Lecturer: OFELIA M. SISON
Master of Arts in Education,
Major in English Language Teaching
Panpacific University North Philippines
Urdaneta City, Pangasinan
Professor: MARIA MARTHA MANETTE A. MADRID, Ph. D.
Leonard Bloomfield (1887-1949) is, together
with Edward Sapir, one of the two most prominent
American linguists of the first half of the twentieth
century. His book Language (Bloomfield, 1933)
was the standard introduction to linguistics for
thirty years following its publication. Together with
his students, particularly Bernard Bloch, Zellig
Harris, and Charles Hockett, Bloomfield
established the school of thought that has come to
be known as American structural linguistics, which
dominated the field until the rise of GENERATIVE
GRAMMAR in the 1960s.
Throughout his career, Bloomfield wasconcerned with developing a general andcomprehensive theory of language. Hisfirst formulation (Bloomfield, 1914)embedded that theory within theconceptualist framework of Wilhelm Wundtwhich was the psychology of language.Wundtian theory had connection with thenotion like association and apperceptionas foundation of language.
In the early 1920s, however,Bloomfield abandoned that frameworkin favor of BEHAVIORISM theory oflanguage. In repudiating the existenceof all mentalist constructs, Bloomfieldalso repudiated the classical view thatthe structure of language reflects thestructure of thought. For Bloomfield,the structure of language was thecentral object of linguistic study, andhence of cognitive science..
Bloomfield maintained that all
linguistic structure could be
determined by the application of
analytic procedures starting with
the smallest units which combine
sound (or ‘vocal features’) and
meaning (or ‘stimulus-reaction
features’), called morphemes
(Bloomfield, 1926: 130).
Bloomfield went on to show how to
identify both smaller units (i.e.,
phonemes, defined as minimum units
of ‘distinctive’ vocal features) and
larger ones (words, phrases, and
sentences). Bloomfield developed rich
theories of both MORPHOLOGY and
SYNTAX, much of which was carried
over more or less intact into
generative grammar.
In morphology, Bloomfield paid careful
attention to phonological alternations of
various sorts, which led to the
development of the modern theory of
morphophonemics (see especially
Bloomfield, 1939). In syntax, he laid
the foundations of the theory of
constituent structure, including the
rudiments of xbar- 2 theory.
(Bloomfield, 1933: 194-195)
Bloomfield generated so muchenthusiasm for syntactic analysis thathis students felt that they were doingsyntax for the first time in the history oflinguistics. (Hockett, 1968: 31)Bloomfield did not develop his theoryof SEMANTICS to the same extent ashe did his theories of PHONOLOGY,MORPHOLOGY, and SYNTAX,contenting himself primarily withnaming the semantic contributions ofvarious types of linguistic units.
Ultimately, American structural
linguistics failed not for its
inadequacies in phonology,
morphology, and syntax, but
because behaviorism does not
provide an adequate basis for the
development of a semantic theory
for natural languages.
The theory of behaviorism isderived from a psychologicaltheory founded by J.B. Watson.The followers of this theory areBloomfield, Skinner and severalothers. The main principle of thetheory was mainly on analyzinghuman behaviors in observablestimulus - respond withininteraction.
Behaviorists belief, in language
learning, children obtain the language
through varied babblings and
mutterings which they try to imitate
the words which they heard from the
adults. And as the babbling and any
kind of efforts done by the children
are rewarded, this reward will
reinforce further articulation of
babblings and mutterings.
As the children grow, and reachthe age of 4-6, the babblings andmutterings will develop intoappropriate language to beapplied in social context. And thislanguage will internalize anddevelop into implicitspeech. According to Bloomfield(1933), language learning isperceived as a formation of habits.
The process of learning is the same
as learning other skills. The theory
was derived from the notion of
stimulus and response. The
behaviorist sees that learners are
exposed to numerous stimuli in the
environment and the contexts they
are in. They will respond to the
stimuli. Through repeated
reinforcement, the habits will form.
According to Ellis (1984), behavioristdevelopment was developing inAmerica and Western Europe around1960s in which accepted that thelanguage development was aproduct of stimulus-response. Thestimulus-response then develops inthe process of imitation, repetitionand reinforcement (Harmer, 2001;Lightbown and Spada, 1999;Richards and Rogers, 2001).
