The Language Game

Explore the fascinating realm of communication with The Language Game. This compelling trade paperback challenges traditional linguistic theories, offering fresh insights into the origins and mechanics of language. Delve into thought-provoking questions: What defines language? How do children acquire speech effortlessly while linguists struggle? This book dismantles the idea that language is a static set of rules, suggesting instead that it’s an evolving tapestry woven from countless linguistic fragments. captivating narratives and rich examples illustrate how our brains enable us to understand complex sounds and fleeting messages. Additionally, discover why language diversity is a hallmark of human culture and how our unique capacity for language shapes our thinking. This 304-page read is not just a scholarly work; it’s a must-have for anyone interested in linguistics, cognitive science, or philosophy. With The Language Game, experience how language functions as an improvisational art form, offering insights into communication while highlighting the intricate interplay between language and thought. Perfect for language enthusiasts and researchers alike, this title promises to ignite curiosity and stimulate meaningful discussions about the nature of language. Enjoy FREE shipping on your purchase and expand your understanding of one of humanity's greatest inventions.

Condition: BRAND NEW
ISBN: 9781787633490
Format: Trade paperback (UK)
Year: 2022
Publisher: RANDOM HOUSE UK
Pages: 304


Description:
What is language? Why do we have it? Where does it come from? Why does that matter?
Upending centuries of scholarship (including, most recently, Chomsky and Pinker) and challenging our common sense view of language and, by extension, thought itself, The Language Game shows how people learn to talk not by acquiring fixed meanings and rules, but by picking up, reusing, and recombining countless linguistic fragments in novel ways. Talking is verbal charades- an improvisational game of spinning intricate patterns of words to get the message across. Each improvisation builds on the last, creating the richly layered patterns that comprise a language. The patterns in language are not wired into our brains or our genes- the spontaneous emergence of linguistic order turns out to be a story as remarkable as the emergence of life itself.
Drawing on wonderfully entertaining and persuasive examples from across the world the book explains-
How we can understand each other given the speed of speech, the deluge of sounds and how short-lived our memory is.
Why it is that language is such a challenge for linguists but learnt effortlessly by toddlers.
Why we don't all speak the same language and why language is so varied.
What it is about our brains that makes language possible for us and why chimps don't talk.
Which languages are most difficult and why.
And how language has shaped thought, rather than the other way around.


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