Teleology & evolution: Vocal cord development (Introduction)

by dhw, Tuesday, December 20, 2016, 12:55 (2690 days ago) @ David Turell

DAVID: We are in agreement. Of course sounds with meaning, words, come first.

dhw: You are agreeing with the exact opposite of what I have written. The object or thought comes first, and someone invents a word to describe it. Only after its invention does it become part of our thinking.

DAVID: Objects certainly come first, and are given sounds to describe them. A thought like 'let us walk over there' has a more complex beginning. Each part of the thought has to have words developed to get rid of gesturing.

The fact that some thoughts are more complex than others does not mean that the invention of the words precedes the thought!

DAVID: I'm sure as you must think that the need for meaningful sounds created the drive for words, using the new larger brain provided by evolution. Brain first, new words next.

I don’t understand your syntax, but yes, I believe the need for meaningful sounds to express each thought/object/perception/suggestion/decision etc. created the drive for words. And yes, I believe humans use their brain, just as our fellow animals do. And yes, without a brain, humans would not be able to think the thoughts that require the sounds out of which humans have made words. How does this support your view that the sounds/words were invented before the objects/thoughts they describe?