Philosophy of language Books

Book SynopsisThis book develops a theory of enriched meanings for natural language interpretation that uses the concept of monads and related ideas from category theory, a branch of mathematics that has been influential in theoretical computer science and elsewhere. Certain expressions that exhibit complex effects at the semantics/pragmatics boundary live in an enriched meaning space, while others live in a more basic meaning space. These basic meanings are mapped to enriched meanings only when required compositionally, which avoids generalizing meanings to the worst case. Ash Asudeh and Gianluca Giorgolo show that the monadic theory of enriched meanings offers a formally and computationally well-defined way to tackle important challenges at the semantics/pragmatics boundary. In particular, they develop innovative monadic analyses of three phenomena - conventional implicature, substitution puzzles, and conjunction fallacies - and demonstrate that the compositional properties of monads model linguistic intuitions about these cases particularly well. The analyses are accompanied by exercises to aid understanding, and the computational tools used are available on the book''s companion website. The book also contains background chapters on enriched meanings and category theory. The volume is interdisciplinary in nature, with insights from semantics, pragmatics, philosophy of language, psychology, and computer science, and will appeal to graduate students and researchers from a wide range of disciplines with an interest in natural language understanding and representation.Table of Contents1: Introduction Part I: Background 2: Enriched meanings in semantics and pragmatics 3: Category theory Part II: Case Studies 4: Conventional implicature 5: Perspectival reference 6: Uncertainty and conjunction fallacies Part III: Composition and Interactions 7: Monad combinatorics 8: Conclusion

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Book SynopsisIs a whole something more than the sum of its parts? Are there things composed of the same parts? If you divide an object into parts, and divide those parts into smaller parts, will this process ever come to an end? Can something lose parts or gain new ones without ceasing to be the thing it is? Does any multitude of things (including disparate things such as you, this book, and the tail of a cat) compose a whole of some sort? Questions such as these have occupied us for at least as long as philosophy has existed. They define the field that has come to be known as mereology-the study of all relations of part to whole and of part to part within a whole-and have deep and far-reaching ramifications in metaphysics as well as in logic, the foundations of mathematics, the philosophy of language, the philosophy of science, and beyond. In Mereology, A. J. Cotnoir and Achille C. Varzi have compiled decades of advanced research into a comprehensive, up-to-date, and formally rigorous picture. The

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Book SynopsisPiper shows how we can use data in digital humanities to learn more about the texts under consideration, making use of the surprising information that calculation and quantity can offer about words, how they’re used, and what the texts in which they’re found mean.

