Visual cortex through the lens of language

How is the visual cortex organized? Ritchie et al. (this issue) argue for moving beyond category-selective accounts toward an emphasis on complex, behaviorally relevant functions-a perspective we fully endorse. Extending this view, we emphasize that human behaviors are diverse and differentially prioritized. Among these, language emerges as a uniquely critical domain. Converging evidence from developmental and cognitive neuroscience demonstrates that language exerts a powerful influence on visual processing. These findings underscore the need to incorporate language-alongside other high-priority behaviors-into frameworks seeking to elucidate the organizational principles of the human visual cortex.