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Writing Signed Languages
In Support of !opting an S" #riting S$stem
%$
Amy Rosenberg
&..' (ni)ersit$ of *irginia' 199+
am$,nemiccolo-$ahoo.com
.aster/s 0egree 1hesis
(ni)ersit$ of 2ansas
0epartment of "inguistics' 1999
Su%mitte! to the 0epartment of "inguistics an! the
3acult$ of the 4ra!uate School of the (ni)ersit$ of 2ansas
in partial fulfillment of the re5uirements for the !egree of .aster of rts.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abstract & Introduction
Chater !
0efining a #riting S$stem
1he 6istor$ of #riting
Chater "
#hat S$stem Is &est7
1he 8ffects of #riting
1he 0ail$ (ses of #riting
Chater #
1he 0eaf 9ommunit$
Chater $
1he "anguage:
merican Sign "anguage
Chater %& 'art !
#riting S" in Sign#riting
Chater %& 'art "
Sign#riting Specifics
:ther #riting S$stems
Chater (
1he 8ffects of #riting S"
1he 3uture of #riting ; the 0eaf
9ommunit$
Sign#riting Supporters
Summary & Bib)iograhy
Aendi* A
Sign#riting
Aendi* B
Sto<oe =otation
Aendi* C
6an!shape In)entor$
Aendi* + & E
Sign#riting 6an!shapes
Sign#riting Shorthan!
Aendi* F
41 &asic 6an!shapes
Aendi* ,
Sign>S$m%ol Se5uence
ABSTRACT
1his thesis a!!resses the issues surroun!ing the 0eaf communit$' its language' an! the
writing s$stem propose! for recor!ing its language. 1he effects of the writing s$stem on
its users are re)iewe!. %rief histor$ of written language is presente! in light of further
empowering a language communit$ which has no officiall$ esta%lishe! writing s$stem.
1his thesis will consi!er the 0eaf communit$? a uni5ue cultural group in that it is %oun!
%$ a common language' an! $et it has not a!opte! a stan!ar!i@e! writing s$stem. #e will
eAamine the characteristics of this communit$ an! its language' an! we will !escri%e
attempts to create a writing s$stem. #e will present a !escription of a mo)ement' %ase!
in 9alifornia' which is !e!icate! to esta%lishing Sign#riting as the written form of
merican Sign "anguage. Success for this writing s$stem is li<el$' as e)i!ence! %$ its
use in the !eaf communities of man$ countries.
AC-NOWLE+,.ENTS
I woul! li<e to than< 0r. <ira Bamamoto' m$ a!)isor' for wor<ing !iligentl$ to refine
this thesis. I woul! li<e to than< 0r. 6en!erson an! 0r. #at<ins for ser)ing on m$
committee an! pro)i!ing me with support an! insight. I than< the 0eaf ction
9ommittee for Sign#riting an! all of those in)ol)e! with Sign#riting for inspiring this
thesis.
'art I/ Writing
Introduction
1hose who feel the$ are part of the 0eaf communit$ ma$ not share a common territor$.
1he$ ma$ %e of !ifferent faiths. 1here is no 0eaf cuisine. n!' most of those who %elong
to the 0eaf communit$ were not %orn into it' %ut chose it at )arious ages. So' what ma<es
this a !istinct culture' with the rules an! norms accepte! %$ its mem%ers7 It is their
language: merican Sign "anguage CS"D. #ith as much )ariation as the mem%ership
emplo$ing it' this language !efines a culture. It is the language of primar$ use at an
accre!ite! (ni)ersit$ in the nation/s capital. In the past two !eca!es' the 0eaf communit$
has %een struggling for recognition an! e5ual rights as !emonstrate! %$ the 0eaf
Eresi!ent =ow !emonstration in 19FF at 4allau!et (ni)ersit$ an! spar<ing the
nationwi!e 0eaf Eri!e mo)ement. 0eaf schools ha)e fought for the right to teach in S".
0eaf people want their culture an! language recogni@e! as ha)ing as much importance as
merican culture an! spo<en 8nglish. It is' therefore' a significant fact that merican
Sign "anguage has no esta%lishe! writing s$stem' an! one that must change in our highl$
literate conteAt.
It has %een sai!' in regar! to the !ifference %etween a language an! a !ialect' that a
language is a !ialect with an arm$. 1his i!ea implies that' while almost all humans spea<
Cor signD' recogni@ing their mo!e of communication as language confers prestige' while
calling it a !ialect suggests that their societ$ is unimportant. 3urthermore' eAisting in a
written form ma$ %e associate! with the prestige of a language. GStan!ar! languages
often are #HI118= languagesG C6oc< an! Ioseph 1996: JJ+D. ll cultures recogni@e! as
powerful an! rele)ant to mo!ern societ$ spea< an! write their languages. 8)en when
literac$ rates are unimpressi)e' cultures of import in worl! !iscourse ha)e access to
!ocuments an! literature.
