Language acquisition and innate cognitive abilities: An approach from the mental models theory

Abstract

According to Hornstein, generative grammar needs to give an account of the fact that children can learn any language living in contexts with many limitations and shortcomings from the linguistic point of view. He thinks that inductive theories are not able to explain a learning with such limitations and shortcomings. Likewise, in his view, semantic theories do not show why semantics is necessary to account for that fact. However, this paper is intended to argue in favor of the idea that an essentially semantic cognitive theory, the mental models theory, can not only to explain the aforementioned fact, but also make it evident that semantics is essential in most human intellectual activities.