Linguistics and Descartes

Noam Chomsky

pp. 71-79

in: J.C. Smith (ed), Historical foundations of cognitive science, Berlin, Springer, 1991

Abstract

understand a machine’s being constituted so that it can utter words, and even emit some responses to action on it of a corporeal kind, which brings about a change in its organs; for instance, if it is touched in a particular part it may ask what we wish to say to it; if in another part it may exclaim that it is being hurt. and so on. But it never happens that it arranges its speech in various ways. in order to reply appropriately to everything that may be said in its presence, as even the lowest type of man can do.2

Cited authors

Descartes René