Which of these sentences is correct? a Read the article once. Which three features of a language may cause it to affect our personality? 1) The construction of a language. (In Greek, for example, the verb usually comes first, its conjugation (revealing) the tone and meaning of the rest of the sentence, making it easier for the listener to interrupt.) 2) The cultural habits associated with that language. (A study at Baruch College, New York, suggests that culture may also play a part.) 3) The objects are classified in a language. ( In Russian, however, the emphasis is on the shape, not the material, so all of these would merely be ‘little glasses’ or “stakanchiki”.)b Read the text again and match the missing sentences A -H to the gaps 1-6. There are two sentences you do not need to use. 3/A. French has an unusually, large vocabulary, allowing the speaker to find extremely precise words with specific meanings. 4/B. In Russian, however, the emphasis is on the shape, not the material, so all of these would merely be ‘little glasses’ or “stakanchiki”. 1/C. Speaking it will force you to think longer and harder, and you may feel like you played a five - set tennis match after a conversation. 2/D. And yet, his personality seemed to vary. E. After the first ad, they referred to her with positive words, such as ‘self-sufficient’ and strong’, suggesting that they looked up to her. 5/F. A comparative analysis between languages shows that languages may well rewire our minds. 4/G. He and his mentor, Edward Sapir, compared this with English and noticed how the two languages had a completely different system for forming words. H. He claims that it is thoughts that lead to language, and not the other way round. When Jacques was 12(twelve years) old, his mother began speaking to him only in French, his father addressed him only in Greek, and he was sent to an English-speaking day school in Paris. Of course, the child was the same person no matter which of the three languages he was using. 1. ___ “I felt probably ruder and more aggressive in Greek, clear and concise in French, and creative and long-winded in English,” he said. *** Speaking it will force you to think longer and harder, and you may feel like you played a five - set tennis match after a conversation. Jacques' experience of languages seems to concur with a theory developed back in 1931 in the linguistics departament of Yale University. A student by the name of Benjamin Whorf was carrying out some research into the Algonquian language, Shawnee? which was spoken by only 200 people at the time. 2. ___ Their findings led them to develop the 'Sapir-Whorf hypothesis' which claims that the language we speak shapes our experience of the world. *** And yet, his personality seemed to vary. But how is it possible for a language to determine our understanding of the world and therefore affect our personality? The answer may lie in the way that different languages are constructed. In Greek, for example, the verb usually comes first, its conjugation revealing the tone and meaning of the rest of the sentence, making it easier for the listener to interrupt. 3. ___ And in English, words tend to be more adaptable and easier to rhyme. *** French has an unusually, large vocabulary, allowing the speaker to find extremely precise words with specific meanings. Yet construction of a language is not the only determining factor. A study at Baruch College, New York, suggests that culture may also play a part. Researchers showed a group of bilingual Hispanic-American women the same commercial about a woman doing housework, first in Spanish and then in English. 4. ___ But when the women watched the English version, they used the derogatory terms 'traditional' and 'dependent'. Despite the striking contrast between the adjectives, it is not clear whether it was the language itself that influenced the volunteers' choices оr the cultural habits associated with that language. *** He and his mentor, Edward Sapir, compared this with English and noticed how the two languages had a completely different system for forming words. A third determining factor may be the way in which objects are classified in a language. Let's take Russian as an example. A Russian speaker to correctly learn English would associate 'glass' and 'cup' with their translations, 'stakan' and 'chashka'. Yet, in English we call ail sorts of things 'cups' coffee to-go cups. Styrofoam"- cups, plastic cups, paper cups. *** In Russian, however, the emphasis is on the shape, not the material, so all of these would merely be ‘little glasses’ or “stakanchiki”. 5. __ Therefore, in order for the Russian speaker to correctly learn English (or vice versa), he must pay attention to not just direct translations but also to categorizations, in this case shape versus material. Although there seems to be a great deal of evidence supporting the argument that language influences personality, there are obviously those who do not agree. One of the greatest opponents is Stephen Pinkr of Harvard Uniwrsity. *** A comparative analysis between languages shows that languages may well rewire our minds. 6. ___ Consequently, he believes that as long as we can think about something, then we can formulate a way to say it. And so the debate rages on. But as Jacques himself points out: it makes a big difference which language to choose when it comes to discussing a subject like economics!