Fodor's Language of Thought

Fodor's Language of Thought theory suggests that the mind has an internal, symbolic language—called "mental language"—that underlies all thinking and reasoning. Just as words and sentences communicate ideas in spoken language, these mental symbols represent concepts and allow us to process information, solve problems, and understand the world. This internal language is structured and rule-based, enabling complex thoughts to be built from simpler units like words and symbols. Essentially, it proposes that our thoughts are organized in a mental "language" that functions like a coding system, facilitating clear and systematic mental operations.