The Linguistics Colloquium Series presents Yaw Adutwum Awuah, Ohio University discussing "Meanings Just Ain't in the Head"—Semantic Externalism

Investigating the intersection between philosophy and language learning proposes an exciting area for applied linguistics. In the philosophy of mind,  externalism  is the view that what is going on in an individual’s mind is not (entirely) determined by what is going on inside her body, including her brain. This perspective provides a robust framework for understanding how language learners construct meaning through their interactions with the world around them. This paper highlights the importance of external influences on word meaning by examining the role of context, social engagement, and real-world experiences in shaping linguistic understanding. It therefore challenges traditional pedagogical approaches to teaching vocabulary/word meaning by arguing for the need to approach the process more holistically by considering external factors.

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