GRADE: A

Human Knowledge Acquisition

Thought Paper

Foresight is the first characteristic Jacob Bronowski gives as a difference between human communication and animal communication in his book The Origins of Knowledge and Imagination. This ability that humans have, to plan ahead and therefore be prepared for the future, is also an important ability for students in a new environment to utilize. Bronowski mentions four aspects (including foresight) of human communication that set it apart from animal communication. These four facets can also be seen on a more personal level as important concepts for students to understand and make use of while learning. I think that these four ideas are especially interesting in their distinction between animal and human communication. Although it is somewhat unclear what the actual depth of animal communication is, the differences between the two styles of communication is evident. I find it interesting to look at different animal communication techniques in order to understand more about human communication techniques and furthermore the emotions of both animals and humans.

Foresight, the "prolongation of reference", internalization, and stratification are these four features that Bronowski discusses as communicative techniques which distinguish humans from animals. The idea of ‘prolongation of reference’, "the ability to use language so that it applies not only to what is going on now but to what went on or to what will go on," (Bronowski pp.34) combined with foresight, gives people a perspective while communicating. Learning from the past and planning for the future, is not only important for humans to understand in order to communicate and survive, but it is also an important idea in terms of studying. In order to study efficiently one must be aware of time (time management) and have foresight to plan ahead. Having a concept of place in time is also an aspect that is important for communication and learning. In order to learn well one must understand the past (possibly by looking at past mistakes) and plan for the future.

"The third feature that is unique to human speech is internalization . . . The internalization of language is a human phenomenon of profound importance." (pp. 34) Bronowski’s idea of internalization, or the ability to think to oneself, is in my mind one of the most important aspects of human communicative skills. This ability to internalize coincides with Bronowski’s example of the ability for humans to pause and think after an action has occurred, as opposed to the animals’ inability to do so. Internalization is also an important technique used almost unconsciously while doing any kind of studying, or ever more broadly any kind of reading. One would not be able to learn at all without being able to internalize and think for oneself. The very process of writing this paper is done by using internalization.

Bronowski’s fourth point of unique human communicative skills "is that gift linguists usually call the productivity or generativity of language." (pp.36)

This concept is another that can also be looked at in terms of learning. To master language, or more generally, to be well understood is a technique every student strives to master. From the young age when one learns language, one is taught to speak or write in order to be understood. This universal need to be understood is why we have standard forms of communication (sign language, chemical symbols, etc.).

The parallel between learning skills and the four distinctive human communication characteristics Bronowski discusses; foresight, the "prolongation of reference", internalization, and stratification is interesting to me because I can understand them on both a personal and a general level. I believe that these characteristics of human communication are the basics to understanding knowledge and how it is acquired. Since knowledge deals with understanding and communication is used to understand other people, the two subjects seem to correspond.