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Book SynopsisMarjorie Perloff, critic of 20th-century poetry, argues that Wittgenstein speaks to poets because he provides a way out of the impasse of high versus low discourse, demonstrating the inescapable strangeness of ordinary language.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"A timely intervention into the current debates on post-truth and Foucault’s significance for them. Lorenzini argues, again compellingly, that we need to steer clear of the false dilemma of either conceding that truth is only an effect of power, or strenuously defend the value of absolute truth against fake news and alternative facts. Foucault’s rejection of the Truth—truth understood as timeless and absolute—does not amount to a rejection of truth altogether. Rather, Foucault’s history of truth should be understood precisely as an attempt to criticize the claim that such an understanding of truth is necessary to stop our critical theories and practices from dissolving into relativism." -- Johanna Oksala * Critical Inquiry *"Lorenzini has established himself as the most brilliant interpreter of the work of Michel Foucault in his generation. Yet, even beyond this distinction, he has learned, as few people have, to use Foucault's work and perspective to approach topics that Foucault himself never discussed. Moreover, in his extraordinary genealogy of truth, presented in this book, Lorenzini brings together Foucault's writings with those of J. L. Austin and Stanley Cavell, among others, to give us a remarkable new way to think about some of the central issues concerning the idea of truth. Anyone who believes that analytic philosophy and continental philosophy cannot speak to one another can read this book as a superb example of how these two traditions of philosophy can mutually contribute, when read together, to the understanding of fundamental philosophical problems. If Lorenzini is the future of philosophy, philosophy is in excellent hands." -- Arnold I. Davidson, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem"In this urgent study, Lorenzini offers a powerful corrective to stubborn criticism of Foucault as a postmodern architect of the post-truth age. With stunning command of Foucault’s corpus, Lorenzini reconstructs Foucault’s history of truth as a political epistemology for our troubled times. This extraordinary book reshapes how we should understand—and resist—lying, disinformation, and other forms of political untruth." -- Verena Erlenbusch-Anderson, Syracuse University"This groundbreaking book refutes the dominant view of Foucault as a relativist and elevates the debate about his notion of truth to a new philosophical level. With exceptional clarity, Lorenzini develops an ethics and politics of truth-telling that is essential reading for everyone who seeks to take responsibility for their claims about the truth—in both theory and practice.” -- Martin Hägglund, Yale University“In this brilliant and provocative book, Lorenzini upends the conventional way that critics read Foucault as a precursor to our post-truth society. Through a meticulous reading of the Collège de France lectures, Lorenzini masterfully shows how Foucault’s lifelong passion for truth and truth-telling culminates in a powerful theory of truth as a political and ethical practice. A veritable tour de force.” -- Bernard E. Harcourt, Columbia UniversityTable of ContentsIntroduction: Writing the History of Truth A History of Truth That Does Not Rely on “the Truth” Toward an Ethics and Politics of Truth-Telling The Force of Words and the Force of Truth 1. Truth-Event “A Little History of Truth in General” The Emergence of the Alethurgic Subject Confessional Sciences 2. Regimes of Truth Truth Obligations? Games and Regimes of Truth A Critical (An)archaeology Language Games and Games of Truth The Value of Truth Regimes of Truth and Spirituality 3. Truth as Force Cavell, Austin, and the PerlocutionaryParrhesia as Speech Act Unpredictability, Freedom, and Criticism Risk and Courage Transparency, or Parrhesia and Rhetoric 4. Dramatics of Truth Alethurgy Sincerity, Authenticity, Confession Putting the Truth to the Test of Life 5. Critique and Possibilizing Genealogy Beyond the Vindicatory-Subversive Dichotomy Foucault, Habermas, and the Question of Normativity The Genealogy of Critique Genealogy and We-Making Conclusion: Rethinking Critique Acknowledgments Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisAn introduction to philosophy of language through systematic and accessible explanations of ten classic texts by such thinkers as Frege, Kripke, Russell, and Putnam.Many beginning students in philosophy of language find themselves grappling with dense and difficult texts not easily understood by someone new to the field. This book offers an introduction to philosophy of language by explaining ten classic, often anthologized, texts. Accessible and thorough, written with a unique combination of informality and careful formulation, the book addresses sense and reference, proper names, definite descriptions, indexicals, the definition of truth, truth and meaning, and the nature of speaker meaning, as addressed by Frege, Kripke, Russell, Donnellan, Kaplan, Evans, Putnam, Tarski, Davidson, and Grice. The explanations aim to be as simple as possible without sacrificing accuracy; critical assessments are included with the exposition in order to stimulate further thought and discussio

