为什么要学习语言学（转自董粤章博客）
2011-01-04 22:45阅读：
Why Major in Linguistics?
Monica Macaulay and Kristen Syrett
What is linguistics?
If you are considering a linguistics major, you probably already
know at least something about the field. However, you may find it
hard to answer people who ask you, 'What exactly is linguistics,
and what do linguists do?' They might assume that it means that you
are multilingual. And you may, in fact, be a polyglot, but that's
not what this major is about. Linguistics is, broadly, the
scientific study of language, and many topics are studied under
this umbrella.
At the heart of linguistics is the search for the unconscious
knowledge that humans have about language(s), an understanding of
the structure of language, and knowledge about how languages differ
from each other. What exactly do we mean by this? When you were
born, you were not able to communicate with the adults around you
using their language. But by the time you were five or six, you
were able to produce sentences, understa
nd jokes, make rhymes, and so on. In short, you became a fluent
native speaker. All of this happened before you entered first
grade! (If you studied a foreign language in high school, you know
that learning a language later in life did not go nearly as
smoothly or as quickly.) During those first few years of your life,
you accumulated a wide range of knowledge about language.
Speakers of all languages know a lot about their languages, usually
without knowing that they know it. For example, as a speaker of
American English, you possess knowledge about word order: You
understand that Sarah admires the teacher is grammatical, while
Admires Sarah teacher the is not, and also that The teacher admires
Sarah means something entirely different. You know that when you
ask a yes-no question, you may reverse the order of words at the
beginning of the sentence and that your voice goes up at the end of
the sentence (for example, in Are you going?). However, if you
speak French, you might add est-ce que at the beginning; if you
speak Japanese, you probably add ka at the end; and if you know
American Sign Language, you raise your eyebrows during the
question. In addition, you understand that asking a wh-question
(who, what, where, etc.) calls for a somewhat different strategy
(compare the rising intonation in the question above to the falling
intonation in Where are you going?). You also possess knowledge
about the sounds of your language, e.g. which consonants can go
together in a word. You know that slint could be an English word,
while sbint or srint could not be.
Linguists investigate how linguistic knowledge of this kind is
acquired, how it interacts with other mental processes, how it
varies from person to person and region to region (even within one
language), and how computer programs can model this knowledge. They
study how the structure of language (such as sounds or phrases) can
be represented, and how different components of language interact
with each other (such as intonation and meaning). Linguists work
with consultants who speak different languages, search corpora, and
run carefully designed experiments to answer these questions about
language. (Yes, linguistics is a science!) By now you can see that
linguists may benefit by knowing multiple languages, but you can
see that this is not the full extent of what a linguist does.
What will I study as a linguistics major?
When you choose to major in linguistics, you're choosing a major
that gives you insight into one of the most intriguing aspects of
human knowledge and behavior and at the same time exposes you to
related disciplines. Majoring in linguistics means that you will
learn about many aspects of human language, including the physical
properties and structure of sounds (phonetics and phonology), words
(morphology), sentences (syntax), and meaning (semantics). It can
involve looking at how languages change over time (historical
linguistics); how they vary from situation to situation, group to
group, and place to place (sociolinguistics and dialectology); how
people use language in context (pragmatics); or how people acquire
or learn language (language acquisition). Faculty members in
linguistics programs are experts in at least one (if not several)
of these subfields. Many linguists, in fact, have expertise in
multiple subfields and enjoy collaborating with other linguists
with different backgrounds in order to further scientific
knowledge. Linguistics programs may be organized around different
aspects of linguistics. For example, a program might focus on the
linguistics of a particular group of languages (like Slavic
linguistics); how language is acquired and processed
(psycholinguistics); how language relates to social and cultural
issues, including language learning and teaching (applied
linguistics); or the connections between linguistics and cognitive
science. All of these programs share an interest in the unconscious
knowledge that humans have about the language(s) that they know and
what is possible or impossible in language.
Although linguistics programs in the United States may vary in
their approach, they tend to have similar requirements. Most
linguistics majors are either required or encouraged to have
proficiency in at least one language besides English. This
knowledge helps students understand how languages vary and how the
students' native language fits into a broader picture. Many
linguistics majors spend time studying and/or traveling abroad.
Students are also encouraged to complement their linguistic studies
with courses in related areas (such as psychology, cognitive
science, anthropology, or computer science) to be more well-rounded
and better informed.
What opportunities will I have with a linguistics degree?
In the course of their training, students who major in linguistics
acquire valuable intellectual skills, including analytic reasoning
and argumentation, and learn how to study language scientifically.
This means making insightful observations, formulating and testing
clear hypotheses, making arguments and drawing conclusions, and
communicating findings to a wider community. Linguistics majors are
therefore well equipped for a variety of jobs and graduate-level
programs.
