Vignette identifier
3V0811.04 Surprising syngnosticity (4/12/80) Peggy’s toy elephant she names “Arroot.” Miriam received as a birthday present a pig hand-puppet which Peggy very much admires. She asked the name and Miriam called it “Alfred,” since which Peggy has been chasing and pestering her for “My arroot.” The resolution a half hour later: Peggy came in the …
3V0804.01 Directed speech (4/5/80) I consider the appearance of this phenomenon one of the most striking evidences of the elevation of control. Several days ago, Peggy approached me with her favorite toy, “Bear Hug.” She said to me, “Say ‘Hi bear’.” I did as she asked. This was repeated a few times, with Scurry as …
3V0781.01 “Peggy Lawler” – what symbols mean to her (3/13/80) Ever since Miriam’s gift of the Grover Book (wherein she wrote PEGGY LAWLER on the inside cover to show ownership), Peggy has interpreted any group of letters as meaning “Peggy Lawler.” She distinguishes (more or less) between four things: letters, seen as individuals; pictures in …
3V0780.03 Shoe Daddy off: clear example of non-standard syntax (3/12/80) Peggy said this as I removed my shoes. It is perfectly clear she was describing what I did and it is also clear what she meant, “Daddy is taking off his shoe.” the syntax appears quite non-standard.
3V0777.01 Analogies — their incomprehension; deep role in cognition. (3/9/80) Peggy woke me at midnight, she had a stuffy nose and was crying for her Mommy. we played in the sitting room, she in my lap. Pointing to a foxy, she said ‘Get foxy.’ I replied ‘Too far away.’ She continued ‘Like a fader.’ Surprised, …
3V0776.02 An inference (3/8/80) Peggy ran from the dining room to me in the living room. Holding out her hand to me (I responded to take whatever it might be), Peggy dropped coins in my hand. She said, ‘Money on table. Somebody left it.’ Not only is this a two-sentence speech act, it also exhibits …
3V0775.03 Who’s that? — syngnostic use (3/7780) Peggy does not distinguish Who and What. consequently, when requesting the name of an object she asks, ‘Who’s that?’ Today she held up a toy, plastic doll and asked “Who’s that?” “You mean your dolly?’ I responded. She then became more specific, pointing with her finger on the …
3V0775.02 Repetition and further specification (3/7/80) Gretchen mentioned hearing Peggy do a most interesting thing : she first said, ‘ Lookit table.’ then immediately ‘repeated’ the phrase more precisely as ‘Look at the table.’ This is an example of the incremental standardization of speech production under her own direction (this may be well compared to …
3V0769.01 Miriam’s Pillow; idea: function words as pause fillers (3/1/80) Because in the worst periods of her allergies, Miriam slept better sitting up, we bought her a king sized pillow. It is longer than Peggy is tall and wider. Thus Peggy finds it perfect for falling on. Miriam tried to take it away while Peggy …
3V0767.01 Don’t rub your eyes”; imitation as analysis by synthesis (2/28/80) So, Gretchen reminded me. I sat in my chair with Peggy and one of her books on my lap. (My eyes get itchy from allergic reactions and I rub them excessively, almost without noticing). Peggy turned, looked at me (after I had stopped) and …
3V0749.01 Words and Numbers; primary roots of discrimination (2/10/80) Miriam and Peggy play with my yardstick a lot (a free one from a local hardware store, it has the measure and advertisements on it). Miriam marches around with it on her shoulder: “hup, two, three, four; hup…” Peggy marches too, “hup, two, three; hup, two, …
3V0733.01 [chin hurts] Variation anchor, abetted by questioning. (1/25/80) Peggy somehow hurt herself, and when asked what was the matter, replied, ‘Chin hurts.’ A few days previously, as I was changing her diaper, I became aware that she was talking away. P : ‘…neck….hurt (or hurts, I could not notice)…’ G : ‘Your neck hurts, …
3V0729.01 [bye, X] -> [bye chair]…[bye table]…[by stairs]…(as bedroom entered) [bye bed] [bye culdy]…bye Robby… bye Mimi…(bob, from afar, “what about daddy?”) bye daddy] [bye house…bye car…bye trees…bye house (a neighbor, the car now moving) Going upstairs to have her diapers changed, Peggy recited a litany as we passed.
3V0728.04 [to-me]: another bound preposition (1/20/80) Asking for a xxxttle (candy) Peggy held out her hand and commanded, ‘to me.’ Gretchen.
