Honors Courses in Linguistics

Two Honors courses will be offered in linguistics during Fall 2014. These descriptions are from previous Honors offerings of the courses, so some details may change.

LING 1010-025: Language and Mind

This course is an introduction to the scientific study of human language. Two fundamental questions will drive the discussion in the course – what exactly do we “know” when we know our native language, and how exactly did we come to know it? After an introduction to these questions, as they are relevant to both spoken and sign languages, we will explore linguistic theory, by introducing the tools that are required for linguistic analysis of sound patterns (phonology), word formation (morphology), sentence structure (syntax), sentence meaning (truth-conditional semantics), and meaning in context (pragmatics). The linguistic theory will also be applied in discussions of language acquisition. Throughout discussion of these various topics, students will be asked to examine and reflect upon the question of what language can tell us about the human mind. (CA 1)

LING 2010Q-004: The Science of Linguistics

An introduction to the methods and major findings of linguistic research as applied to the sound systems of languages and the structure and meaning of words and sentences. Topics may include morphology, phonetics, phonology, syntax, semantics, variation, pragmatics, and language acquisition. (CA3, Q)