Job Opportunities
A linguistics major provides students with valuable training for
many different kinds of opportunities following graduation. Some
may require additional training or skills, but not all do. Here are
just a few:
Work in the computer industry: Linguists may work on speech
recognition, search engines, and artificial intelligence.
Teach at the university level: A graduate degree in linguistics
allows you to teach in departments such as linguistics, philosophy,
psychology, speech/communication sciences, anthropology, English,
and foreign languages.
Work in education: People with a background in linguistics and
education develop curricula and materials, train teachers, and
design tests and other methods of assessment, especially for
language arts and second language learning. At the university
level, many applied linguists are involved in teacher education and
educational research.
Teach English as a Second Language (ESL) in the United States or
abroad: If you want to teach ESL in the US, you will probably need
additional training in language pedagogy, such as a Masters degree
in Education or TESOL. Many teaching positions abroad require only
an undergraduate degree, but at least some specialized training in
the subject will make you a much more effective teacher.
Linguistics can give you a valuable crosslanguage
perspective.
Work as a translator or interpreter: Skilled translators and
interpreters are needed everywhere, from government to hospitals to
courts of law. For this line of work, a high level of proficiency
in the relevant language(s) is necessary, and specialized training
may be required. Nonetheless, linguistics can help you understand
the issues that arise when a message is communicated from one
language to another.
Work on language documentation or do fieldwork: A number of
projects and institutes around the world are looking for linguists
to work with language consultants to document, analyze, and
preserve languages (many of which are endangered). Some
organizations engage in language-related fieldwork, including
documenting endangered languages, conducting language surveys,
establishing literacy programs, and translating documents of
cultural heritage. This is a great way to interact with speakers of
diverse languages, representing communities around the world.
Teach a foreign language: Your students will benefit from your
knowledge of language structure and your ability to make certain
aspects of the language especially clear. You will need a high
level of proficiency in the relevant language, and you may need
additional training to teach a foreign language.
Work in the publishing industry, as a technical writer, or a
journalist: The verbal skills that linguists develop are ideal for
positions in editing, publishing, and writing.
Work for a testing agency: Linguists help prepare and evaluate
standardized exams and conduct research on assessment issues.
Work with dictionaries (lexicography): Knowledge of phonology,
morphology, historical linguistics, dialectology, and
sociolinguistics is key to becoming a lexicographer.
Become a consultant on language in professions such as law or
medicine: The subfield of forensic linguistics involves studying
the language of legal texts, linguistic aspects of evidence, issues
of voice identification, and so on. Law enforcement agencies such
as the FBI and police departments, law firms, and the courts hire
linguists for these purposes.
Work for a product-naming company: Companies that name products do
extensive linguistic research on the associations that people make
with particular sounds and classes of sounds. A background in
linguistics qualifies you for this line of work.
Work for the government: The federal government hires linguists for
the Foreign Service, the FBI, etc.
Become an actor or train actors: Actors need training in
pronunciation, intonation, and different elements of grammar in
order to sound like real speakers of a language or dialect. They
may even need to know how to make mistakes to sound like an
authentic nonnative speaker.
To enhance your chances of finding a good job after graduation, you
might choose to double-major and make your linguistic work part of
an interdisciplinary program of study. A secondary specialization
in an area such as psychology, computer science, the speech
sciences, education, journalism, philosophy, or a foreign language
complements a linguistics major nicely.
Beyond the Bachelor's Degree
Graduate and professional programs require students to have strong
verbal and analytical skills. A linguistics major will provide you
with solid preparation for such programs. These include:
Professional programs such as law school or library/information
science Clinical programs such as speech and language therapy MA
and PhD programs in fields such as linguistics, cognitive science,
psychology, computer science, anthropology, philosophy,
communication sciences, education, and the study of particular
language(s) TESOL programs and other programs associated with
teaching English to nonnative language users
Additional Resources
The Linguistic Society of America
General information about the field of linguistics, a directory of
linguistics programs in the US, job postings, and additional
resources
The LinguistList
Just about any information on the field that you could possibly
want, including conference listings, job postings, and links to
sites for downloading phonetic fonts
Linguistic Enterprises
For people with linguistics degrees seeking jobs in industry. It is
geared more towards people with degrees beyond the undergraduate
level but can help guide your career planning
Still curious about linguistics but are not ready to become a
linguistics major? Look at an introductory textbook or even enroll
in an introductory-level course in the field. Offered at many
colleges and universities, these courses often satisfy distribution
requirements and are always very interesting. We also encourage you
to talk to a linguist! Faculty members in linguistics departments
would be happy to talk with prospective students and answer
questions about the major and the field.
