Language and interspecific communication experiments
a case to re-open?
pp. 473-518
in: Marcello Barbieri (ed), Introduction to biosemiotics, Berlin, Springer, 2007Abstract
Goal of the present article is to re-open the question of language and Interspecific Communication Experiments (ICE, from now on) from a biosemiotic point of view, starting from the realisation that crucial aspects of the issue have been so far underrated or even missed. In particular: – The specifically semiotic achievements of the ICE; – The connection between these achievements and the notion of language; – The consideration of ICE, as research carried out on individual non-human subjects, with specific background, attitudes, etc., in relation to the results achieved; – The several ethical implications of ICE, in terms of both methodology and outcomes. Although I am aware that most of the reflections proposed in this article are to say the least controversial, I am by all means convinced that the discussion on these matters should be restarted, as it deserves a more thorough scrutiny, and – perhaps – a less anthropocentric approach