The Prototype-Markedness Theory:a Cognitive Perspective Of Studying Language

Prototype theory is an important theory in cognitive linguistics. The prototype theory holds that the boundary of a category is fuzzy, and features of the category are multi-valued; status of members in the category is unequal, there is the prototypical member and peripheral member. And all the category members are based on the family resemblance. The prototype theory is much more reasonable than the classical theory of categories, but it also has several disadvantages:the list of the superficial characteristics is oversimplified, the’odd number paradox’, problems for feature sources, the problems for contrasting categories and the problems for boundaries in the prototype theory.Markedness theory argues that inside or across languages, some linguistic elements can be treated as unmarked ones. That is, simple, core, or prototypical, while others are seen as marked, that is, complex, peripheral, or exceptional. Markedness has sometimes been invoked as a predictor of the acquisition order or direction of difficulty in second and foreign language learning. However, markedness theory also has some shortcomings. For example:the markedness theory is too abstract and unclear; the attributes that are used to distinguish the marked and the unmarked is unclear; the category of marked and unmarked is also unclear. Based on the above obscurity, different people may have different distinctions, and the category members can be marked or unmarked.The prototype theory and markedness theory focus on the asymmetric status in the category members. Based on this basis, in order to avoid the shortcomings of the prototype theory and markedness theory, this thesis tries to combine the two theories into a new cognitive perspective of the prototype-markedness theory. This theory suggests that if a member of a category has simple and basic word forms, central and prototypical status in a category, and a low level of cognitive complexity and high level of cognitive salience, it is a prototypical and unmarked member. If the member has complicated word structures, peripheral and exceptional status in a category, and a high level of cognitive complexity and low level of cognitive salience, it is a non-prototypical and marked member. The thesis has shown that this theory can explain some language phenomena such as broadening, narrowing, and shifting of word meaning and so on in semantic changes. The reason is that the status of the category members has changed, some are changed from prototypical member to peripheral member, and some are changed from peripheral member to prototypical member. All in all the prototype-markedness theory can well explain the reasons for the status changes among the members in the same category or in different categories. It can also be helpful in explaining some other language phenomena.