Commentary
Comprehension precedes production: a well known fact in developmental psychology, and one that I believe supports Terrace’s views on language without thought. Descartes claimed that the inability of animals to use …show more content…
The argument can be made that it is impossible for us as humans to discern exactly what thoughts are going through the heads of animals. Certainly, their true thoughts may be radically different from what we interpret, and different species of animals undoubtably have levels of comprehension and communication that vary drastically. However, just like young babies show distinct signs of comprehension before they are able to speak in a recognizable language, animals show signs of thought, however abstract that thought may be. It would be impossible for animals to even begin to interact with us the way that they do if they were incapable of even the most basic thought. Consider a dog barking at the sight of a stranger — it is thinking “danger”. Consider a chimpanzee, putting symbols in order for a researcher because it knows it will be rewarded. Every interaction we have with animals is proof that they are creatures who are able