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Book SynopsisAn impassioned case for argument’s central role in human life, by one of America’s most distinguished cultural criticsTrade Review“[A] bold change of perspective. . . . When Siegel writes that ‘to exist is to argue your existence’ . . . he makes an important point.”—Costica Bradatan, Commonweal“Perhaps more than any other commentary, Why Argument Matters illuminates the root causes of our partisan, venomous, irrational times—and yet somehow rescues from the morass the true nature of argument, its power and beauty.”—Michael Wolff, author of Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House “This is inarguably the book for this moment of nonstop contentiousness. Siegel argues convincingly that argument is not only as American as apple pie, it is an expression of the universal desire for improvement, for which argument is a prerequisite. And he demonstrates that judgments about art, which are supposedly somehow beyond argument, are not.”—George F. Will, Pulitzer Prize–winning columnist “There is an old saying that the aim of an argument is not victory but progress, which is a mark of humility. Siegel adds that with humility can come playfulness, and a human connection that makes argument not just purposeful but joyful. In these low times, when censorious sanctimony passes for intelligent argument, his book revives an expansive liberal spirit of disagreement without which democracy is doomed.”—Sean Wilentz, Princeton University “Lee Siegel has written an eloquent and intellectually stimulating argument, with far-ranging examples full of witty surprises. It’s balanced, compassionate and wise—a true healer in the current, clamorous moment.”—Phillip Lopate, Columbia University “A book like this has never mattered more. Siegel guides us through the historical and philosophical roots of intellectual sparring with great expertise and an infectious vigor. But more than that, he shows us how argument, when done right, can be among the richest forms of human connection. This is a much-needed treatise from one of the most formidable cultural critics of our time.”—Meghan Daum, author of The Problem with Everything: My Journey Through the New Culture Wars “Why Argument Matters is a robust foray into the nature of argument, from antiquity to the latest culture war clashes. With his impressive range and often thrilling connections, Lee Siegel also makes an argument for himself as one of our most vibrant and least predictable critics.”—Sam Lipsyte, Columbia University

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Book SynopsisGrammatical errors and orthographic mishaps are often played for laughs, but this subtle sanctioning by the sticklerocracy can have real social consequences too. Attention to prescriptive spelling and grammar rules is insidious and harmful.As Jessica Flanigan argues in Why Itâs OK to Have Bad Spelling and Grammar, grammarianism often maintains hierarchies, entrenches the advantages of privileged groups, and imposes arbitrary barriers to knowledge production and innovation. For example, the stigmatization of bad spelling and grammar disadvantages linguistic minorities, non-native speakers, and people with disabilities. Spelling and grammar norms are also frequently arbitrary and unnecessary. The petty grammandos among us, who cling to pedantic linguistic conventions, are standing in the way of innovative forms of communication and efficient speech, such as the emoji â. For these reasons, Flanigan argues that bad spelling and grammar are OK. Itâs time to break free from

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Book SynopsisThis book presents a new, contemporary introduction to medieval philosophy as it was practiced in all its variety in Western Europe and the Near East. It assumes only a minimal familiarity with philosophy, the sort that an undergraduate introduction to philosophy might provide, and it is arranged topically around questions and themes that will appeal to a contemporary audience. In addition to some of the perennial questions posed by philosophers, such as Can we know anything, and if so, what?, What is the fundamental nature of reality?, and What does human flourishing consist in?, this volume looks at what medieval thinkers had to say, for instance, about our obligations towards animals and the environment, freedom of speech, and how best to organize ourselves politically. The book examines certain aspects of the thought of several well-known medieval figures, but it also introduces students to many important, yet underappreciated figures and traditions. It includTrade Review"An excellent achievement. The volume serves as a contemporary introduction both in terms of its tone, which is fresh and wonderfully free of jargon, and in terms of its material, which takes a wholly new and inspiring approach to what the medieval canon should look like."Robert Pasnau, University of Colorado, BoulderTable of Contents1. Introduction 2. Science, Certainty, and Skepticism 3. The Building Blocks of Reality 4. What Are We? 5. Happiness and the Meaning of Life 6. Love Thy Neighbor 7. The Philosopher in Society 8. From Here, Where?

