Neurología y lingüística: la “teoría de redes relacionales” como una alternativa ante Chomsky

Abstract

The hypotheses of the «faculty of language» (both in «a broad» and «a narrow sense»), the «three factors» which determine language design, and the bases of the Minimalist Program are introduced in the fi rst part of this article. The fundamental critics made by Steven Pinker and Ray Jackendoff, from the inner generative/Chomskyan theory, are analyzed in the second part. The third part is a critic to the Chomskyan program as a whole, from the basis of the one that has already been made by George Lakoff: «the Chomskyan Commitment» is incompatible with the Empiricist Commitment. In the fourth part, it will be argued that there is neurological evidence that can be interpreted as the background of the so called «neurocognitive theory». It will be also argued that this same evidence implies a severe question to the generative theory. The set of conclusions is about the following idea: If the neurological evidence is considered, and if linguists want to assume the Empiricist Commitment, then it seems to be convenient to follow pathways of research different from those ones indicated by Chomsky.