It is certain that some societies are strictl$ oral' an! others ma<e use of the official
written co!e to recor!. 3or eAample' countries in which a )ariet$ of )astl$ !ifferent
G!ialectsG of ra%ic are spo<en' mainl$ write stan!ar! ra%ic' no matter how !ifferent it
is from their spo<en ra%ic. 1he linguistic situation facing the merican 0eaf
communit$ !iffers in two wa$s. 0eaf people ha)e !ifferent le)els of access to 8nglish'
the language in which the$ are currentl$ writing' %ut 0eaf culture completel$ centers
aroun! unwritten merican Sign "anguage' so access to writing it has great implications.
#e can also esta%lish the relationship %etween the le)el of literac$ a culture possesses
an! the eAternal perception of that culture. 1his thesis consi!ers the language an! culture
of a small %ut prou! population' an! a!!resses the positi)e effects that esta%lishing a
stan!ar! writing s$stem for its language woul! ha)e.
1he merican 0eaf communit$ ta<es pri!e in using a uni5ue language to communicate'
stor$tell' create poetr$ etc.' %ut most of the mem%ers of this communit$ write in 8nglish.
If all mem%ers of this culture were sufficientl$ %ilingual an! literate in 8nglish' there
might %e no reason to 5uestion their mo!e of literac$. .an$ core mem%ers of the 0eaf
communit$ ha)e limite! s<ills in 8nglish %ecause of the manner in which most !eaf
people ha)e %een e!ucate! in the (nite! States. #hether a !eaf chil! was place! in
school with hearing chil!ren or sent to a school for the !eaf' the focus was often on
learning to spea< 8nglish an! liprea!? signing was frowne! upon. 1his has %een the case
since the International 9ongress of 8!ucators of the 0eaf conference hel! in .ilan in
1FF0. It was !eci!e! that !eaf schools shoul! focus on oralism...K3ootnote 1...an! that
Sign shoul! %e prohi%ite! in schools CSac<s 1990: 27D. 1his create! an eAtremel$ poor
e!ucational setting. #ithout ha)ing access to soun!' an! without the help of Sign'
learning 8nglish through writing an! liprea!ing was not easil$ accomplishe! an! was
almost ne)er completel$ successful. CSac<s 1990' 9onra! 1979D.
K3ootnote 1: n e!ucational theor$ focuse! on the goal of teaching a !eaf chil! to spea<
8nglish without the use of signs or gestures.
1he core of this communit$ is its separate linguistic status. merican Sign "anguage
CS"D is the heart an! soul of this culture. #ithout a signe! language there woul! simpl$
%e no 0eaf communit$' so wh$ not write S"7
In the following pages I will consi!er this 5uestion in !etail. 9hapter 1 will !iscuss what
writing is an! its histor$. 9hapter 2 will compare )arious writing s$stems an! will
a!!ress the influence the$ ha)e on the languages the$ are use! for as well as the people
who emplo$ them. 9hapter J presents the 0eaf communit$ an! its culture. 9hapter 4
!etails S" as a full linguistic entit$. 9hapter + !iscusses writing S" in Sign#riting
an! chapter 6 consi!ers the effects of writing S". 1his thesis asserts that signers nee! a
writing s$stem which the$ ma$ uniforml$ utili@e. It esta%lishes the case for per)asi)el$
a!opting Sign#riting as the s$stem of choice for the merican 0eaf communit$.
Chater !/ Writing
In or!er to ma<e the case for writing signe! languages' the concept of writing must %e
eAplore! so that the origins of eAisting Sign "anguage...K3ootnote 2... writing s$stems are
un!erstoo! an! their potential e)olution can %e consi!ere!. 1here are also !ifferences in
opinion regar!ing what constitutes a writing s$stem' an! this 5uestion will also %e
a!!resse!.
K3ootnote 2: #hene)er Sign is capitali@e!' it is in reference to a full language emplo$e!
%$ nati)e signers. #hen sign is not capitali@e!' it refers to a leAical item or a create!
s$stem li<e Signe! 8Aact 8nglish CS88D which is not a self>stan!ing language.
3or the purposes of reference an! clarit$ I will !efine some terms which I will use to
!escri%e )arious <in!s of writing s$stems. n alphabet refers to a writing s$stem which
has s$m%ols representing in!i)i!ual phonemes in a language' although this !oes not
mean that an alpha%etic s$stem alwa$s has a one>to>one correspon!ence %etween the
soun!s an! s$m%ols. 8nglish an! Spanish' for eAample' use an alpha%etic s$stem.
consonantal s$stem is similar to an alpha%et %ut !oes not inclu!e s$m%ols for the )owels
foun! in the language. 6e%rew uses such a s$stem. syllabary is a thir! <in! of writing
s$stem' in which the s$m%ols represent s$lla%les' not in!i)i!ual phonemes in the
language. Iapanese' which ma<es use of a com%ination of s$stems' emplo$s s$lla%aries
an! i!eographs. n ideographic s$stem in)ol)es s$m%ols that !o not enco!e phonemic
)alue %ut do enco!e morphos$lla%ic )alues.