3V0728.01 CAUSE – toilet training; cause, agent, effect (1/20/80) We have tried to interest Peggy in using a small toilet. She plays with it, pushing around the house, chasing the dog with it, and so forth – investigating the removable pot and peering at it every which way. Now she knows the clothes come off …
3V0720.01 [fork…hurts…arm…me]: Peggy’s most complex phrase construction before the upsurge of pause deletion and appearance of anchoring with variation in her verbal productions (1/12/80) Peggy stabbed herself with the tines of a fork. I can’t recall whether she was in her high chair or helping unload the dishwasher, but her words and pauses are certain. …
3V0718.01 Who’s there ? (Original notes on homely binding and lonely discovery) (1/10/80) Peggy’s use of the knock-knock joke script has been monolithic — ie. she would not respond in the victim’s role, nor would she continue in any way no matter what response her victim made. This morning, when I brought some coffee to …
3V0714.01 [own stool… on it] Example of two loosely joined tight substructures: needed descriptions of cross level tightness of binding. (1/6/80) Miriam cooked soup at the stove and Peggy wanted to see. Miriam offered the use of her small red stool, one of two. Peggy chose to get the second, put it next to Miriam, …
3V0709.02 [Mimi did it…Peggy’s] Good example; issues important; developing a vocabulary to describe observed phenomena. (1/1/80) The situation to which the locution applies was Miriam’s making a wrapped package, a present, and giving it to Peg. Peggy brought it to me to show. what is significant here is the pause/connected structure of the phrasing. There …
3V0707.01 Color names: beginning of a long story. (12/30/79) Peggy wears plastic pants over her diapers. Most are transparent. One pair is pink and she prefers that pair. While changing her recently, Gretchen began putting on a pair of transparent pants. Peggy cried plaintively, “Black, black” while pointing in the direction of the pink pants …
3V0706.03 [fork!…for-me]: example of bound preposition (12/29/79) Peggy sat in her high chair. Miriam had made an open faced cheese sandwich and given two pieces to Peggy. It is our custom to eat such fare with our fingers. Peggy had put her fork on the table beyond immediate reach. Other of us ate food with …
3V0706.01 Knock knock jokes: story used in ACR chapter of CECD. (12/29/79) Jokes have been much in the air lately. I’ve worked on OCL: Inventing Jokes. Miriam made me a joke book as a Christmas present. Peggy has begun telling knock-knock jokes, apparently in imitation (without instruction): Peggy: knock-knock ? Victim: Who’s there ? Peggy: …
3V0704.01 Playing the piano. (12/27/79) Often since her early infancy, Peggy would come to me while I sat at the piano and ask to come up with me. It has been my practice to then play “chopsticks” with the middle range of the piano free for Peggy’s playing with me. I have shaped her playing …
3V0697.01 [nice bear]: feeling is first ! good example for raising issues in the further-specification model. (12/20/79) Peggy has been using the term “nice” very frequently both as an expression of her feeling about something and her request for concurrence. For example, in P99 or P98, after drawing on a piece of paper, she asked …
3V0690.01 Harp and Guitar: naming shows assimilation of a new object to a familiar schema with spontaneous naming, social differentiation of relations, and her locking in the relationship. (12/13/79) We were all watching the Marx Brothers movie “Monkey Business.” (Note also that bob Despain recently gave Miriam an old Guitar of his.) At one point, …
3V0686.01 [gone…bird] Formulation: pre-sentences as further verbal specification of a well worked out scenario of action (along with infant’s gradually increasing sense of what else it might have meant). (12/4/79) Peggy has been playing her “gone” joke or game (cf. ???) for sometime. Frequently when she says gone, I ask “What’s gone?” Today, while [playing …
3V0683.02 Kicking and hurt feelings. (12/6/79 and earlier) Peggy’s control over her supports, her legs, has been of apparent and considerable interest to her, I recall her joy at being able to jump with both feet when first she could and, most recently (12/20 ff.), her tapping with one foot to music while standing [this …
3V0683.01 CHIN: word learning and private review in play. (12/6-7/79) Peggy found an old doll of Gretchen’s in the basement. She brought it to Miriam (who was sitting in my lap) and me and began pointing to and naming what struck her — the dress, the hair, face parts — eyes, nose. I realized that …
3V0674.01 COUNTING (carrying two cookies) [one, two, seven] ONE, TWO, SEVEN (11/27/79) Peggy came into the study (living room) with cookies in hand (one each) and said to me “two”. She continued beyond me, saying, “One, two, seven”. [FOOTNOTE: Later note on date written up: 12/6 This evening, I asked Miriam is she had been …
3V0670.01 UP & DOWN: symmetrical relations; very IMPORTANT DATA on word-thing relations: she relates words and their structures of meaning through reversibility as actions. (11/23/79) Peggy wandered into the living room today with her “Bear Hug” in hand. She held it high “Up” and put it on the ground “Down.” She repeated this exercise several …
3V0668.01 Answering questions: she interprets query as request for more information but does not interpret specific elements, for example “who” or “what”. (11/21/79) Peggy interprets questions as requests for information — more specificity — in what she has said. but she does not distinguish roles of elements in a sentence as related to the specific …
3V0666.01 [bear come Peggy]: near sentence example. (11/9/79) She got away from us — up the stairs where the older children were while Gretchen and I were in the living room. When I realized she was gone, I raced to the stairwell and found Peggy at the top, coming down one step at a time, …
3V0664.01 Important observation and speculation: hiatus in holophrastic period as structure transition indicator; its disappearance indicates a new level of organization (11/17/79) [following write-up of [bear come peggy] incident — This last incident contrasts with what has been Peggy’s normal usage in situations of accompaniment. It has been typical that when Peggy saw some action …
3V0638.01 Holophrase sequences: [goody…scurry…food…treat] see note below: # 289 10/22/79 Peggy knows where Scurry’s goodies are kept, and often asks to give her one (frequently giving it a nibble herself in transit). She has always called it /fu/ (“food”). Today, as I got Scurry’s heartworm pill from the shelf above, Peggy pointed up and said …
3V0628.01 [hurt…ham(mer?)]: instrumental case in presyntactic form 10/12/79 Working at completing the partition in Robby’s room, I set a chair across the doorway to keep Peggy away from the tools and paint. Having removed my shoes (paint on the bottom of one), I came out of the room carrying a hammer. Stepping over the obstacles, …
3V0622.01 [mama got eye]: MAJOR NOTE on cognitive structures behind speech; topic and comment at “discourse” level, not a word level. 10/6/79 Gretchen long ago began instructing Peggy in the names of body parts, especially of the face. Recently, Peggy has surprised me by making comments about the commonality of the body parts. For example, …
3V0615.01 [bag gone]: hiding bag behind her; 9/29/79 Peggy playing “gone” with a bag, holding it behind her, and remarking [bag gone]. Gretchen.