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Book SynopsisDonald Davidson has made enormous contributions to the philosophy of action, epistemology, semantics and philosophy of mind and today is recognized as one of the most important analytical philosophers of the late twentieth century.Donald Davidson: Truth, Meaning and Knowledge addresses* Davidson's writings on epistemology and theory of language with their implications of ontology and philosophy of mind* the central issue of whether truth is the ultimate goal of enquiry, challenged by contributions from Richard Rorty and Paul Horwich* Davidson's approach to semantics and applied linguistics as addressed by Kirk Ludwig, Gabriel Segal, Peter Pagin, Stephen Neale, Herman Cappelen and Ernie Lepore and Reinaldo Elugardo* Davidson's advances in the philosophy of mind in relation to the views of Williard V. Quine, John McDowell and Peter F. Strawson, in essays by Roger Gibson and Anita AvramidesTable of ContentsAcknowledgements Introduction to Reading Davidson Kirk Ludwig and Urszula M. Zeglen I. Polemics 1. Is Truth a Goal Enquiry? Discussion with Rorty Donald Davidson 2. Davidson on Deflationism Paul Horwich II. Meaning, Truth and Interpretation 3. Theories of Meaning, Truth and Interpretation Kirk Ludwig Reply to Kirk Ludwig Donald Davidson 4. How Can a Truth Do Duty as a Theory of Meaning? Gabriel Segal Reply to Gabriel Segal ^Donald Davidson 5. Radical Interpretation and Compositional Structure Peter Pagin Reply to Peter Pagin Donald Davidson III. Semantics and Its Application 6. From Semantics to Ontology, via Truth, Reference and Quantification Stephen Neale Reply to Stephen Neale Donald Davidson 7. Semantics for Quotation Herman Cappelen and Ernie Lepore Reply to Herman Cappelen and Ernie Lepore Donald Davidson 8. Samesaying Reinaldo Elugardo Reply to Reinaldo Elugardo Donald Davidson IV. Knowledge and Mind 9. McDowell on Quine, Davidson, and Epistemology Roger F. Gibson Reply to Roger Gibson Donald Davidson 10. Davidson and the New Sceptical Problem Anita Avramides Reply to Anita Avramides Donald Davidson Bibliography Indexes

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Book SynopsisIn this book Saul Kripke brings his powerful philosophical intelligence to bear on Wittgensteina s analysis of the notion of following a rule.Trade Review"Saul Kripke has thought uncommonly hard about the central argument of Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations and produces an uncommonly clear and vivid account of that argument ... clearly and compellingly presented ... an exemplary piece of exposition." Times Literary Supplement "A detailed examination of what is clearly a central theme in Wittgenstein's writings." Times Higher Education Supplement "Kripke does bring a whole range of things into focus in a striking and provocative way ... What Kripke has achieved, I think, is the first successful translation of what Wittgenstein was saying into the idiom of the contemporary Anglo-American mainstream in philosophy ... full of excellent things." (Australasian Journal of Philosophy) "Saul Kripke has thought uncommonly hard about the central argument of Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations and produces an uncommonly clear and vivid account of that argument ... clearly and compellingly presented ... an exemplary piece of exposition." (Times Literary Supplement) "A detailed examination of what is clearly a central theme in Wittgenstein's writings." (Times Higher Education Supplement)Table of ContentsPreface. Introductory. The Wittgensteinian Paradox. The Solution and the 'Private Language' Argument. Postscript Wittgenstein and Other Minds. Index.

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Book SynopsisWith the loss of many of the world''s languages, it is important to question what will be lost to humanity with their demise. It is frequently argued that a language engenders a ''worldview'', but what do we mean by this term? Attributed to German politician and philologist Wilhelm von Humboldt (1767-1835), the term has since been adopted by numerous linguists. Within specialist circles it has become associated with what is known as the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis which suggests that the nature of a language influences the thought of its speakers and that different language patterns yield different patterns of thought.Underhill''s concise and rigorously researched book clarifies the main ideas and proposals of Humboldt''s linguistic philosophy and demonstrates the way his ideas can be adopted and adapted by thinkers and linguists today. A detailed glossary of terms is provided in order to clarify key concepts and to translate the German terms used by Humboldt.Trade Review"'A thoughtful and helpful contribution on an important topic.' (Modern Language Review)"