1his means that a s$m%ol enco!es meaning an! soun!. Such a s$stem emplo$s s$m%ols
which represent the morphemes representing semanticall$ su%stanti)e references such as
an o%Lect or concept' or grammatical/functional meanings. 9hinese uses this <in! of
s$stem.
+e0ining a 1riting system
#hat is writing7 lthough a literate person might fin! this 5uestion unnecessar$' an
eAact answer is more !ifficult to fin! when one %egins to eAamine the 5uestion. writing
s$stem is not merel$ what we use to recor! language on paper Cor other materialD with
s$m%ols. Iust as most people rarel$ thin< a%out the miracle of their ac5uisition an! use of
language' literate a!ults usuall$ ta<e the compleAit$ of writing s$stems for grante!. 1o
those who can !ecipher the co!e' writing is often 5uite li<e air. It is all aroun! us an! we
use it e)er$ !a$' %ut we rarel$ thin< a%out it !espite its a%solute importance in our life.
:f course' we coul! sur)i)e without writing ... or coul! we7 Iust eAactl$ how much !oes
mo!ern societ$ !epen! on the successes of its written communications7
:ne )iew of writing has %een in !irect relation to s$m%ols an! spo<en language' as
0iringer eAemplifies in his !efinition of writing as Gthe graphic counterpart of speechG
C1962: 1JD. 4el% calls writing a Gs$stem of human intercommunication %$ means of
con)entional )isi%le mar<sG C196J:+D. Similarl$' 1rager !escri%es writing as Ga
con)entional s$stem of mar<s or !rawing of analogous artifacts which represent the
utterances of a language as suchG C1974:J74>496D. &loomfiel! offers more simpl$ that
writing is a wa$ of recor!ing language C19J+:21D. 1hese !efinitions are too %roa! to
eAclu!e signs or s$m%ols which are clearl$ not writing' %ut which !enote linguistic
information' li<e a picture of a person wal<ing with a slash through it an! a re! light
flashing %ehin! it CG!on/t wal<G in 8nglishD. 3urthermore' these <in!s of !efinitions !o
not a!!ress the functions of writing which lie %e$on! signif$ing linguistic
communication. #riting has a %roa!er communicati)e power than spo<en language. 1he
fact that a person can write has meaning Lust as the act of pro!ucing a written !ocument
can %e meaningful.
n earlier enc$clope!ic !efinition of writing !escri%es it as /the use of letters' s$m%ols or
other con)entional characters' for the recor!ing %$ )isi%le means of significant soun!s/
C8nc$clope!ia &ritannica 1911: F+2D. 1his !efinition woul! inclu!e musical notation %ut
not a writing s$stem use! for signe! languages' or e)en one which was mainl$
pictographic. 1he .icrosoft 8ncarta 97 8nc$clope!ia on 90>H:. has a more !etaile!
!efinition un!er the topic of writing as a Gmetho! of human intercommunication %$
means of ar%itrar$ )isual mar<s forming a s$stem'G stating further that' G#riting can %e
achie)e! in either limite! or full s$stems' a full s$stem %eing one that is capa%le of
eApressing unam%iguousl$ an$ concept that can %e formulate! in language.G full
s$stem woul! %e one that can %e use! to signif$ an$thing in a language.
0e3rancis C19F9: 4D suggests two !efinitions: one that !escri%es writing as a s$stem
con)e$ing some amount of thought an! the other !escri%ing writing as a s$stem of
s$m%ols which can %e use! to con)e$ an$ an! all thought. 6arris C199+D !iscusses the act
of writing as ha)ing its own significance an! shows how this can %e so irrespecti)e of
what is written !own. 3or eAample' a person ma$ appear to %e writing an!' therefore' the
)iewer interprets that the person appears to %e e!ucate! an! appears to %e engage! in an
important act while he is actuall$ scri%%ling on a page. 1o full$ eAplore what writing is'
an! all the facets of what it can %e' woul! occup$ entire )olumes !e!icate! to that
purpose' %ut one can succinctl$ outline some of these i!eas in or!er to stress the
tra!itional and non>tra!itional wa$s of thin<ing a%out writing in or!er to frame its
eAtreme power an!' therefore' importance.
#hen 6arris tal<s a%out the significance of the act of writing' he uses an eAample of a
particular situation in which someone who !oes not actuall$ <now how to write is
preten!ing to !o so in or!er to ele)ate himself in the e$es of illiterate peers. .oreo)er' to
people who ha)e no concept of writing whatsoe)er' the )er$ piece of parchment on
which a message is written can seem to ha)e magical properties. n outsi!e o%ser)er
who witnesses someone staring at a piece of paper an! gaining new information coul!
imagine that the paper ha! some wa$ of con)e$ing information. lthough writing is
sel!om thought of this wa$' 4oo!$/s C19F6D concept of writing as Gthat which ma<es
speech an o%LectG taps into what gi)es writing its power in the human realm' %ecause
language ceases to %e ephemeral once written. "i<e an$ other o%Lect it can %e o%ser)e!'
use!' or manipulate!. lthough' as 6arris claims' writing can %e in!epen!ent of speech'
it is connecte! to human intercommunication C6arris' 19F6: 119' 127D. In the following
sections' the <in! of writing which will %e consi!ere! will %e that which functions as a
linguistic tool an! a linguistic o%Lect.
