576 



LANGUAGE. 



I>anguse. the arms hang down ; in joy, the head is elevated ; in 

 '"Y"*' displaying pride, it is stiff and erect ; in contempt and 

 indignation, its motions are quick and irregular ; in 

 gaiety and merriment, the corners of the mouth are con- 

 tracted, and in some degree raised, the cheeks rather 

 drawn inward, and the muscles of the lower part of the 

 countenance in a slight measure convulsed, which gives 

 rise to laughter ; in admiration and surprise, the body 

 is thrown back, and fixed seemingly immoveable in one 

 position ; in fear, the arms are extended, the eyes open- 

 ed wide, and the limbs often affected with tremulous 

 and desultory movements. All these, and many other 

 variations of gesture, are the instantaneous and involun- 

 tary effects of passion. They may justly be said to be 

 constituted by nature as interpreters of the feelings of 

 the mind. This class of natural signs appears to be 

 more susceptible of extended application than some of 

 the others, and the extension and improvement of them 

 Foundation has given rise to the art of jyintomime. The extent to 

 of the pan- which this art has often been carried, is very great. In 

 toinimic art. anc j en t Rome, the exhibition of dramatic action, with- 

 out the accompaniment of words, was a common amuse- 

 ment, and the audience were never at a loss to follow 

 the action through all its parts. The modern panto- 

 mimes, too, often exhibit both character and passion by 

 the medium of action and gestures alone, with a high 

 degree of accuracy. These exhibitions are unquestion- 

 ably the productions of skill and art, but they are 

 founded upon the natural signs of the inward feelings, 

 manifested in the gestures and motions of the body. 

 Were there no other means of communication, it is dif- 

 ficult to say to what perfection this class of signs might 

 in time be brought. Savages, ignorant of each other's 

 language, can thus make known their desires and feel- 

 ings without difficulty ; and all of us have often wit- 

 nessed the readiness with which dumb men can, upon 

 occasion, adapt their gestures to the expression of their 

 inclinations and wishes. 



Modula- A third class of natural signs, expressive of our in- 

 tions of the ward feelings, is to be found in the instinctive modulo- 



These various classes of natural sign* might undoubt- Langiiagt 

 cdly have served for carrying on some kind of inter- ^""V^" 

 course in the rudest stages of human s'ociety ; but it ^' a ^" r ^' 

 cannot be disputed, that their application u^xtremely fj'*"^"' 

 limited, and if man was ever to rise above the condition a !l the pur 

 of mere animal existence, he must have a mean of com- poses of 

 nmnication more suited to his situation, and co-extensive communio 

 with his rational faculties. Hence arises the necessity tlon * 

 of employing a different and more enlarged class of signs, 

 indicating not only feelings and passions, but thoughts 

 and ideas, objects, actions, and relations ; a class of signs, 

 in short, rising from natural and instinctive, to conven- 

 tional and artificial language. 



Interjec- 



tiom. 



fi on or f ones qf the human voice. These natural cries 

 are uttered involuntarily even at the earliest period of 

 life ; and at every age, when the feelings are strongly 

 excited, they burst forth spontaneously, in spite of all 

 artificial refinements, without design, and without re- 

 gard to consequences. Joy, grief, suspicion, admira- 

 tion, despair, exultation, hope, fear, and many other 

 emotions are thus manifested. These modulations of 

 the voice approach to, but are by no means of the same 

 nature with the articulate sounds which form the ma- 

 terials of artificial or conventional language. They are 

 uttered only under the influence of passion or emotion ; 

 they are taught. by nature, and require no instruction to 

 explain their meaning. From their near relation to 

 words, however, they have obtained a place in grain- 

 mar, and are commonly stated as one of the parts of 

 speech, under the denomination of interjections. They 

 undoubtedly mingle in all empassioned discourse, and 

 often contribute to the force and effect of eloquence ; 

 still they can only be regarded as the natural and in- 

 stinctive expressions of feeling. Among different nations, 

 the number of those instinctive sounds which still claim 

 an occasional place amidst the use of conventional words, 

 may vary, either from different intensity of feeling, or 

 from the fuller adaptation of words to the expression of 

 passion ; but in all languages they do to a certain extent 

 remain, occasionally employed by the orator, and fre- 

 quently bursting forth to indicate the strength of the 

 internal feelings. 



Conventional or Artificial Language. 



The situation of man as a member of society, and his Neeetsitjr 

 possession of powers and faculties as a rational being, for a con- 

 rendering a much more extended and enlarged mode of v *nt>on*I 

 communication necessary for him, than could be ac- '* a S"t 

 complished by mere natural signs, an obvious question 

 arises, What means the Author of our Being has furnish- 

 ed for the attainment of an object so important to the 

 great ends of human existence? It is by no means in- 

 conceivable, that any one of the classes of natural signs, 

 or instinctive expressions of thought, might have been Materials c 

 adopted as the ground work of a more enlarged conven- convention 

 tional language the features of the face, or the gestures "Hanging* 

 of the body, might perhaps have been moulded into 

 forms, to each of which, an arbitrary but determinate 

 meaning might have been attached, and these, united 

 with rude inarticulate cries, might have served to carry 

 on some kind of intercourse among men. But how in- 

 adequate must all these, even in their most improved 

 state, have been,, to answer the ends to which speech is 

 subservient. All the variations of which they are sus- 

 ceptible, could mark only a few emotions, but by much 

 the greater and more important subjects of thought and 

 volition would have been beyond their reach. It be- 

 came necessary, then, that some other means of commu- 

 nication should be fotind to effectuate that intercourse 

 upon which so much of human happiness and well being 

 depends. And such a mean of communication had 

 been provided by the Divine Author of our nature. 

 The human voice is so framed and constituted, as to be Articulate 

 susceptible of articulate modulations in an almost end- m ><iul, tion 

 less variety, and the power of forming at least to a cer- ' ' e V018< 

 tain extent these modulated sounds, is possessed by all 

 men whose faculties are entire. In these articulate 



1 



sounds, then, we find materials furnished by nature, 

 and placed within the reach of all, which human inge- 

 nuity and industry can easily form, by the aid of expe- 

 rience, into a collection of conventional signs, fit to.' ex- 

 press every thought of the human mind. 



But though the materials of language, as well as the 1' ret ' n 



power of employing them, are thus provided by nature, tl n and *" 

 r\_ v. j i j i eflangma 



it has been made a question, how mankind were at first 



induced or impelled to have recourse to this mode of 

 communicating thought by the fabrication and use of 

 articulate sounds. Children, it has been observed, learn 

 to speak by imitation ; and it would appear by the ex- 

 amples of one or two solitary savages, found at different 

 times remote from human society, that where the op- 

 portunities of such imitation -are wanting, the use of ar- 

 ticulate speech is nearly unknown. In what way then 

 was the use of speech, or conventional language, first in- 

 troduced and adopted ? According to one class of writ- 

 ers, it was originally revealed, and taught to man by the 



