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Lecture Four: Approaches To The Study of Semantics

This document outlines four major approaches to the study of semantics: traditional semantics associated with philosophers like Plato and Aristotle who studied the nature of language; behavioural semantics influenced by psychologists like Watson and Skinner which links meaning to observable behavior and situations; structural semantics developed by Saussure which analyzes the sense relations between words; and generative semantics associated with Chomsky which holds that language users can generate an infinite number of sentences from a finite set of rules. The document also provides objectives and examples to illustrate each approach.

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Jana Wael
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3K views

Lecture Four: Approaches To The Study of Semantics

This document outlines four major approaches to the study of semantics: traditional semantics associated with philosophers like Plato and Aristotle who studied the nature of language; behavioural semantics influenced by psychologists like Watson and Skinner which links meaning to observable behavior and situations; structural semantics developed by Saussure which analyzes the sense relations between words; and generative semantics associated with Chomsky which holds that language users can generate an infinite number of sentences from a finite set of rules. The document also provides objectives and examples to illustrate each approach.

Uploaded by

Jana Wael
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Lecture Four

APPROACHES TO THE STUDY OF


SEMANTICS
SEMANTICS
COURSE CODE: ENG 943

COURSE TITLE: SEMANTICS

Course Teacher
Dr Wael As-Sawi
Al-Imam Mohammed bin Saud Islamic University
The Content
 1.0 Introduction
 2.0 Objectives
 3.0Main Content
 3.1 Traditional Semantics
 3.2 Behavioural Semantics
 3.3 Structural Semantics
 3.4 Generative Semantics
 4.0 Conclusion
 5.0 Summary
 6.0Tutor-Marked Assignment
 7.0 References
1.0 INTRODUCTION
 The study of meaning in language has been of interest to
both the linguist and the philosopher.
 There have been different perspectives to the study of
meaning.
 Different approaches to the study of semantics have
emerged.
 In this Lecture, we shall focus on some of the approaches to
the study of semantics.
 The focus will be on four major approaches: traditional,
behavioural, structural and generative perspectives.
2.0 OBJECTIVES
 At the end of this Lecture, you should be able to:

 highlight different approaches to the study of semantics.


 point out the merits and demerits of each of the approaches.
3.1 TRADITIONAL SEMANTICS
 Traditional semantics is associated with such great
philosophers as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle.
 Their focus was on the nature of human language itself.
 These philosophers were into two – the naturalists and the
nurturists.
 The naturalists saw language as God-given.
 Man should concern himself with merely observing and
describing the rules of language.
 The Greek language was perceived to be the chosen language
upon which all other languages should be based.
 Later, Latin became the focus of philosophical analysis.
3.1 TRADITIONAL SEMANTICS
 The nurturists viewed language as a social property common
to a speech community.
 Languagewas therefore perceived to be man’s creation for
communication.
 Thus, in spite of difference in languages, the uniting point
is that they are all for communication.
 Traditional semantics was also concerned with the
relationship between form and meaning.
 The major ideas in traditional semantics are reference,
concepts, truth conditions, and so on.
3.2 BEHAVIOURAL SEMANTICS

 Thisapproach has been influenced by the works of Watson


Bloomfield and Skinner.
 It relies on observables and records of utterances.
 The observables and records are linked to their relationships
with the immediate situations that produce them.
 To the behaviourist, there is no belief in concept and ideas.
 As a result, there is no room for introspection as a means of
obtaining valid information.
3.2 BEHAVIOURAL SEMANTICS

 This theory has a psychological dimension.


 According to this theory, human and animal behaviour is
identical.
 Experiencescoming through the senses are the major sources
of knowledge.
 There are universal laws governing every situation.
 The external environment is perceived to be the major
stimulus to all human utterances.
 This theory reduces meaning to observable entities.
3.2 BEHAVIOURAL SEMANTICS

 It also stresses nurture rather than nature.


 Thus,the physical environment is perceived to contribute to
meaning rather than the internal thought processes.
 Thus, it tends to lend meaning to experimental explanation.
 It has been criticised for its rejection of introspection,
concepts and ideas.
3.3 STRUCTURAL SEMANTICS
 The father of this approach is Ferdinand de Saussure.
 This approach considers the structures and systems in
language.
 Emphasis is on the process of segmenting and classifying the
features of utterances.
 The emphasis is on the analysis of sense relations that connect
words and meaning.
3.3 STRUCTURAL SEMANTICS
 Sense is an expression of the system of semantic relationships
a given word keeps with other expressions in a given language.
 This relationship is usually paradigmatic in terms of similarity
and dissimilarity.
 The relationship of similarity occurs as synonymy,
 The relationship of dissimilarity is referred to as antonymy.
3.4 GENERATIVE SEMANTICS
 Noam Chomsky is the father of generative grammar.
 According to this approach, knowledge of language is
generated in the mind.
A language user has a finite set of rules from which he can
generate an infinite number of sentences.
 This power of generations is facilitated by the power of
transformational rules.
3.4 GENERATIVE SEMANTICS
 At the beginning of this theory, there was the assertion that
syntax was autonomous and independent of semantics.
 Later, Chomsky pointed out that the semantic component
specifies the rules necessary for the interpretation of deep
structures.
 This observation enhanced the semantic representation of
sentences.
 Deep structures specify the original meaning of sentences
before the application of transformations.
3.4 GENERATIVE SEMANTICS
 There was the immediate problem of explaining the meaning
of multiple paraphrases from a single deep structure.
 Thus,generative semantics would be concerned with sentence
meaning and interpretation.
 This will require the interpretation of functional roles in
sentences.
3.4 GENERATIVE SEMANTICS
 The semantic component has been presented as being partially
dependent on syntax.
 This produces a relationship between grammar and meaning.
 Thedeep structure determines how sentence parts combine to
make meaning for the whole.
 The syntactic component is the generative source of grammar.
 Grammar is the rules of language organisation including
meaning.
SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE

List the different approaches to the study


of semantics.
State the contribution of the naturalists
and the nurturists.
.
4.0 CONCLUSION
We have observed the progression in the development of
semantic thought.
We have noted the positive relationship between semantics
and other components of the language system.
Syntax provides the basis for the structure of the sentence.
Semantics holds the key to meaning.
5.0 SUMMARY
In this lecture, you have learnt that:
 The approaches of the study of semantics include the
traditional, the behavioural, the structural and the generative.
 The traditional approach was related to the early philosophers,
 The behavioural approach was more concerned with
psychology.
 The structural approach emphasised the sense relations
between words.
 The generative approach depended on the deep structures of
sentences for meaning.
 It would be possible to identify the essential ingredients of
these approaches to the study of semantics.
6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENT
1. Discuss the contributions of the traditionalists to the

development of semantics.

2. Explore how generative grammar has featured in the

study of semantics.
7.0 REFERENCES

Barnwell, K. (1980). Introduction to semantics and translation.


Summer Institute of Linguistics.

Chomsky, N. (1965). Aspects of the Theory of Syntax.


Cambridge: M.I.T. Press.

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