1he !ualit$ principle' that all writing s$stems enco!e some amount of phonological
representation an! are all mnemonic' is generall$ accepte! C0e3rancis' 19F9: 2+J' 4el%'
196J:J0J>J04D. 9hinese ma$ emplo$ a writing s$stem which relies hea)il$ on
memori@ing the forms of the characters' associating %etween the forms' meanings' an!
soun! )alues attache! to them. "i<ewise' although Spanish has a fairl$ consistent
correspon!ence %etween the s$m%ols of its writing s$stem an! the soun!s of the
language' there is still memori@ation in)ol)e! in learning to spell Spanish wor!s.
0e3rancis gi)es a list create! on the %asis of how much of a one>to>one correspon!ence
can %e foun! %etween the writing s$stem an! the pronunciation of wor!s in a gi)en
language...K3ootnote J...
K3ootnote J: 1. 3innish' Ein$in' romaLi' <ana 2. 4ree<' "atin' Hussian' 4erman' Spanish
J. 6angul 4. 3rench' 8nglish +. 9hero<ee' *ai' Bi 6. Ehoenician' 6e%rew' ra%ic 7.
8g$ptian hierogl$phics F. Iapnaese <anLi>cum><ana' <<a!ian 9. 9hinese characters 10.
Sumerian' .a$an.
3innish is at the top of this list' Spanish is in the neAt categor$' 8nglish follows soon
after' ra%ic comes later an! 9hinese comes close to the %ottom of the list C0e3rancis
19F9:26FD. 1his list came a%out in reference to the issue of what constitutes a more
eApe!ient writing s$stem' a topic which can %e !e%ate! %ut' interestingl$ seems to ta<e
care of itself as a writing s$stem e)ol)es an! %ecomes con)entionali@e!. In other wor!s'
no matter what <in! of s$stem a language starts out using' the s$stem' the language' or
%oth can change to %etter fit each other in terms of efficienc$ of rea!ing an!
writing...K3ootnote 4...
K3ootnote 4: In the case of 8nglish' in which the language change! an! the writing
con)entions !i! not' although there is more !ifficult$ in learning to spell these wor!s'
there ma$ %e increase! ease in rea!ing these wor!s similar to the wa$ in which Iapanese
continues to ma<e use of 9hinese characters.
&asso states that a goo! writing s$stem shoul! %e GLu!ge! %$ the a%ilit$ to permit
someone who is unfamiliar with the co!e %ut who is competent in the spo<en language
of which it is an isomorph an! familiar with the process of rea!ing in general to pro!uce
an! !ecipher legi%le written messagesG C&asso 19F9: 426D. 1he a%o)e concept is
presente! to remin! the rea!er that a full pictographic writing s$stem' while onl$ on one
en! of a scale in terms of the !egree of phonetic information enco!e! )ersus a richl$
mnemonic s$stem' !iffers from all of the alpha%etic an! s$lla%ic s$stems in an important
wa$. =o matter how much mnemonic !e)ice is enco!e! into the con)entionali@e!
spelling s$stem of the latter t$pe writing s$stem' the alpha%etic or s$lla%ic nature of the
s$stem allows it to !irectl$ represent the wa$ people tal<.
8nglish emplo$s a writing s$stem which re5uires the learning of man$ con)entions' an!
it is a rather !ifficult s$stem to use well. It ma$ %e that the higher the !egree of
memori@ation in)ol)e! in writing a language Ce.g.' 9hinese charactersD' the easier' in
terms of processing' it is to rea! that language. 6owe)er' the more a s$stem emplo$s a
one>to>one soun! s$m%ol correspon!ence' the more uni)ersall$ con)enient it %ecomes.