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Book SynopsisA rigorous, yet accessible and entertaining introduction to the field of logic, this book provides students with a unique insight into logic as a living field and how it connects to other fields of inquiry including philosophy, computer science, linguistics, and mathematics. With no background knowledge needed, students are introduced to a critical examination of ''classical logic'', and the technical issues and paradoxes that may be encountered. Each chapter includes key pedagogical features such as marginal notes, definitions, chapter summaries and practice exercises. Arguments are backed up by authentic examples of logic within natural languages and everyday life. The flexible chapter structure allows instructors to tailor their teaching for either a one-semester or two-semester course, according to their students'' needs and knowledge. Online resources include a companion website featuring further readings, class handouts, LaTeX resources, along with an Online Proof Evaluator allowing students to get real-time feedback.

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Book SynopsisThis Element aims to dispel misunderstandings on Relevance logics. It contains the first-ever textbook treatment of quantification in relevance logics, as well as an overview of the cutting edge on variable sharing results and a guide to further topics in the field.

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Book SynopsisThis Element gives an introduction to the emerging discipline of natural language ontology. Natural language ontology is an area at the interface of semantics, metaphysics, and philosophy of language that is concerned with which kinds of objects are assumed by our best semantic theories. The Element reviews different strategies for identifying a language''s ontological commitments. It observes that, while languages share a large number of their ontological commitments (such as to individuals, properties, events, and kinds), they differ in other commitments (for example, to degrees). The Element closes by relating different language and theory-specific ontologies, and by pointing out the merits and challenges of identifying inter-category relations within a single ontology.

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Book SynopsisThis Element aims to introduce the different definitions of translation provided in the history of analytic philosophy. It explores the philosophical-analytic notions used to explain translation from Frege and Wittgenstein onwards. It focuses on translation equivalence, translating into another language, and the analytic philosophy of language.Table of ContentsIntroduction; 1. From Frege to carnap: translation as paraphrase; 2. Wittgenstein: translation as calculus and translation as a language game; 3. Quine and the thesis of translation indeterminacy; 4. The notion of synonymy and Davidson's theory of radical interpretation; 5. The Principle of Charity and the third dogma of Empiricism; 6. Sellars and the problem of semantic vs. pragmatic equivalence; 7. Grice and the translation of implicit meaning; 8. Kripke's translation test; 9. The translation of explicit meaning in Literalism vs. Contextualism; Conclusion; References.

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Book SynopsisMy Philosophical Development is Russell''s intellectual autobiography and provides a fascinating insight into the extraordinary energy and philosophical ambition that saw him write over 40 books. As well as offering some fascinating glimpses into the changing nature of his philosophical beliefs, Russell also reflects on the fundamental themes that governed his thinking in later life.Beginning with an account of his decisive turn against the philosophical idealism that was prevalent in Cambridge at the turn of the century, Russell takes us through his engagement with the foundations of mathematics and the writing, with A.N. Whitehead, of Principia Mathematica. Russell also provides important insights into his theory of knowledge and the mind and conscious experience, before finishing with reflections on his work on language, universals and particulars and his theory of truth. An ideal philosophical companion to Russell''s own AutobiograpTrade Review'A work of immense fascination and distinction' - The Observer'Bertrand Russell is not only the most brilliant philosopher of this century; he is also one of the most self-critical. These qualities come out clearly in his philosophical autobiography.' - A.J.AyerTable of ContentsForeword to the Routledge Classics Edition Nicholas Griffin Prefatory note 1. Introductory Outline 2. My Present View of the World 3. First Efforts 4. Excursion into Idealism 5. Revolt into Pluralism 6. Logical Technique in Mathematics 7. Principia Mathematica: Philosophical Aspects 8. Principia Mathematica: Mathematical Aspects 9. The External World 10. The Impact of Wittgenstein 11. Theory of Knowledge 12. Consciousness and Experience 13. Language 14. Universals and Particulars and Names 15. The Definition of 'Truth' 16. Non-Demonstrative Inference 17. The Retreat from Pythagoras 18. Some Replies to Criticism Russell's Philosophy: A Study of its Development Alan Wood. Index

