Re: Why grammar is so complex a subject

Hi!

Gary Shannon <fiziwig@...> writes:
> I think I've finally figured out why grammar is so
> complex. It's because it's an artificial attempt to
> discover "rules" in what is really a monsterous
> collection of exceptions. There ARE no rules; only
> exceptions! ...
Well, I find that too strict, since children do try to find rules when
learning a language.  There's a certain state of language aquisition
when children over-generalise (e.g. make all verbs regular), so some
grammar rules probably do exist in peoples' brains.

Anyway, I basically agree that grammar as used in linguistics is
basically an attempt to find an approximative model for quite a
chaotic system and that it will always be incomplete since natural
language usually cannot be easily described completely by rules.
Still, grammar as a model simplifies handling a language e.g. in
research, and for analysing, comparing and predicting language, some
model, i.e., a grammar is quite handy.

This is of course the same in any science.  Depending on the level of
detail you want to look at, you'll need a most or less detailed model.
Without simplification, you're lost.

>...  Therefore conlangs should not be "designed", they should be
> "used into existence." ...
Hmm?  Why (not)?  They are conlangs.  Of course, you may very well use
a different approach, but since grammar is a model for simplifying the
chaos, it seems like a very feasible approach to describing a lang and
thus, a conlang.

For engelangs, you might in fact have a set of grammar rules without
any exceptions.

Summarising: I basically agree with your analysis of language as a
heap of chaos, but I disagree about some of your conclusions.

**Henrik

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