2istory
lthough man$ consi!er language use to trace %ac< to J+'000 &.9.' archaeologists an!
philologists agree that writing !e)elope! onl$ aroun! fi)e thousan! $ears ago' circa
J'J00 &.9. in Sumer. Some argue that the Sumerian writing s$stem originall$ !e)elope!
out of accounting practices. .ore specificall$' the cla$ to<ens which were use! for tra!e
were impresse! into cla$ an!' later' these impressions seem to ha)e le! to the people
!eci!ing to represent their to<ens in two !imensional signs on cla$ ta%lets' again for
recor!ing purposes. In its earliest stage' therefore Sumerian pictographic writing
containe! man$ s$m%ols representing to<ens. It is not clear' howe)er' that their writing
!i! !e)elop out of accounting as there are man$ more unrelate! s$m%ols foun! in this
earl$ writing s$stem' meaning that the appearance of written signs for to<ens ma$ ha)e
!e)elope! alongsi!e the !e)elopment of a writing s$stem' not prior to it. It cannot %e
ascertaine! eAactl$ what spar<e! the !e)elopment of this particular s$stem. Bet' it is
certain that this writing s$stem !e)elope! at least in part out of the nee! of the tra!ers in
the area. :r' more specificall$' the s$stem was some sort of ai! when it !e)elope!' as
oppose! to !e)eloping' as others ma$ ha)e' out of originall$ more artistic en!ea)ors.
writing s$stem coul! !e)elop this wa$ if people were !rawing pictures which' o)er time'
were repeate!' simplifie! an! commonl$ !rawn. 6os<in suggests that writing came a%out
when people reali@e! how to read the s$m%ols the$ were using' i.e.' when the$ learne! to
rea! the signs as e5ui)alents for spo<en language instea! of interpreting them a%stractl$
an! loosel$ C6os<in 199J:J6D.
It is interesting to consi!er that language use is thought to ha)e !e)elope! first' then art
Cca)e paintingsD an! nearl$ thirt$>two thousan! $ears later' the first pictographic writing
s$stems C.artin 199+: J0D. 1he a!)ent of language use is !elineate! %$ the anatom$ of
man/s %rain' $et we ha)e no wa$ to confirm this !ate Cc.J+'000 &.9.D CSampson 19F+:17D.
"i<ewise' we !o not <now if man coul! concei)e of o%Lectif$ing thought through o%Lects
%efore writing !e)elope!. It is plausi%le that a span of ten thousan! $ears might ha)e
%een the necessar$ amount of time for some slight change in language>ena%le! man' so
that out of nee! an! ingenuit$' writing !e)elope!.
roun! a thousan! $ears after the first writing %egan to !e)elop in Sumer' pictographic
writing arose in 9hina. .eanwhile' aroun! J100 &.9. the earliest 8g$ptian hierogl$phics
emerge! an! sometime %etween 2F00 an! 2600 &.9. Sumerian writing %ecame
9uneiform. :ne e)olutionar$ perspecti)e on this moment in time offers that writing
!e)elope! out of art' hence its originall$ pictographic nature' then lost its iconicit$ as it
un!erwent the re%us principle lea!ing to the !e)elopment of s$lla%aries an! alpha%etic
writing s$stems. 1he re%us principle woul! in)ol)e' for eAample' a picture of an e$e
which woul!' in the case of 8nglish' o)er time come to %e use! to signif$ the wor! GIG
%ecause of similar pronunciation an! lac< of a goo! wa$ to pictoriall$ represent the
concept in)ol)e! in representing the first person pronoun C.atthews 1997: J09D. See
3igure 1.
Figure !/ Rebus E*am)e
1his s$m%ol woul! ha)e %een first use! for /e$e/ an! later for /I./
roun! 1400 &.9.' a Semitic cuneiform consonantal alpha%et !e)elope!. 1his t$pe of
writing s$stem was no longer pictographic' %ecause each s$m%ol represente! a consonant
soun! in the language' %ut none !irectl$ represente! the )owels of the language. nother
fi)e hun!re! $ears woul! result in the sprea! of the Ehoenician consonantal alpha%et
throughout the .e!iterranean %asin' aroun! a hun!re! $ears after which' the 4ree<s
woul! encounter Ehoenician consonantal writing. roun! F00 &.9. the 4ree<s a!opte!
an alpha%et' %ase! on the Ehoenician alpha%et' altering it to fit their language %$ a!!ing
)owels. 1his was the creation of the first mo!ern alpha%et with )owels' which man$ ha)e
claime! was one of the most important !e)elopments in human ci)ili@ation C0iringer
1962' Innis 19+1' 6itti 1961' "ogan 19F6' .c"uhan 1962' 64D. 1he )ariet$ foun! among
the worl!/s writing s$stems !o not reflect a singular e)olutionar$ path towar! the
alpha%et. 9hinese i!eographic writing remains an! s$lla%aries are a%un!ant.
1his chapter has pro)i!e! the %ac<groun! nee!e! to !eal with the concept of writing. It
has intro!uce! the histor$ of the eAistence of writing an! how writing has e)ol)e!. It has
presente! )arious terms use! to !iscuss a writing s$stem an! consi!ere! what a writing
s$stem is. 1his chapter intro!uce! the !ualit$ principle of writing s$stems ultimatel$
consisting of a com%ination of soun! Cor signD %ase! s$m%ols an! the use of the memor$.
1he neAt chapter will !iscuss how s$stems can %e more or less efficient an! the writing/s
import in mo!ern societ$.
