में कई बाते बोल गया	She said गया is used for passive situations. More like ordinary and involuntary instances.
2.	वो एकाएक बोल पड़ा	पड़ा depicted rather sudden gestures. More like action-reaction.
3.	आखिरकार वो बोल उठा	उठा made verbs intense, somehow related to letting out of the inner feelings.

(c.) utha must be using an appreciable amount of energy as it gives a very intense quality to the sentences because of its most common usages in phrases like चीख उठा, कराह उठा. It seems to be sort of venting out of pent-up emotions/pain in a sudden manner, as opposed to LV गया, where the transfer of energy seems very gradual.