Cognitive Linguistics Croft&Cruse

1. Cognitive Linguistics Croft&Cruse 4: Categories,concepts, and meanings, pt. 1

2. 4.1 Introduction • Functions of conceptual categories: • Facilitate learning over non-identical events • Planning requires generalization across individuals • Communication cannot contain all detail • Economy of knowledge storage and retrieval

3. 4.1 Introduction • Ways to look at categories: • As collections of entities, with central prototypes and peripheral members • How the members of one category differ from those of another category • Level of categorization

4. 4.2 The classical model of category structure • Classical categories • are defined by necessary and sufficient features • have clear, rigid boundaries • have no internal structure

5. 4.2 The classical model of category structure • Q: What are the problems with classical categories?

6. 4.2 The classical model of category structure • Q: What are the problems with classical categories? • A: • many everyday concepts cannot be defined in terms of necessary and sufficient features • category membership is often scalar, not absolute • the boundaries of categories are often “fuzzy”

7. 4.3 The prototype model of category structure • There is an alternative to the classical model that avoids its drawbacks….

8. 4.3.1 Graded centrality • It is easy for people to rate the GOE (goodness-of-example) of certain items in relation to a category, and this correlates with frequency, order of mention/learning, family resemblance, verification speed, and priming top-scorer for VEGETABLE low-scorer for VEGETABLE

9. 4.3.2 The representation of conceptual categories • There are two ways to look at categories: • As a list of properties/features, which are not necessary or sufficient, but which characterize the prototype, which is an idealization of the category • As an organization in terms of similarity to an idealized member [These are very similar approaches and do not have to be distinguished.]

10. 4.3.3 Levels of categorization • The basic level category has properties more salient than either the superordinate or subordinate levels…

11. 4.3.3.1 Basic level categories • Q: What is special about basic level categories (car, apple, dog, knife, table)?

12. 4.3.3.1 Basic level categories • Q: What is special about basic level categories (car, apple, dog, knife, table)? • A: • Most inclusive level with characteristic patterns of behavioral interaction, for which a clear visual image can be formed, at which part-whole information is represented • Level used for everyday neutral reference • Level most rapidly accessed in categorization

14. 4.3.3.2 Superordinate level categories • Q: What do we know about superordinate level categories (vehicle, fruit, furniture)?

15. 4.3.3.2 Superordinate level categories • Q: What do we know about superordinate level categories (vehicle, fruit, furniture)? • A: • within-category resemblance is relatively low • fewer defining attributes • one attribute tends to connect basic-level to superordinate-level categories • superordinate categories are often named with mass nouns and tend to be morphologically complex, whereas basic-level categories are named with count nouns that are morphologically simpler

16. 4.3.3.3 Subordinate level categories • Q: What do we know about subordinate level categories (hatchback, Granny Smith, card table)?

17. 4.3.3.3 Subordinate level categories • Q: What do we know about subordinate level categories (hatchback, Granny Smith, card table)? • A: • less distinct from neighboring categories • not more informative than basic-level • frequently morphologically complex

19. 4.3.4 Shortcomings of prototype theory • Simplistic nature of feature list – cannot account for interaction of factors • Odd number paradox – people will score GOE even if there is a necc&suff criterion (1, 3, 5 are “better examples” of odd number than 135 or 10,975…) • Where do features come from? • Why are some categories mutually exclusive? • Boundaries – where are they and how do they behave?

20. 4.3.5 The frame-based account of prototype effects • Frames, ICMs can guide us toward a better understanding of the structure of cognitive categories.