Language Patterns (Chapter 3)

The morphology rules in this chapter were really challenging to me. I’m starting to get the hang of the prefixes and suffixes, and am curious to talk more in class. The interesting thing to me in this chapter was exploring the patterns in foreign languages.

At first glance of the exercises and before reading the chapter, I thought to myself that there would be no way I would be able to analyze another language (especially ones you don't see everyday like Swedish, Zulu, and Swahili) and break down the words. But once I got started on the exercises, I started to see more and more patterns. I realized it was actually pretty simple (even though I’m still getting the hang of it).

The homework exercises made me realize how similar all languages really are. Then I started to wonder more about the origins of languages (going back to Biblical and ancient times). Not trying to spark a religious debate or anything, but because of the similarities in the morpheme rules in the different languages (like adding a prefix here or a suffix there to make a noun plural or a verb past tense) really solidified my belief that all people are the same, and we’re not all as different as we think. Though each language has its own words and meanings, they have some similar structure. Which leads me to think that humans do have the concept of language pre-wired in their brains, as we discussed in the previous class.

Even though it is hard, I look forward to learning more about morphology. I think knowing how words are formed is really important when it comes to things like grammar and spelling, things that editors deal with on a daily basis. Exploring these concepts will benefit me as an aspiring editor when it comes to the “rules” of language.