But all that changed when for the first time a generation of children learnt the language in their youth. The pidgin acquired rules of inflection, word order and grammar that made it a far more efficient and effective language -- a creole. in short, as Bickerton concluded, pidgins become creoles only after they are learnt by a generation of children, who bring instinct to bear on their transformation."
I am not at all convinced that instinct is the ONLY thing the children brought to bear; though perhaps I'm seeking more of clarification than correction. My guess is that each of those children learned "rules of inflection, word order and grammar" in their own homes, from their parents in whatever language, and then took that knowledge out into society and applied it to society's language.
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Josie, I'm not sure that I'd say whole nations might wipe themselves out of existence, but I think it's conceivable that the literate class might.
