Chapter 9
I think animals can learn language to a certain degree, but not in the same way as humans. Language requires a particular comprehension that animal brains aren't built for. Our brains and development are more complex and as it mentioned in the textbook, we are the only species to have a "version of a gene" that allows our mouths and vocal cords to move in a way that produces human speech.
Some crucial differences are the gene mentioned above, animals only being able to learn a couple hundred words, a very limited understanding of those words, an inability to string together full sentences or fully comprehend that words in different order mean different things. Do they understand the meaning of the words they were taught, or simply that a sound goes with a certain object. Even the more intelligent animals, like chimpanzees, were unable to develop a vocabulary past that of a two year old. Still impressive, but not at the same level.
If a chimpanzee was taught the word "leopard" and the associated animal, would they think in their minds "leopard" when they saw one in the wild? Or would they just see as it as they saw it before, with their own particular "alarm" sound?
This is a good entry that provides a clear and balanced perspective. Your example is illuminating, and I would add the question of whether the chimpanzee understands the concept of "leopard" or has just learned a classically-conditioned association between the visual image of a leopard and the sound of the word.
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