So @bookish1, I don’t know if you’ve been around long enough understand my philosophies on consciousness and information theory, which are related heavily to my interest in linguistics, such as Bhartrihari’s Sphota Theory of Language and biblical principles of The Word.
The cognitive studies department of Washington University uses over 70 different language tests to determine a patients conscious awareness. I believe that levels of consciousness are directly related to one’s ability to define their world with language.
Here’s why your comments are so important to me. Let’s say, for instance, I have two words to describe an object. Let’s say, “cup”, and “mug”. Those descriptors allow a certain level of conscious awareness of that object. But if Spanish denotes the same object as “taza”, then my potential for expanding consciousness of that object has increased.
The problem, is that if I’m simply translating back to English, then it’s simple code mapping, and no greater conscious awareness has occurred beyond realizing a new way of spelling the representation of that object. But if what you say is true, and the language embodies the ability to actually “think differently”, and I do indeed “think differently”, then my conscious awareness of that object has truly expanded.