I find it interesting how Chapters 7 and 8 of H.D. Brown's Principles of Language Learning & Teaching incorporates many psychological factors into the topic. I find the comparison between Noam Chomsky and Dell Hymes's definitions of communicative competence to be very interesting. Hymes defines it as an aspect that enables us to convey and interpret messages and to negotiate meanings interpersonally within specific contexts. Chomsky describes it as a system of linguistic knowledge. Chomsky's definition, although correct, seems more general and vague. Hymes's use of the word interpret is a crucial aspect of communicative competence. Both Chomsky and Hymes rightfully describe competence; however, Chomsky focuses on the linguistic aspects and Hymes focuses on the communicative aspects.
I also enjoyed reading about Halliday's Seven Functions of Language. When I think about why language is used, I think about communicating and conveying information to others. In a sense, conveying information to other is "a way of behaving and making other behave". For example, when you want to start a conversation with someone, you speak or "behave" in a way to get their attention while at the same time making the other person respond accordingly. This article uses words, such as interpret and behave, that reminds me that communication is not the same as language. Communication involves interpreting other and responding in an appropriate manner.
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