Louise Vytopil Humanities 132 Introduction to Linguistics M. Trommelen Language acquisition: Nature or Nurture? A case study: Genie Based on a book by Russ rymer: ‘Genie, a scientific tragedy’ The story of Genie is undoubtedly one of the saddest ones one can imagine. What has been done to her is something no one would ever wish to anyone, not even to their worst enemies. Her story begins on November 4th, 1970, when she and her blind mother …showed first 75 words of 4874 total…

…showed last 75 words of 4874 total…we have learned something from it. When the brain has not received enough stimulation in the form of language during the critical period, it can still learn words, but it can not conquer syntax anymore. The brain is then not capable of growing in a way that is needed for it to learn grammar anymore. Bibliography Bibliography: Russ Rymer: Genie, A Scientific Tragedy. Penguin Books’. Written account of the video ‘Secret of a Wild Child’.