Imagine a society in which people spoke a language with only two words for animals: animals with four feet and animals with more than four feet (insects,spiders,etc. ).What would Benjamin Whorf predict about those people?
A)They should be more open to the animals' true natures.
B)They should perceive and think about animals differently.
C)They should have a lower intelligence than other people.
D)They should show more fear of multi-legged animals.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Benjamin Whorf's linguistic relativity hypothesis suggests that the language we use shapes how we think about the world around us. In a society that only has two words for animals (based on the number of their legs), people would likely perceive and think about animals differently than those in a society with a more diverse animal vocabulary. For example, they may be less likely to distinguish between animals based on their behavior or characteristics and more likely to group them based on the number of their legs. This could affect their understanding of the natural world and their interactions with animals.

Imagine a Society in Which People Spoke a Language with Only