Linguistic Relativity: does language shape thought?

The concept of Linguistic Relativity was introduced Benjamin Lee Whorf in the 1950s. This theory was initially known with the name of linguistic determinism, abandoned afterwards in favour of "Linguistic Relativity”, which is a softer version of the original theory supported by Whorf. The Linguistic Relativity theory affirms that language has an influence on thought, meaning that one's native language can shape the way they think. It is believed that language can influence thought in three different moments: before language production, right before language production, after language production. The debate on Linguistic Relativity is an ongoing one. In the course of this thesis the contrasting thoughts and studies of researchers like Boroditsky, Casasanto, Pinker, McWhorter and Pullum will be displayed. To prove the reliability of this theory, some of the most important case studies regarding the perception of time and space, gender and the perception of colour, by Boroditsky, Schmidt and Winawer, will be reported.