So, the second language development at
that time played around this acceptance. But
the truth is, there were hardly any empirical
studies of these in the language
development in the classroom. Behaviorist
was generally extrapolating the general
language learning theory base on the
experiment done onto human in the science
laboratory. This lack of proves was actually
one of a factor which led to the next idea in
language learning led by Chomsky in 1959;
as one of the pioneer in developing the
Innatism.
As conclusion in connection with
Behaviorism, language learning is:
1. A habit formation resembling the
formation of other habits – language is
learned in the way in which other habits
are learned
2. Nothing more than the acquisition of
new behavior or knowledge – takes place
when experience or practice causes a
change in a person’s knowledge or
behavior
3.An external event involving an
observable change in behavior brought
about by the stimuli coming from the
environment – does not involve any
unobservable change in mental
knowledge since behavior can be
explained without the need to consider
internal mental states or consciousness
4. Addressed to only human beings –
acquire a language as discrete units of
habits, independently trained
Structuralism is the idea that many
phenomena do not occur in isolation,
but instead occur in relation to each
other, and that all related phenomena
are part of a whole with a definite, but
not necessarily defined, structure.
This theory can further be explained
through phonology, morphology and
syntax.
Phonology – the study of
sounds in language
Morphology – the study of the
structure of words that will
eventually form/give the
meaning
Syntax – the study of the
interrelations of words in the
sentence
1. Variation of pitch, stress,
vowels and consonants
2. Affixation
Example: fire – singular (object)
fire + s - plural
geese – not plural morpheme
duck+s – plural morpheme
3. Reduplication - repetition
Example: bill – as payment
bill – as word
4. Homomorphy - homonym
Example: project (noun)
project (verb)
5. Suppletion – conjugation
Example: dance, dances,
danced, dancing
6. Associational identification-
relationship lies within the
meaning of words
Example: flash, flicker, flare,
flame
7. Initial and final root-forming
morpheme – resemblance in
sound
Example: glow & glare,
bump & lump
8. Derivational – root word
Example: eat = eater, eatable
1. By modulations of pitch and of stress
(intonation)
Example: He ‘failed com’pletely to make
his meaning clear.
*completely is the attribute of failed
2. By crossreferring constructions
(agreement of subject and predicate)
Example: Many fires break out.
*both fires and break are plural
3. By congruence ( agreement in gender,
number and case)
Example: He takes with him his laptop.
*he, him, his – masculine, singular
4. By government or rection (possessive
case)
Example: her hair, hers is long
5. By word order ( subject followed by
predicate)
Example: Many fires/ break out.
subject predicate
Bloomfieldian theory of language isanalyzed in terms of hierarchy ofsmaller elements: phrases, words andmorphemes. The elements called“forms”, are all said to have“meanings”. The most basic meaningsof a language are those associatedwith morphemes but these can beanalyzed into smaller phonologicalunits, called “phonemes”.
Thus: phonemes combined to form
morphemes. Associated with each
morpheme is a unit of meaning.
Morphemes combine
phonologically and semantically to
form words; words combine
phonologically and semantically to
form phrases. Phrases in turn
combine to make larger forms; the
maximal phrases or a language
are called sentences.
Certainly, if Bloomfieldianstructuralism is, as Chomsky wrotein 1964, “a kind of pre-Darwiniantaxonomy concerned solely withthe collection and classification ofcountless specimens”, it has littleto recommend it. But thischaracterization of the work of theperiod is not accurate.
Indeed it has some features that makeit as attractive theory of linguistic formas generative grammar conceived.What is required is not a disparagingdismissal of Bloomfieldianstructuralism, but a reconstruction of itusing the more sophisticated formalapparatus of logico-mathematicallinguistics that has recently beendeveloped as an adjunct to work ingenerative grammar.
Bloomfield, L., 1914, An Introduction to the Study of Language. New York: Henry Holt.
Bloomfield, L., 1926, ‘A set of postulates for the science of language.’
Language2: 153-164.Reprinted in Hockett, 1970, pp. 128-138.
Bloomfield, L., 1933, Language. New York: Henry Holt.
Bloomfield, L., 1935, ‘Linguistic aspects of science.’
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