The second chapter of Mulroy's book also mentions how rhetoric is the "least respectable of liberal arts." I understand Plato's claim that it is used to satisfy the empirical appetites and that it is not something innate or that a person is born with. Since, however, its "utalitarian value is so obvious" it seems that it would have more deserving view than what its given in this book.
If I'm reading this chapter right, then some ancient philosophers also believed that grammar is instinctive. For example, if using Plato's beliefs, grammar is not lost during from the transition of the soul from the transcendental realm to the empirical realm. It does not have to "awaken" within the soul. One line from the book states that people can't even conceive a thought without using grammar somehow. So does this mean that as young children, who have had no education in grammar, we still used it in our thought processes? This, for me, is somewhat hard to believe. What do you think?
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I recommend that you check out the Pinker article which is taken from his book The Language Instinct!
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