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Book SynopsisBertrand Russell's writings on logic, metaphysics, philosophy of language and epistemology are among the most influential of the twentieth century. Logic and Knowledge presents Russell's very best and most important work on these topics in a single volume, which by placing philosophical logic at its core was of monumental importance in shaping the path of analytical philosophy. It includes classics such as 'On Denoting', one of the founding pieces of philosophy of the twentieth century as well as chapters on logical atomism, a term coined by Russell himself to describe his view that the world consists in a plurality of independent entities, which by coming together form facts.Along with other essays on fundamental philosophical problems including the logic of relations, universals and particulars, and propositions, Logic and Knowledge shows why Russell remains one of the most important philosophers of the last century.This Routledge Classics editio

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Book SynopsisThis volume charts the origins, development, and future potential of semioethics through the work of Susan Petrilli, showcasing an extended dialogue with one of the eminent figures in semiotics scholarship.Featuring a wide-ranging conversation between Petrilli and scholar Simon Levesque, the book makes the case for semioethics as a critical approach that can help us better understand important issues at stake in todayâs world, such as precarity, social responsibility, and climate change, through the interplay of signs, meaning-making, and interpretation. The dialogue is organized around key chapters in Petrilliâs career, exploring the influences of such scholars as Peirce and Bakhtin, the collaborations with Sebeok and Eco, and the efforts in revitalizing the work of Victoria Welby. The book explores how these strands culminated in the creation of semioethics with Petrilliâs longtime collaborator, Augusto Ponzio, and looks ahead to new directions for the further study of the relation between signs and values, semiotics and axiology, and communication and ethics.Highlighting the expansiveness of Petrilliâs body of work and the possibilities of semioethics in addressing key questions in contemporary social life for a better world, this volume will be of interest to scholars in semiotics, language and communication, philosophy of language, and cultural studies.

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Book SynopsisHow complex is sex? According to this book, not nearly as complex as weâre often told these days.Author TomÃs Bogardus first critically evaluates varieties of a complex view of sexâsupported by Anne Fausto-Sterling, Sarah Richardson, and others--in which sex is a constellation of traits related to chromosomes, hormones, gonads, and phenotypes. Bogardus then considers several gamete-based accounts of sex, to which he is more sympathetic, including those from Alex Byrne, Laura Franklin-Hall, and Paul Griffiths. Shortcomings of these views are described, and an improved account is proposed: the sexes are activated higher-order functions. In short, to be male is to have the function of producing sperm, and to be female is to have the function of producing eggs. Bogardus develops this view, all while untangling the various meanings and definitions of 'gender' and 'gender identity', and while examining whether all of them are ultimately defined in terms of the sexes.The author then defends his methodology of deferring to biologists when figuring out the nature of the sexes and concludes with practical questions about whether we should revise the meanings of our sex terms for the sake of social justice. He asks whether pronouns like âheâ and âsheâ track biological sex, and whether they should continue to do so.The Nature of the Sexes: Why Biology Matters expands current philosophical debate on sex and gender, and is essential reading for curious students and academics alike.

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Book SynopsisIn this introduction to Mikhail Bakhtin, Ken Hirschkop presents a compact, readable, detailed, and sophisticated exposition of all of Bakhtin''s important works. Using the most up-to-date sources and the new, scholarly editions of Bakhtin''s texts, Hirschkop explains Bakhtin''s influential ideas, demonstrates their relevance and usefulness for literary and cultural analysis, and sets them in their historical context. In clear and concise language, Hirschkop shows how Bakhtin''s ideas have changed the way we understand language and literary texts. Authoritative and accessible, this Cambridge Introduction is the most comprehensive and reliable account of Bakhtin and his work yet available.Trade Review'Hirschkop's volume follows the spirit of its subject: providing its readers with an overview of Bakhtin's life, context, and thought, it feeds our desire to turn to Bakhtin himself and propels it into the future.' Alexander Spektor, Slavic ReviewTable of Contents1. Introduction; 2. Life; 3. Context; 4. Works; 5. Reception; 6. A Brief Conclusion; Further Reading; Index.

