The other gorilla mentioned, Koko had a pet kitten that she adored and cared for the same way gorillas care for their own. She would sign " good soft cat". Animals definitely feel and think, but not the way we do so we tend to assume they are stupid and emotionless.
Thank you saltlakesnark for understanding! brownbeaner714 is also partially correct in that animals just mimic their caretakers but there have been several studies (namely the one discussed in this post) that show that animals do have an understanding of what the words actually mean in relation to physical objects and ideas beyond the basic monkey see monkey do sort of response.
I know i might get down voted, but whatever. Animals don't speak our language. They tend to repeat what the caretaker is showing them. For instant if i were to show them sign language for a banana then show them the fruit they will understand it and repeat it they know they will get food if the gorilla just mimicked what the caretaker is doing. So, really they don't understand English mainly because they're animals .
That's exactly what language is. Using a word, a noise, a picture, a sign, to represent an object. When you teach a child to say car, you show them a car. You repeat over and over "car, this is a car, a car has wheels. A car goes vroom. Car." You repeat the word (or sign) and eventually the connection is made that that particular word/noise represents a car.
No, animals do not understand emotions like we do, and they don't feel them like we do. But most anyone who has had a pet can tell you that they can be sad or happy or scared. And animals can be incredibly sensitive to what their owner is experiencing.
I'd like to point out, Mr. Or Mrs. Brownerbeaner714, that humans are in fact animals. Therefore by your argument, we don't understand our own language.
No, animals do not understand emotions like we do, and they don't feel them like we do. But most anyone who has had a pet can tell you that they can be sad or happy or scared. And animals can be incredibly sensitive to what their owner is experiencing.