At
the close of the second year a great advance was made in using two words
together as a sentence--e.g., "home, milk," to signify a desire to go
home and have some milk. In the first month of the third year sentences
of three or even four words were used, as "papa, pear, plate, please."
Hitherto the same word would often be employed to express several or
many associated meanings, and no words appeared to have been entirely
invented. The powers of association and inference were well developed.
For instance, the child received many presents on its birthday, and
being pleased said "bursta" (=Geburtstage); afterward when similarly
pleased it would say the same word. Again, when it injured its hand it
was told to blow upon it, and on afterward knocking its head it blew
into the air. At this age also the power of making propositions advanced
considerably, as was shown, for instance, by the following sentence on
seeing milk spilt upon the floor: "Mime atta teppa papa oi," which was
equivalent to "Milch fort (auf den) Teppich, Papa (sagte) pfui!" But
it is interesting that at this age words were learnt with an erroneous
apprehension of their meaning; this was particularly the case with
pronouns--"dein Bett," for example, being supposed to mean "das grosse
Bett.
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