Chapter 12
Language and the brain
description
Language is brain stuff--not tongue, lip,
ear, or hand stuff. The language organ
is the mind. More specifically, the
language faculty seems to be located in
certain areas of the left hemispheric
cortex in most healthy adults. A special
branch of linguistics, called
neurolinguistics, studies the physical
structure of the brain as it relates to
language production and
comprehension.
reflections
Many people assume the physical
basis of language lies in the lips, the
tongue, or the ear. But deaf and
mute people can also possess
language fully. People who have no
capacity to use their vocal cords
may still be able to comprehend
language and use its written
forms. And human sign language,
which is based on visible gesture
rather than the creation of sound
waves, is an infinitely creative
Structure of the human brain. The
system just like spoken forms of
human brain displays a number of
language. But the basis of sign
physiological and structural
language is not in the hand, just as
characteristics that must be understood spoken language is not based in the
before beginning a discussion of the
lips or tongue. There are many
brain as language organ. First, the
examples of aphasics who lose both
cerebrum, consisting of a cortex (the
the ability to write as well as to
outer layer) and a subcortex, is also
express themselves using sign-
divided into two hemispheres joined by
language, yet they never lose
a membrane called the corpus callosum. manual dexterity in other tasks,
There are a few points which must be
such as sipping with a straw or tying
made about the functioning of these two their shoes.
cerebral hemispheres.