Language both allows us to function and limits our perceptions.
Yes, language, as it is normally refered to -- as a communication tool -- allows us to function as a society but also limits our perceptions... those limits are in direct proportion to the common language of those that are communicating...
Actually, language is extremely important for (abstract) thought.
I believe just the opposite... it is abstract thought in particular that has no spoken language, as in dialect... it is only possible to convey most abstract information through other methods of communication that utilize one of our 5 senses... language itself is missing...
When a musician composes music, there are no words to express what he is trying to accomplish... There are words to express what he does accomplish - like arpeggio, cresendo, etc... ie, a vocubalary, in some language, that will convey from one musician to another the overall meaning and connectivity from one note drawn on the paper to the next note drawn... Those notes, in of themselves, are part of a language, but in no way do they represent or truly communicate to another person, even a musician, until that are processed by the receiver. This processing is considered thought... although no language is used... Another musician can process this information without every "hearing" it as they can assimilate that respresentation whereas some individuals would need simply to hear the score played on a single instrument and yet others would need to hear the score played by the orchestra before the original composition was communicated...
When you hear a song or see a piece of art that somehow touches you emotionally, try to find the words you thought when this happened... My guess is, you can't... language was momentarily bypassed... you saw, felt, and assimilated something relative to you and only you... As you begin to make sense of that experience, you utilize concrete thought, ie language... to represent and convey what just happened.
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