Steven Pinker on Language Pragmatics

Summary

This video explores the challenges computers face in understanding language compared to humans, focusing on the branch of linguistics known as pragmatics. Pragmatics involves understanding language in context, using world knowledge and communication expectations. The video highlights the Cooperative Principle, which assumes conversational partners aim for clear and truthful communication. Examples like polite requests and pronoun antecedents illustrate how humans effortlessly use background knowledge to interpret language, a complexity that remains difficult to replicate in machines.

Takeaways

• 🧠 Humans understand language better than computers due to their ability to use context and world knowledge.
• 🗣️ Pragmatics is a branch of linguistics that studies how people understand language in context.
• 🤝 The Cooperative Principle in pragmatics assumes that conversational partners are working together to communicate clearly and truthfully.
• 🍽️ Politeness and indirectness in language are examples of pragmatics, like asking for guacamole indirectly.
• 🤖 Comedies often use the lack of pragmatic understanding in robots for humor, as they may take statements literally.
• 🔍 Understanding language requires finding the antecedents to pronouns, which involves knowledge of human behavior and relationships.
• 🤝 The example of 'I'm leaving you' and 'Who is he now?' illustrates how we use context to understand who 'he' refers to.
• 🧐 Background knowledge about human interactions is crucial for language understanding, which is difficult to program into computers.
• 🎭 Comedies use misunderstandings of language due to a lack of pragmatics to create humorous situations.
• 💡 The script highlights the complexity of programming human-like understanding of language into machines.

Q & A

What is the branch of linguistics that deals with how people understand language in context?

The branch of linguistics that deals with understanding language in context is called pragmatics.

What is the most important principle of pragmatics mentioned in the script?

The most important principle of pragmatics mentioned is the Cooperative Principle, which assumes that conversational partners are working together to communicate truthfully and clearly.

How does the script illustrate the understanding of a polite request in language?

The script illustrates this by using the example of a person saying 'If you could pass the guacamole, that would be awesome,' which is understood as a polite request for the guacamole rather than a literal interpretation.

What is a common comedic device used in relation to pragmatics and robots, as mentioned in the script?

A common comedic device is the absence of pragmatics in robots, leading to literal misunderstandings of context, as exemplified by the robot named H.A.M.E. in the 'Get Smart' situation comedy.

What is the example of pragmatics given in the dialogue between Marsha and John?

In the dialogue, Marsha says 'I'm leaving you,' and John responds with 'Who is he now?' This demonstrates pragmatic understanding as John is able to infer that 'he' refers to Marsha's romantic rival, even though it was not explicitly stated.

Why is it challenging to program computers with the knowledge of pragmatics?

It is challenging because pragmatics involves intricate computations and a vast store of knowledge about human behavior, interactions, and relationships, which is extraordinarily difficult to replicate in a computer program.

How does the script suggest that humans use background knowledge to understand language?

The script suggests that humans use background knowledge about human behavior and relationships to understand language, as demonstrated by the ability to resolve pronouns like 'he' in a dialogue without explicit context.

What is the role of context in language understanding according to the script?

Context plays a crucial role in language understanding, as it allows people to interpret utterances like polite requests and to resolve pronouns correctly, based on their knowledge of the world and expectations about communication.

How does the script differentiate between human and computer understanding of language?

The script differentiates by highlighting that while humans effortlessly deploy knowledge of pragmatics, syntax, and phonology, computers struggle with these aspects due to the complexity of the computations and the need for extensive contextual knowledge.

What does the script imply about the importance of the Cooperative Principle in everyday communication?

The script implies that the Cooperative Principle is fundamental to everyday communication, as it guides people to assume that others are trying to communicate in a clear and truthful manner, which is essential for effective understanding.