Chater "
Which system is best3
Considering 4arious systems
#h$ one t$pe of writing s$stem is %etter suite! to a language than another can %e
eAplaine! %$ that language/s soun! s$stem' although in some cases' the soun! s$stem ha!
little to !o with what <in! of writing s$stem a language communit$ a!opte!. In 1947'
2enneth Ei<e of the Summer Institute of "inguistics suggeste!:
G practical orthograph$ shoul! %e phonemic. 1here shoul! %e a one>to>one
correspon!ence %etween each phoneme an! the s$m%oli@ation of that phoneme. Some
orthographies are %ase! on the s$lla%le an! ha)e a one>to>one correspon!ence %etween
each s$lla%le an! the s$m%ol representing itG CEi<e 1947: 20FD.
1o eAemplif$ the !ifferences in languages which ren!er a s$lla%ar$ more effecti)e' we
might compare languages li<e 8nglish an! Eolish with Iapanese. 1he num%er of possi%le
consonant clusters in the first two languages !oes not len! itself to %eing written
s$lla%icall$. 8nglish consists of o)er F00 spo<en s$lla%les C0e3rancis 19F9:++D while
Iapanese is comprise! of onl$ aroun! 100 spo<en s$lla%les C0e3rancis 19F9:6FD. 1he
Iapanese language can %e almost completel$ !escri%e! with a s$lla%ar$ of less than fift$
s$m%ols which com%ine to represent the language without !ifficult$.
#h$ an! how has i!eographic writing in 9hina an! Iapan remaine! instea! of
!e)eloping parallel to the #est an! .i!!le 8ast' into an alpha%etic writing s$stem7 1he
answer ma$ %e !ue to linguistic characteristics of 9hinese' the artistic )alue of the
writing' an! ease of mental processing. 1he most salient feature of 9hinese' reflecte! in
the morphos$lla%ic 5ualit$ of its writing s$stem' is its lac< of inflection. In Iapanese'
where there is a higher !egree of inflection' a s$lla%ar$ was !e)elope! an! a!opte! to
com%ine with the 9hinese characters for %etter representation of the language. Se)eral
centuries after Iapanese %orrowe! 9hinese writing s$m%ols' the$ !e)elope! a s$lla%ar$ to
%etter reflect the Iapanese language. 1he fact that Iapanese <ept 9hinese characters as
oppose! to completel$ switching to a s$lla%ic writing s$stem len!s great cre!ence to the
)alue of i!eographic writing. 8)en with the a!)ent of a s$lla%ar$' an!' in fact' two
s$lla%aries' Iapanese continue! to ma<e use of 9hinese characters.
G1he phonetic representation s$stems of Iapanese call for a linear approach that slows
!own the rea!ing process an! correspon!ingl$ !ela$s un!erstan!ing of the content'
whereas the glo%alit$ of the logogram means that it can %e imme!iatel$ recogni@e! an!
un!erstoo! once it has %een memori@e!G C=o!a 199+:2+ D.
The E00ects o0 Writing
1he importance of writing can %e more specificall$ eAplore! so that the a!)antages for
the 0eaf communit$ of ha)ing a writing s$stem will %e e)i!ent. In general' literate
people ha)e a sense that writing is useful e)en necessar$. #riting has influence! art'
culture' societal !e)elopment' philosophical thought' law' historical mo)ements an!
certainl$' e)er$!a$ acti)ities. 3urthermore' there is e)i!ence that writing has an effect on
the %rain an! language processing C:Lemann 19FJ' 6atta 1977' 19F1' Sasanuma 19F0D.
1his section will !iscuss the importance of writing for a communit$ an! an in!i)i!ual so
that a clear case can %e ma!e for the nee! of a con)entional merican Sign "anguage
CS"D writing s$stem.
1he power of writing is its potenc$ as a memor$ ai!' %ecause much of its )alue comes
from a!)antages which writing affor!s human thin<ing. GSince the capacit$ of the human
memor$ is limite!' it %ecame necessar$ to fin! a new an! unifie! s$stem of reference
ena%ling oral information to %e preser)e! an! reco)ere! later on in spo<en formG Cn!re>
Sal)ini 199+:11D. 1hose who coul! write !own their i!eas' reflecting on the written
thoughts an! manipulate them in a tangi%le wa$ hel! a great !eal of potential power in a
societ$. 6enri>Iean .artin C199+: 27D o%ser)es: G1he written wor! has alwa$s %een
closel$ associate! with power.G :ne wa$ it has !one this' as the same author points out'
is through the law. #ith the sprea! of writing came the !issolution of customs an! oral
tra!itions !ictating the GlawsG of the lan!. #riting literall$ Gsu%Lecte! societ$ to the
!ominance of the law'G %ecause once laws were written changes in the communit$ coul!
not as easil$ affect the pre)iousl$ sufficient law>li<e customs C.artin 199+:27D. 3or those
who ha! writing at their !isposal' the worl! %ecame a more permanent an! controlla%le
place.
