ABSTRACT
In previous chapters interpretations of the environment have been shown to be dependent on cognitive representations of the world, whether these are formulated as semantic networks, feature lists, schemas or scripts. But what is the role in all this of language? One of the most common actions of human beings is to talk. We also understand other people’s communications, and can perceive and interpret sounds and written letters. A natural question for a cognitive psychologist concerns the knowledge representations necessary to use and understand language. In this chapter I shall be considering the knowledge that underlies our ability to use and understand language.
