Figurative Language, Language Disorders, and Language(s) Evolution

Benítez‐Burraco, Antonio

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01713

Cited by 6 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 20 publications

(21 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…These findings can be ascribed to a partial inhibition (ASD) or disinhibition (SZ) of cross-modality connections necessary for metaphorical language, with milder manifestations of the latter condition conferring some adaptive advantages. In fact, as discussed in Benítez-Burraco [78], the problems that the affected individuals exhibit as well with literal meanings might also result in part from the same altered pattern of inhibition/disinhibition, considering the fuzzy boundaries between figurative and non-figurative language, with the same basic cognitive mechanisms (such as metaphorization or metonymization) being involved in both domains. Ultimately, as discussed in the previous section, the affected mechanisms boil down to our species-specific enhanced ability for cross-modal associations.…”

Section: Cross-modality and Aggression: Two Dimensions Impaired In Disorders Implicating Problems With Languagementioning

confidence: 99%

Language evolution: examining the link between cross-modality and aggression through the lens of disorders

Benítez‐Burraco

Progovac

2021

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

We demonstrate how two linguistic phenomena, figurative language (implicating cross-modality) and derogatory language (implicating aggression), both demand a precise degree of (dis)inhibition in the same cortico-subcortical brain circuits, in particular cortico-striatal networks, whose connectivity has been significantly enhanced in recent evolution. We examine four cognitive disorders/conditions that exhibit abnormal patterns of (dis)inhibition in these networks: schizophrenia (SZ), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), synaesthesia and Tourette's syndrome (TS), with the goal of understanding why the two phenomena altered reactive aggression and altered cross-modality cluster together in these disorders. Our proposal is that enhanced cross-modality (necessary to support language, in particular metaphoricity) was a result, partly a side-effect, of self-domestication (SD). SD targeted the taming of reactive aggression, but reactive impulses are controlled by the same cortico-subcortical networks that are implicated in cross-modality. We further add that this biological process of SD did not act alone, but was engaged in an intense feedback loop with the cultural emergence of early forms of language/grammar, whose high degree of raw metaphoricity and verbal aggression also contributed to increased brain connectivity and cortical control. Consequently, in conjunction with linguistic expressions serving as approximations/‘fossils’ of the earliest stages of language, these cognitive disorders/conditions serve as confident proxies of brain changes in language evolution, helping us reconstruct certain crucial aspects of early prehistoric languages and cognition, as well as shed new light on the nature of the disorders. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Reconstructing prehistoric languages’.

show abstract

Section: Cross-modality and Aggression: Two Dimensions Impaired In Disorders Implicating Problems With Languagementioning

confidence: 99%

Language evolution: examining the link between cross-modality and aggression through the lens of disorders

Benítez‐Burraco

Progovac

2021

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The reason is the robust link that exists between evolution and abnormal development, with recently evolved aspects of the human phenotype being more susceptible to developmental damage because of their reduced resilience (see Toro et al., 2010, for discussion regarding autism; see Benítez‐Burraco & Boeckx, 2014, for further arguments for using disorders as proxies). In fact, most, if not all, cognitive disorders entailing abnormal patterns of brain development and organization, as well as abnormal patterns of social functions, also exhibit problems with figurative language and language use in general (see Benítez‐Burraco, 2017b, for discussion). Importantly for our view here, they also tend to show abnormal management of aggression and, more generally, altered features of self‐domestication (e.g., Benítez‐Burraco, Lattanzi, & Murphy, 2016, 2017).…”

Section: Corroborating Evidence For the Model: Cognitive Disordersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human Self‐Domestication and the Evolution of Pragmatics

2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

As proposed for the emergence of modern languages, we argue that modern uses of languages (pragmatics) also evolved gradually in our species under the effects of human self‐domestication, with three key aspects involved in a complex feedback loop: (a) a reduction in reactive aggression, (b) the sophistication of language structure (with emerging grammars initially facilitating the transition from physical aggression to verbal aggression); and (c) the potentiation of pragmatic principles governing conversation, including, but not limited to, turn‐taking and inferential abilities. Our core hypothesis is that the reduction in reactive aggression, one of the key factors in self‐domestication processes, enabled us to fully exploit our cognitive and interactional potential as applied to linguistic exchanges, and ultimately to evolve a specific form of communication governed by persuasive reciprocity—a trait of human conversation characterized by both competition and cooperation. In turn, both early crude forms of language, well suited for verbal aggression/insult, and later more sophisticated forms of language, well suited for persuasive reciprocity, significantly contributed to the resolution and reduction of (physical) aggression, thus having a return effect on the self‐domestication processes. Supporting evidence for our proposal, as well as grounds for further testing, comes mainly from the consideration of cognitive disorders, which typically simultaneously present abnormal features of self‐domestication (including aggressive behavior) and problems with pragmatics and social functioning. While various approaches to language evolution typically reduce it to a single factor, our approach considers language evolution as a multifactorial process, with each player acting upon the other, engaging in an intense mutually reinforcing feedback loop. Moreover, we see language evolution as a gradual process, continuous with the pre‐linguistic cognitive abilities, which were engaged in a positive feedback loop with linguistic innovations, and where gene‐culture co‐evolution and cultural niche construction were the main driving forces.

show abstract

Proverbs as indicators of proficiency for art-generating AI

Fernández

2023

Digital Scholarship in the Humanities

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Art generated by Artificial Intelligence (AI) is currently having great repercussion online. The reason for this is the fact that it allows people without creative talent to produce outstanding works by just typing in the description of what they want to illustrate. However, the appearance of this technology has also caused some discomfort among artists and graphic designers, who see their craft threatened by a service that is available to anyone free of charge. In this article, the capability of some of these platforms to process figurative language will be assessed with the help of five well-known proverbs found in almost identical terms across a number of Western languages. These proverbs were used as the prompts on five of the most popular AI art generators accessible at present. After analyzing the results, our experiment concludes that AI evidences significant deficiencies in the processing of proverbs and, therefore, of figurative language. Consequently, AI does not seem able to substitute human agency completely in artistic creation yet. This exposes an aspect that needs improvement not just for the creative applications of AI but for other applications that it may have in the future. To achieve this, disciplines such as psycholinguistics should be integrated into the teams that develop AI.

show abstract

Figurative Language, Language Disorders, and Language(s) Evolution

Cited by 6 publications

References 20 publications

Language evolution: examining the link between cross-modality and aggression through the lens of disorders

Language evolution: examining the link between cross-modality and aggression through the lens of disorders

Human Self‐Domestication and the Evolution of Pragmatics

Proverbs as indicators of proficiency for art-generating AI

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About