language deprivation experiment
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Language deprivation experiments have been claimed to have been attempted at least four times through history, isolating infants from the normal use of spoken or signed language in an attempt to discover the fundamental character of human nature or the
origin of language The origin of language (spoken and signed, as well as language-related technological systems such as writing), its relationship with human evolution, and its consequences have been subjects of study for centuries. Scholars wishing to study th ...
. The American literary scholar Roger Shattuck called this kind of research study the "forbidden experiment" because of the exceptional deprivation of ordinary human contact it requires. Although not designed to study language, similar experiments on non-human primates (labelled the "
pit of despair The pit of despair was a name used by American comparative psychologist Harry Harlow for a device he designed, technically called a vertical chamber apparatus, that he used in experiments on rhesus macaque monkeys at the University of Wisconsin†...
") utilising complete social deprivation resulted in serious psychological disturbances.


In history

An early record of a study of this kind can be found in Herodotus's ''
Histories Histories or, in Latin, Historiae may refer to: * the plural of history * ''Histories'' (Herodotus), by Herodotus * ''The Histories'', by Timaeus * ''The Histories'' (Polybius), by Polybius * ''Histories'' by Gaius Sallustius Crispus (Sallust), ...
''. According to Herodotus (ca. 485 – 425 BE), the
Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...
pharaoh Psamtik I (664 – 610 BE) carried out such a study, and concluded the
Phrygia In classical antiquity, Phrygia ( ; grc, ÎŠÏÏ…ÎłÎŻÎ±, ''PhrygĂ­a'' ) was a kingdom in the west central part of Anatolia, in what is now Asian Turkey, centered on the Sangarios River. After its conquest, it became a region of the great empires ...
n race must antedate the Egyptians since the child had first spoken something similar to the Phrygian word ''bekos'', meaning "bread". Recent researchers suggest this was likely a willful interpretation of their babbling. An experiment allegedly carried out by Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II in the 13th century saw young infants raised without human interaction in an attempt to determine if there was a
natural language In neuropsychology, linguistics, and philosophy of language, a natural language or ordinary language is any language that has evolved naturally in humans through use and repetition without conscious planning or premeditation. Natural languages ...
that they might demonstrate once their voices matured. It is claimed he was seeking to discover what language would have been imparted into Adam and Eve by God. The experiments were recorded by the monk Salimbene di Adam in his ''Chronicles'', who was generally extremely negative about Fredrick II (portraying his ''calamities'' as parallel to the Biblical plagues in ''The Twelve Calamities of Emperor Frederick II'') and wrote that Frederick encouraged "foster-mothers and nurses to suckle and bathe and wash the children, but in no ways to prattle or speak with them; for he would have learnt whether they would speak the Hebrew language (which he took to have been the first), or Greek, or Latin, or Arabic, or perchance the tongue of their parents of whom they had been born. But he laboured in vain, for the children could not live without clappings of the hands, and gestures, and gladness of countenance, and blandishments." A few centuries after Frederick II's alleged experiment,
James IV of Scotland James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauchi ...
was said to have sent two children to be raised by a
mute Muteness is a speech disorder in which a person lacks the ability to speak. Mute or the Mute may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Mute'' (2005 film), a short film by Melissa Joan Hart * ''Mute'' (2018 film), a scien ...
woman isolated on the island of Inchkeith, to determine if language was learned or innate. The children were reported to have spoken good Hebrew, but historians were sceptical of these claims soon after they were made. Mughal emperor
Akbar Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar (25 October 1542 – 27 October 1605), popularly known as Akbar the Great ( fa, ), and also as Akbar I (), was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Hum ...
was later said to have children raised by mute wetnurses. Akbar held that speech arose from hearing; thus children raised without hearing human speech would become mute.M. Miles
''SIGN, GESTURE & DEAFNESS IN SOUTH ASIAN & SOUTH-WEST ASIAN HISTORIES: a bibliography with annotation and excerpts from India; also from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Burma/Myanmar, Iraq, Nepal, Pakistan, Persia/Iran, & Sri Lanka'', c1200-1750
Some authors have doubted whether or how exactly the experiments of Psamtik I and James IV actually took place;Robin N Campbell & Robert Grieve (12/1981). Royal Investigations of the Origin of Language.
''Historiographia Linguistica 9(1-2):43-74'' DOI: 10.1075/hl.9.1-2.04cam
and probably the same goes for that of Frederick II.Wi.Pö. (2000). Waisenkinderversuche (= Orphan Experiments).
''Lexikon der Psychologie'' (= ''Encyclopedia of Psychology''). Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, Heidelberg.
Akbar's study is most likely authentic, but offers an ambiguous outcome.


