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Importance of Language in Our Life Essay
The two main purposes of language in human existence are TRANSACTIONAL and INTERACTIONAL.
The transactional function is a one-way mechanism of communication, such as transferring information that does not need a reaction from the audience. For instance, broadcasting news on radio and television, attending faculty meetings, giving a lecture, and other such activities solely entail communicating information to the audience without engaging in direct discussion. Conversely, interaction entails two-way communication between the speaker and the hearer, whether it be face-to-face, over the phone, wirelessly, etc. Michael Halliday, a renowned expert on functional grammar, has identified seven purposes that language fulfils for people. As follows:
- Instrumental: Using language as an instrument of action.
- Regulatory: Regulating language is the act of influencing another person’s behaviour.
- Representational: conveying information through words.
- Interactional: use language to foster interpersonal communication.
- Personal: the use of language to convey inner thoughts and meanings.
- Heuristic: the use of language for research and learning.
- Imaginative: utilizing words to construct an imaginary world.
Humans utilize language as a key tool to create and maintain social bonds. Language, a crucial component of culture, helps its users distinguish themselves from the rest of the world and/or from groups of people who speak various languages in multilingual societies.
