Contents
Noam Chomsky
Transforming the study of language through generative grammar and becoming a prominent critic of power.
Syntactic Structures · Aspects of the Theory of Syntax
- Born
- 7 December 1928
- Birthplace
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
More people
Noam Chomsky
Noam Chomsky is an American linguist and political writer. His linguistic research asks how people produce and understand sentences they have never encountered before.
Early life
Philadelphia upbringing
Grew up in a family immersed in Hebrew language and education.
University study
Studied at the University of Pennsylvania, working with linguist Zellig Harris.
Career
- 1955
MIT appointment
Joined the Massachusetts Institute of Technology after completing his doctorate.
- 1957–1960s
Generative grammar
Published influential accounts of the structures underlying human language.
- 1960s onwards
Public criticism
Became an outspoken opponent of the Vietnam War and a prolific political author.
- 2017
Arizona appointment
Joined the University of Arizona as a laureate professor.
Contributions
Syntactic Structures
Presented a new formal approach to grammatical structure.
Aspects of the Theory of Syntax
Developed the distinction between linguistic knowledge and its use.
Manufacturing Consent
Co-authored a model of media power with Edward S. Herman.
Beyond work
Anti-war activism
Combined academic work with protests and public lectures challenging American foreign policy.
Family collaboration
His first wife, Carol Chomsky, was a linguist who researched children’s reading.
Sources & photo credit
Biography ↗Life and work ↗Photo: Σ, retouched by Wugapodes and Jonnmann. CC BY-SA 4.0 · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