3V0593.01 [maemae take bath]: CENTRAL NOTE: first complex follow up to /cul’/du/vae/vae’/ 9/7/79 This morning, as Peggy and I played on the bed, Gretchen asked if I were going to take a bath, and we agreed she should do so first. Peggy played with her bear, picked up a book, called out “Mama !” and …
3V0587.02 [I threw it]: Before the incident described above (in Vignette V0586A), Peggy, Gretchen and I sat in the living room, Peggy playing with Gretchen’s wallet. She picked it up and threw it across the room, under a chair. I censured her “No, Peggy, no. Don’t do that.” She responded, talking to herself it seems …
3V0587.01 /cul’/du/vae/vae’/: CENTRAL INCIDENT;major insight ascribed on basis of incident. 9/1/79 Over the past several weeks, our house has suffered a greater than usual density and flux of Tintin cartoon books. As do the older kids, Peggy enjoys them. She brings a magazine, says /aen//aen/ and convinces one to hold her in his lap while …
3V0573.02 Enriched Phrases : 08/18/79; Peggy has long said [have that] meaning either [(you) have that] or [(I want to) have that] as the pragmatic context makes sufficiently clear. In a typical scenario today, Peggy was unnecessarily specific in her utterance, thus. Peggy frequently plunks some object (a book or toy) in one’s lap, says …
3V0566.01 Twirling : 08/11/79; Peggy enjoys “dancing” whenever I play a recording of fast music. To her basic step — a bobbing at the knees (with feet firmly planted) conjoined with a waving of arms — Peggy has now added a second, turning in place. I can’t document the source of this twirling, but I …
3V0556.01 Toothbrush: 08/01/79; Playing on my bed, looking at the older children’s pictures, Peggy saw my ‘traveling’ toothbrush on the adjacent dresser top. “Have that, have that” was her cry and I did not stop her from taking it. Peggy picked up the toothbrush by the handle, examined the bristles, then tentatively opened her mouth …
3V0545.01 VERBAL LABELS: 07/21/79; Peggy frequently points to or touches things saying “that” with an intonation not signifying interrogation. I would say she uses the standard declarative intonation except that it might imply an intention — but that is precisely what we don’t know. Does she mean “Look at that” ? “I recognize that” ? …
3V0544.01 “reading” Scientific American: 07/20/79 Since Miriam offered to “read the book” (Madeline), Peggy has pestered us to read to her. The selection is surprising. Today she came careening through the gallery pass-way waving a Scientific American and saying distinctly (to herself — she was nowhere near me yet) [read]. We did, after lunch, “read” …
3V0541.01 Scars: scrape on floor analogous to scar on her own body. Comprehension evidence for “what’s that?” Explaining. (7/17/79) Raising beams for the living room ceiling led to a lot of furniture moving. At one point, a pebble caught under the couch, scraped across the floor and left a wide (1/4″) and long (14″) scar …
3V0522.01 Tirades disappeared; “comments” instead (6/28/79) What happened to the ‘tirades’ and recording of them? The attempt at recording failed because they dropped out of Peggy’s behavior — rather, they took a reduced form which is more appropriate to call “comments.” The characteristic of a comment is its length — typically two or three sentences …
3V0516.01 Naming cars; relation of teaching and exploration (6/22/79) Riding Back from graduation at MIT, Peggy frequently pointed at trucks passing in the opposite direction with her squeals of delight. We named them for [her] “truck,” “van.” We all over subsequent days continued this on local trips where the distinction was often made between trucks …
3V0498.01 In Boston for MIT graduation (6/04-5/79) This was our trip to Boston for Bob’s graduation from MIT. We all got up at 5 am, to drive to Boston by 9. Peggy was left at the child care service in McCormack Hall while the rest of us went to Killian Court. She behaved very well, …
3V0495.01 Spills: Peggy mopping them up (6/1/79) Spills, of course, are common with Peggy. Today she got some milk on the floor. Somehow she got a towel (probably a regular cloth one from the refrigerator door handle) and mopped at the spills on the floor. We gave her a paper towel to work with. thereafter, …