Introduction

Mary Elizabeth Lowe
English 1101
Hughes
10/1/2009

Language is a vital quality in humanity which conveys love and joy, hate and fear as well as an endless sphere of thoughts and emotions. One pressing question though, is how does this instrument called language come to be acquired so naturally in human beings? The possession of language uniquely distinguishes humans from all other species but how this superior mechanism is attained is surrounded in great debate. One explanation was spoken by Pinker as he said, “Language is a complex, specialized skill, which develops in a child spontaneously without conscious effort or formal instruction”
(Pinker, 3). An equally authoritative outlook states, “It is utterly implausible to suggest that imitation of parents has nothing whatever to do with the acquisition of language” ( Dalrymple, 3).While a number of individuals believe that language is either biological or learned, a more logical conclusion is a blend of both inheritance and learning. A biological neural program in each human being’s head is an innate essential for future language; however, it is equally vital to hear people speak in order to learn language and reach one’s linguistic potential.