The Mosaic of Language

In a previous book (Chapouthier, 2001), one of the authors developed a thesis describing living beings by using the metaphor of the mosaic. A mosaic, as a work of art, is a representation, either figurative or abstract, and the perception of the total image as a whole is the result of the juxtaposition of small coloured elements, and their subsequent integration when perceived visually, but with the small units maintaining their individual status and characteristics of colour and shape. In a more philosophical sense, the term « mosaic » can, in general, be applied to any structure where the overall properties of the whole do not destroy the autonomy of the properties of the component parts. This philosophical approach will be used to apply the concept of the mosaic structure to language. A brief review will first show how the mosaic metaphor can provide an adequate description of living beings, covering anatomy and certain essential functions. Secondly, we shall present arguments showing the relevance and usefulness of this same model for linguistics. 1. Living Beings : Mosaic Systems Mosaic structures can be observed in living organisms and at every level of the structure, as defined above, i.e. structures where the properties of the whole do not cancel out the autonomy of the component parts. Complex mammalian genes are comprised of silent introns (with no immediate biological activity) and exons actively involved in cell metabolism, i.e. the life of the cell. The integrated structures (the genes) concede a degree of autonomy to their component parts (the exons and introns). In fact, modern theoreticians in the field of evolution (Ohno, 1970) claim that identical silent introns were produced through juxtaposition (referred to as « duplication ») during geological periods, and then differentiated through mutation, integrating their role and appearing as groups of active exons involved in producing new organs and new biological systems. In animal anatomy, each level of organisation can be considered as a mosaic, with a large degree of autonomy at the lower levels (Chapouthier, 2001, 2003). A cell can thus be seen as a mosaic of organites, an organ as a mosaic of cells, an organism as a mosaic of organs, where each imparts its respective share of determinism to the parts and to the whole. Similarly, organised societies, e.g. bees and primates, are mosaics of individuals that maintain their autonomy (and in human societies, this autonomy means freedom) …