#hat writing has !one an! continues to !o to language is also astonishing. 1he per)asi)e
i!ea that writing represents speech has actuall$ ele)ate! it' o)er time' a%o)e that which
writing shoul! eAist onl$ to represent. &ecause it persists while language' %$ its )er$
nature' changes constantl$' Git is possi%le for the written representation to %e hel! up as a
mo!el of what the spo<en realit$ ought to %eG C6arris 19F6: 46D. Spo<en language change
occurs so rapi!l$ that the speech of a great>gran!mother might soun! li<e a !ifferent
!ialect to her great>gran!!aughter. 6owe)er' if this language is written' the change will
%e slower' an! the gap %etween the written an! the spo<en language !e)elops.
!!itionall$' as 0e3rancis C19F9D points out' writing allows people to re)isit the earlier
forms of their own language.
&ecause we can re)iew what we ha)e written an! change it until it reflects eAactl$ the
sentiment we wish to eApress' writing !iffers from transient speech. #hat effect !oes this
ha)e on language processing an! %rain functioning7 Some literate Iapanese spea<ers
claim that the$ see the i!eographic characters of their writing s$stem when the$ listen to
the ra!io' while nati)e spea<ers of 8nglish ten! to listen more to the soun!s of the wor!s
the$ are hearing. 8)i!ence from Iapanese !$sleAics suggest that phonographic an!
i!eographic s$m%ols are separatel$ processe!. 0eficiencies in processing the s$lla%ic
s$stem were not parallele! %$ !eficiencies in processing the characters an! )ice>)ersa
CSasanuma 19F0: 4F>90D. #hile the left cere%ral hemisphere is where phonetic anal$sis
occurs' the right hemisphere can !eal with non>phonetic writing s$stems. Sasanuma
showe! that Iapanese characters were )ulnera%le to !ifferent areas of %rain inLur$
compare! to the s$lla%ic s$stem.
"ogan C19F6D presents the i!ea that a%stract theoretical science an! thin<ing !e)elope!
out of the !ialogue of thought ma!e possi%le %ecause of writing. :thers agree. G.an/s
acti)ities an! powers were roughl$ eAten!e! in proportion to the increase! use an!
perfection of written recor!sG CInnis 19+1:10D. n!' some consi!er writing to %e !irectl$
an! completel$ lin<e! to mo!ern societ$. :ppenheim states that Gall the factors
geographic' social' economic lea!ing towar!s a full ci)ili@ation simultaneousl$ create! a
compleA of con!itions which coul! not function properl$ without writing'G an! he goes
on to sa$' Gwriting eAists onl$ in a ci)ili@ation an! a ci)ili@ation cannot eAist without
writingG C1964:221>22D. 4el% concurs' Gwriting is of such importance that ci)ili@ation
cannot eAist without it an! con)ersel$' that writing cannot eAist without a ci)ili@ationG
C196J:+D.
&asso/s C19F9D eAcellent article' G1he 8thnograph$ of #ritingG focuses on the importance
of writing from an anthropological )iewpoint. G=ineteenth>centur$ e)olutionists sei@e!
upon the presence or a%sence of writing as t$pological criteria which' when use! to
!efine !ifferent le)els of cultural !e)elopment' ser)e! han!il$ to !istinguish /ci)ili@ation/
from its antece!ent stagesG C19F9: 42+D. .ore recentl$' 6enr$>Iean .artin C199+: 26D
states that Gliterac$ is a stepping stone to intellectual free!om as well as an instrument of
authorit$' an! has %een a factor in the great re)olutions of the worl!.G 6e argues that
writing' %ecause it is fiAe!' is an instrument of authorit$ %ut that this instrument has the
power to li%erate the min!' referring to inspire! re)olutionaries fiAe! on songs an!
instigating wor!s' as much as writing C199+: 29D. 9i)ili@ation can %e partiall$ !efine! %$
the eAistence of writing C2raeling 19+0D an!' su%se5uentl$' there is a sense that an
unwritten language is somehow not worth$ of ci)ili@ation. &asso also points out that
when a group has writing' it is onl$ one of se)eral communication channels. &ut' it is one
which interacts with all the others' affecting them' %eing affecte! %$ them an!'
su%se5uentl$' pro)i!ing uni5ue access to the users of that writing s$stem. 1he %ottom
line for &asso is that writing Gis a supremel$ social actG C19F9:42+' 4J2D.
The +ai)y 5ses o0 Writing
lthough people ha)e a sense that writing is an integral part of their !ail$ life' most !o
not pon!er the !etails of this concept. #al< aroun! the !owntown area of an$ %ig cit$
an! $ou will actuall$ %e a%le to rea! the streets. "a%eling' li<e most writing' is often use!
for memor$' %ut also to tell people how to fin! what the$ are loo<ing for' an! to whom or
to what something %elongs.
=ote>ta<ing is another pre)alent use for writing occurring a%solutel$ e)er$ !a$ in the
literate worl! an! pro%a%l$ occurring almost e)er$ !a$ for all literate in!i)i!uals.
