[ACS 106] - Final Exam Guide - Comprehensive Notes fot the exam (91 pages long!)

• School: Ryerson University
• Department: Arts and Contemporary Studies
• Course: ACS 106
• Professor: Jamin Pelkey

Document Summary

What is language? is related to ideology it is a strange mystery, it changes over time (always evolving) There are roughly 7,000 languages in the world some are only spoken by few, some are spoken by millions. The frail bridge that we fling across the chasm of the inexpressible and the incommunicable - matisoff. Links between sound and meaning - harris 1993. Language is a conventional system of signs that allows for the creative communication of meaning - Language may be mysterious and unprecedented, but stopping here would ultimately mean giving up on trying to understand it or appreciate it. Could lead to a sense of cultural superiority. Although truly onomatopoeic words (words that sound like what they represent) seem to be few and far between, there are actually many hidden relationships between sound patterns and meaningful associations. Often called the bow wow theory or the ooh ah theory.