[…] in the right definition of names lies the
first use of speech, which is the acquisition of science; and in wrong, or no definitions, lies the first abuse; from which proceed all false and
senseless tenets.
Thomas Hobbes; (1588–1679).
Of Man, Being the First Part of Leviathan; Chapter IV; Of Speech
[…] it is difficult to see how
language itself
could have been invented by men. For if they have no language, how can they
explain to one another what their intentions are or what their symbols mean?
[…] Boland, the French counter-revolutionary philosopher, was so impressed by
such difficulties as these, that he concluded that they proved the existence
of God. For language can only have been invented by God, he argued, and
directly bestowed upon men.
[…] It is pretty clear, then, that men could not
have made language in the way in which they can now make a new language.
[…]
It is clear that men invent words and turns of expression. But it is hard to
believe that languages have, bit by bit, been invented by individuals. There
is a sense in which it seems to be imposed upon them.
[…] Men have
conceived plans for abolishing the family or state. But it is inconceivable
that integrated human society could be maintained if language institutions
disappeared.
Herbert. B. Acton;
Man-Made Truth; Mind; v47; n186; 1938