(suall$ when someone is tal<ing an! the listener wants to remem%er what is %eing sai!'
notes will suffice. 1he concept %ehin! note>ta<ing is e)en more significant than the
)arious wa$s people ta<e notes an! the )arious situations which lea! them to !o this.
=otes are useful for lectures' classes or an$ occasion in which a listener wants or nee!s to
remem%er in some !etail what has %een sai!. :ne facet of this <in! of note>ta<ing
in)ol)es !iagramming which can %e the interface %etween !rawing an! writing' ma<ing
use of %oth necessaril$. 1his <in! of note>ta<ing in)ol)es capturing another person/s
i!eas' %ut note>ta<ing is perhaps most useful to people for capturing an! organi@ing their
own thoughts. "ists are eAcellent eAamples of this. #ithout the concept of the list' man$
people who must run a househol!' manage the !uties of wor< or simpl$ organi@e their
!a$s' coul! not function well. "ists are the %est wa$ to capture %rainstorme! i!eas' often
for future consi!eration an! further organi@ation.
=ote>ta<ing reflects the origins of rules an! important policies. gain' people ma$ thin<
a%out their mission statement or a program concept' %ut without the interme!iate stage in
which notes are tentati)el$ Lotte! !own' the i!eas woul! ne)er reach permanence. =ote>
ta<ing in a religious conteAt is particularl$ interesting %ecause the origin of most religions
%egins with special humans ta<ing notes on the wor!s of a !eit$. =ot onl$ !o permanent
teAts %egin this wa$' %ut most religions accept the commentar$ CnotesD of scholars a!!ing
to the religion o)er time.
nother !ail$ use for writing e)ol)es out of recor! <eeping' which essentiall$ refers to
notes ma!e permanent. %asic recor! that most people use e)er$ !a$ is the calen!ar. #e
must consi!er our appointments through sche!uling' which means !i)i!ing the calen!ar
into sections of time with written remin!ers of what we will %e !oing. n!' of course' a
sche!ule can remin! us what we ha)e %een !oing if we <eep the !i)i!e! calen!ar as a
recor!. Hecor!s of e)ents are some of the most important !ocuments in societ$.
nother <in! of recor! is the certificate. certificate is usuall$ that which mar<s a
milestone. #ith GofficialG certificates the worl! can <eep trac< of itself on a personal an!
societal le)el. #e <now eAactl$ when people are %orn' finish school' earn !egrees'
awar!s' Loin together in marriage' separate' an! e)entuall$ !ie. gain' this enhances our
memor$' which might not otherwise occup$ itself with so man$ !etails.
#riting is a tool use! in the communication of !ifferent <in!s of information. :%)iousl$'
the most common an! permanent wa$ to circulate information is through %oo<s.
.aga@ines an! Lournals ma$ %e more common' %ut the$ ma$ %e less permanent.
=ewspapers are pro%a%l$ the fastest wa$ to circulate information to the most people.
Eamphlets' programs an! memos ma$ %e use! on a smaller scale' %ut all these forms of
!isseminating information rel$ on writing.
6ow>to manuals an! %lueprints are use! to pass along information that will %e use!
specificall$ to %uil! things. 1here are a )ariet$ of teAts li<e this. .an$ people can learn
how to program computers or learn how to spea< foreign languages %ecause of writing
an! %oo<s on these su%Lects.
1he (.S. Eost :ffice o%)iousl$ runs %ecause of writing' its main function %eing that it
allows people to communicate o)er long !istances. .ail has %een one of the most
significant wa$s written information is passe! aroun!. =ow there is the Internet. 1he we%
of computer ser)ers all o)er the worl!' which use a )ariet$ of metho!s to pass electronic
writing an! other information aroun!' has grown so much that one can fin! almost an$
newspaper' man$ %usinesses' an! information on almost an$ topic online. 1he Internet
ma$ %ecome the largest circulation of written an! other forms of information as its
num%er of users is growing rapi!l$.
0escri%ing all of these !ail$ uses for writing %rings to light how much mo!ern societ$
!epen!s on the written wor! to function. 3urthermore' these uses of writing su%tl$
!escri%e an! remin! people who are part of their in>group an! who are not. 1o a person
who has trou%le rea!ing' or who cannot rea! the language aroun! him' the worl! is full of
m$sterious s$m%ols an! access to information is hin!ere!. person who is not literate in
the language of the societ$ aroun! him will not feel full$ part of this societ$.
9hapter 2 presente! )arious writing s$stems eAplaining that a partiall$ i!eographic
ClogographicD s$stem has some a!)antages in terms of the spee! at which a person can
rea! that <in! of s$stem compare! to a strictl$ phonetic s$stem. 1he chapter outline!
how writing has affecte! people o)er time %$ %eing a simple memor$ ai!' a multipurpose
ai! an!' possi%l$' a %uil!ing %loc< of ci)ili@ation. 3inall$' the chapter outline! the !ail$
con)eniences an! uses of writing.