A denotation is defined as the literal or primary meaning of a word, in contrast to the feelings or ideas that the word suggests. Language itself is defined as a method of communication. However, claiming words are only their definition is not looking at all the evidence. All you need to do is say a simple word like retard whose definition is a "mentally handicapped person" but within our culture, has a negative connotation to it.
For a for a long time, however, no connection between language and the way we think was found or even contemplated. When Benjamin Lee Whorf suggested that language shapes our reality, he was shut down harshly, due to the lack of hard evidence. His ideas were based on language being a restraint on knowledge. suggesting that if a language had no word for a concept, then the concept did not exist for those who spoke that language. Of course, if this were true, it would mean one could never learn anything new outside the concepts presented by their language. There is no evidence of such thing.
This is where the linguist Roman Jakobson comes in, who said, “Languages differ essentially in what they must convey and not in what they may convey.” In other words, different languages can influence the mind differently, not by restricting what we can think about but by making us think about certain things in certain ways.
For example, during one of my theory of knowledge classes, my teacher held a pen in her hand and dropped it. When describing her actions, she said, "I dropped the pen." Then, she asked the Spanish speakers to describe her actions in Spanish, which would be: "Se me cayo la lapicera." A direct translation to English would be "The pen fell from me". Unlike English, where the action is directly attributed to the subject, the individual who was holding the pen did not act. It fell from her. The pen become the subject. The blame is now shifted.
Another example is the way language affects sense of space and geographical orientation. Imagine you are stopped in the street by a stranger who asks for directions to the nearest pharmacy. You would say something along the lines of go three blocks up, then turn to the right and walk straight for another block. This is called egocentric coordinates, where direction depends on our bodies according to a left to right axis and a front to back axis. However, you could also say go north and then turn east, the pharmacy will be facing north. These are geographic directions, which are not dependant on our bodies therefore do not change according the directions our body is facing. It's more natural for us to give directions and in general, associate ourselves with the space we're in according to the direction our body is facing. However, a remote Australian aboriginal tongue, Guugu Yimithirr, uses geographic directions as the natural way, the same way we use egocentric instinctively. If they want you to move over, they'd say "move a bit to the east." To tell you exactly where something is, they'd say, "It's on the northern edge of the eastern counter." This is a situation where language creates a different way of associating with the space around us. And this particular use of language was not simply used in Australian, but rather found in countries like Bali and Mexico.
The thing about speaking a language like Guugu Yimithirr is not necessarily that it means they have a different sense of space but rather, their language obliges them to know and see the world differently. They have to know where the cardinal points are every single second of your waking life. You need a mental compass at all moments. Regardless, of where they are, be it in their home or a totally unknown city. Anyone who's grown up with that language would not even need to look at the sun to know the coordinates, they'd just...know them. Since it's something they were taught to be aware of since they were children, it becomes natural. The same way we instinctively and mindlessly know where "behind" and "forward" is, they know where north and south is.
In the end, the language is much more than a denotation. The language we grow up with teaches us to pay attention to certain things. It deeply impacts our schema, for it forces us to look at the world from the lenses of that language. It can shape our emotional response to inanimate objects or create in us an innate understanding of cardinal points. It creates habits for the mind which end up affecting everything, from our experiences to our expectations to our association with the space we're in.
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