In fiction

*The "forbidden experiment" occurs in
Paul Auster Paul Benjamin Auster (born February 3, 1947) is an American writer and film director. His notable works include ''The New York Trilogy'' (1987), ''Moon Palace'' (1989), ''The Music of Chance'' (1990), ''The Book of Illusions'' (2002), ''The Broo ...
's ''
The New York Trilogy ''The New York Trilogy'' is a series of novels by American writer Paul Auster. Originally published sequentially as ''City of Glass'' (1985), ''Ghosts'' (1986) and ''The Locked Room'' (1986), it has since been collected into a single volume. Th ...
''. *In '' The Twilight Zone'' episode "
Mute Muteness is a speech disorder in which a person lacks the ability to speak. Mute or the Mute may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Mute'' (2005 film), a short film by Melissa Joan Hart * ''Mute'' (2018 film), a scien ...
" (
1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cov ...
), several children are raised in such a manner to foster telepathic communication. *In the ''
Batgirl Batgirl is the name of several superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, depicted as female counterparts and allies to the superhero Batman. Although the character Betty Kane was introduced into publication in ...
'' comic series, the title character,
Cassandra Cain Cassandra Cain (also known as Cassandra Wayne and Cassandra Wu-San) is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Created by Kelley Puckett and Damion Scott, Cassan ...
, is deprived of spoken language during childhood. This was part of an attempt to create a
martial artist Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...
with an exceptional ability to interpret body language, as it was believed that this would give one a great advantage in close combat. *In ''
Le Miroir de Cassandre ''Le miroir de Cassandre'' (lit. ''The Mirror of Cassandra'') is a book written by Bernard Werber. The themes of the book are: future-seeing, freedom, exclusion, the future of humanity and autism. The name of the protagonist is a reference to the ...
'' by
Bernard Werber Bernard Werber (born 1961 in Toulouse) is a French science fiction writer, active since the 1990s. He is chiefly recognized for having written the trilogy ''Les Fourmis'', the only one of his novels to have been published in English. This se ...
, the title character Cassandre and her older brother are deprived of spoken language during a part of their childhood as an experiment from their mother, a famous paedopsychologist *In
Andrea Moro Andrea Carlo Moro (born July 24, 1962) is an Italian linguist, neuroscientist and novelist. He is currently full professor of general linguistics at the Institute for Advanced Study IUSS Pavia, Italy, founder and former director of NeTS and of ...
's first novel ''Il segreto di Pietramala'' Il segreto di Pietramala, La Nave di Teseo, Milano 2018; engl. transl. forthcoming where an entire village in Corse undergoes the forbidden experiment. The novel won the
Flaiano Prizes The Flaiano Prizes ( it, Premi Flaiano) are a set of Italian international awards recognizing achievements in the fields of creative writing, cinema, theater and radio-television. Established to honour the Italian author and screenwriter Ennio Flai ...
.


See also

* Adamic language * Critical period hypothesis * Feral child *
Language deprivation Language deprivation is associated with the lack of linguistic stimuli that are necessary for the language acquisition processes in an individual. Research has shown that early exposure to a first language will predict future language outcomes. Exp ...
* Language deprivation in deaf and hard of hearing children


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Language Deprivation Experiments Psycholinguistics Experimental psychology Human subject research