Potfolio LInguistic Linguistic Port | Page 8

Communication We should first distinguish between specifically communicative signals and those which may be unintentionally informative signals. Someone listening to you may become informed about you through a number of signals that you have not intentionally sent. Shemay note that you have a cold (you sneezed), that you aren’t at ease (you shifted around in your seat), that you are disorganized (non- matching socks) and that you are from somewhere else (you have a strange accent). So, when we talk about distinctions between human language and animal communication, we are considering both in terms of their potential as a means of intentional communication.