Meaning minimum
On Roman Jakobson, Sergej Karcevskij and CHINO Eiichi
TANAKA Akio
1.
Meaning minimum is one of the kernel concepts for the model of language universals on my study. The concept was at first thought from Roman Jakobson's semantic minimum on which I first read at his book, ESSAIS DE LINGUISTIGUE GENERALE, 1973. His concept was yet intuitive at the linguistic study history in the latter half of the 20th century. Comparison with his concept, my definition of meaning minimum was a certain basis prepared in the learning of mathematics, especially on algebraic geometry, that is the most fantastic approach to the construction of the language model. But the contents of meaning minimum is vacant. This concept shows the minimum unit of one big constructive meaning of word. meaning minimum seems to be correspondent with element of set theory, which theory and foundations of mathematics had been my favourite mathematical basis in 1970s, my youth time. Bourbaki was always echoed around us. Grothendieck was a highest star in this world.
2.
Time went fast from at that time. Set theory became one of the premise field of mathematics. But in my part, set theory's agenda was put at a another point. Because language has a certain expanded world that seems to be continuous. Set theory's atomic discreteness does not match in my primary learning level. So, in my age 30s, I had sank in the philosophically intuitive thinking often referring the tradition of 1920s, especially of the Linguistic Circle of Prague. On the circle my teacher CHINO Eiichi had taught me from time to time on the campus of university or coffee shop near the station we used. CHINO had gone to the Czechoslovakia Republic from 1959 to 1967. I first met him in 1969 at his Russian class at my third year of university student. I was the age 21 and he was 37.
3.
At the age 23's 1971 spring, I graduated university and once became a high school's teacher and again returned back to university in 1979 after 8 year job of the school. At that time I thought of characters' distinctive features on Written Chinese classics. I mainly read WANG Guowei, ZHANG Binglin, DUAN Yucai, WANG Yinzhi being guided by Japanese modern scholar KANO Naoki. Expressly I had attracted to WANG Guowei and his book Guantangjilin. Besides reading these China's Qing dynasty's linguistic peaks, I had always thought on Ludwig Wittgenstein for his endless pursuit on language. So I resigned school and came back to the campus where I again met with CHINO. I was age 30s and he was 50s. He was already the big scholar at the linguistic field but I was a poor return student. But I dare to say we were colleagues for language study. He taught me the detailed and strict tradition of the linguistic Circle of Prague. He frequently talked on Sergej Karcevskij and his eminent discernment on language. In the later year's masterpiece, Janua Linguisticae Reserata, 1994, he wrote only Karcevskij as genius in the great linguists.
4.
Being led by CHINO, I again started linguistic learning on meaning that I had been interested in from my 20s but too hard to approach by my talent. This time I had Karcevskij's fine insight to meaning enough absorbing the fertile tradition of Prague, where also exist Jakobson and Muthesius. Through the learning I gradually lean to desire to write clear definitions on language. I again remembered the little learning of my 20s age's mathematics. Bourbaki, Gödel, TAKEUCHI and their set theory, foundations of mathematics and that Incompleteness theorem. I had learnt mathematics little by little, inch by inch.
5.
CHINO Died in 2002 at age 70 and I became 55. The next year 2003, I wrote a short paper titled "Quantum Theory for Language". This paper was showed at a international symposium on Silk road for dealing with language from Chinese characters on linguistic viewpoint. I knew that Asian civilisation and history had great concern not only from Asia but also European continents. At the symposium some 400 researchers gathered in the various scholarly fields. It was a awesome encounter for my study, namely, East meet West. Probably Chinese character's agenda will be written by Europe oriented mathematics. WANG Guowei will meet with karcevskij mediated through mathematics' description. The target confronted at that time was time inherent in characters, or time in word. In Chinese, particularly in classical written Chinese, all the characters show enough independent meaning in one character probably including even time. It was my first conjecture taught from Karcevskij and CHINO. Meaning minimum is on the boat going across to the opposite shore. This metaphor was derived from WANG Guowei's famous paper, "Yin- bu zhong suojian xiangong xianwang kao"
6.
The concept of time inevitably led to the concept of distance. In 2004, I wrote a paper titled "Distance Theory". But the paper was yet intuitive and not clear for descriptive definition. So hereinafter I learnt algebra inch by inch being assisted with the rich heritage of geometry. In the centre of learning, always exist time that connotes finiteness and infinity. But infinity is not easily obtained without probably only loop space at the present. And again returns back to meaning minimum as the passenger of the boat named time property inherent. This time the passenger on the boat is called operad or algebraic language.
7.
After all I came back to the very dream that I had embraced since the high school days. It was a fundamental ask on language related with mathematics and physics. The root of language would be able to describe by mathematics and physics. In my mind language is always put at the centre of the pursuit that was what anyone can clearly understand. Description by mathematics, but physics why (Note 1)?. Physics treats with substance that constructs the world in which I had desire to let language enter. It started at Substantiality of language (References 2. 2). It was my dream and probably will be so, hereafter.
References
1.
Cell Theory Continuation of Quantum Theory for Language / From Cell to Manifold For LEIBNIZ and JAKOBSON / Tokyo June 2, 2007
The Time of Language Ode to The Early Bourbaki To Grothendieck / January 10, 2012
2.
Fortuitous Meeting What CHINO Eiichi Taught Me in the Class of Linguistics / Tokyo December 5, 2004
Linguistic Circle of Prague / Tokyo 13 July 2012, 19 July 2012 Added
3.
The Complete Works of WANG Guowei / Tokyo 24 May 2012
The Time of Wittgenstein / Tokyo January 20, 2012
Notes for KARCEVSKIJ Sergej / Note for KARCEVSKIJ Sergej's "Du dualisme asymetrique du signe linguistique" / Tokyo September 8, 2011
4.
Quantum Linguistics / Growth of Word Dedicated to TAKEUCHI Gaishi / Tokyo January 30, 2006
5.
Quantum Theory for Language Synopsis / Tokyo January 15, 2004
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