How do aliens in the story using language and communication style different from the human language (oral, pictographic, phonetic, etc.)?
Dr. Louise is the narrator of “Story Of Your Life.” She answers the phone of Colonel Waver and goes to an alien mechanical device called ‘Looking Glass’ to analyze Alien communication. The aliens have the name “Heptapod”. Her conversation with aliens was challenged by different languages. The aliens use sounds that human voices cannot produce, so the alien’s communications cannot be understood by human ears. In addition, unlike human languages, where the order of words plays an important role, aliens only use meanings and visual differences to convey their purposes but do not have much importance in word orders and grammar. Although alien communication consists of free order, that doesn’t mean that alien communication is at a lower level than human communication. While human language only aims to convey information, alien language aims at the realization of plans. The aliens know in advance how the entire sentence will be structured before writing the first sentence. In summary, when comparing the differences in communication styles between humans and aliens, I thought alien communication was similar to drawing a picture while human communication was more like typing on a keyboard.
How does the physical structure of our body inform the way we communicate? How about the aliens?
Humans created languages to communicate with others. Each continent, country, and tribe use a certain language to share one’s thoughts or information with others All languages have an order like social norms, and the sentence is completely has a meaning when the order is properly organized. However, in addition to the spoken and written language, humans supplement and explain their thoughts through physical expressions such as actions, gestures, and facial expressions. For example, when confused, people often raise both palms to the sky and shake their shoulders, Since humans have a set language or expression that suits the situation, there are also some situations in which they do not understand the other person who expresses inappropriate for the situation. However, the aliens appearing in Story Of Your Life by Ted Chang can express more than humans in terms of language. They have a total of seven arms and legs, which means that they are able to express more than humans who only have two. Also, their language is freely composed and a sentence is completed no matter where they are read, so they can express language more freely against human’s “set language rules.”