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Book SynopsisSemantics and pragmatics the study of meaning, and meaning in context, respectively are two fundamental areas of linguistics, and as such are crucial to our understanding of how meaning is created. However, their theoretical ideas are often introduced without making clear connections between views, theories, and problems. This pioneering volume is both a textbook and a research guide, taking the reader on a journey through language and ultimately enabling them to think about meaning as linguists and philosophers would. Assuming no prior knowledge of linguistics, it introduces semantics, pragmatics, and the philosophy of language, showing how all three fields can address the ''big questions'' that run through the study of meaning. It covers key theories and approaches, while also enabling increasingly more sophisticated questions about the interconnected aspects of meaning, with the end goal of preparing the reader to make their own, original contributions to ideas about meaning.Table of ContentsPreface and tips on how to read this book; Acknowledgements; List of abbreviations and symbols; Stage 1. Introduction: meaning – what it is and where to find it: 1.1 How (not) to study meaning; 1.2 Semantics, pragmatics, and philosophy (and why they are best done together); 1.3 Proposition: a flexible unit for studying meaning?; 1.4 Meaning and its correlates; Stage 2. word meaning and concepts: 2.1 Harnessing word meaning; 2.2 The 'concept' commotion; 2.3 Language and thought; 2.4 Lexicon and pragmatics; 2.5 The role of reference; Stage 3. Composing sentence meaning: tools and their purpose: 3.1 Truth in service of meaning: truth conditions and truth-value judgements; 3.2 The metalanguage for the logical form; 3.3 Possible worlds and models; 3.4 Semantic composition and semantic types; 3.5 Type-theoretic metalanguage and lambda abstraction; 3.6 Formal tools and cognitive reality; Stage 4. Operations on sentences: 4.1 Sentential connectives and propositional logic; 4.2 Conjunction; 4.3 Disjunction; 4.4 Conditional and biconditional; 4.5 Negation; 4.6 Linguistic diversity: snakes and ladders, cluedo, and monopoly; Stage 5. Inside the sentence: 5.1 Limitations of the metalanguage; 5.2 Quantification; 5.3 Representing time; 5.4 Modality; 5.5 Propositional attitude reports; 5.6 Interim conclusions: semantic tools for formal cognitive representations?; Stage 6. Conveying information: 6.1 From sentences to discourses: dynamic semantics for dynamic meaning; 6.2 Referring and its tools; 6.3 Organizing information in discourse; Stage 7. Utterance meaning, or what lurks under the surface: 7.1 Saying, implicating and inferring; 7.2. Truth-conditional vs. non-truth-conditional, semantic vs. pragmatic: what to include and what to leave out; 7.3 Keeping semantics and pragmatics apart; Stage 8. Meaning in service of its makers: 8.1 Who needs literal meanings?; 8.2 What makes a metaphor; 8.3. Speech and action; 8.4 At a crossroads with ethical and social debates; Stage 9. Conclusion: the future of meaning?; Index.

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Book SynopsisThis Element argues that aesthetics broadly conceived plays a significant role in Wittgenstein's philosophy. It traces a continuous line of thought pertaining to a non-conceptual form of encounter with reality and contributes to Wittgenstein's understanding of language and the method of philosophy throughout his career.Table of Contents1. Introduction; 2. Wittgenstein's early philosophy; 3. The middle period; 4. From the brown book to the philosophical investigations; 5. Aesthetics and philosophy; References.

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Book SynopsisThis volume provides readers with a broad overview of the different ways that irony emerges in human life, within interpersonal communication, instances of situational irony, literature and artistic creations. It emphasizes the importance of irony in ordinary thought, language, and communication.Table of ContentsPart I. Introduction: 1. Irony and thought: the state of the art Raymond W. Gibbs, Jr. and Herbert L. Colston; Part II. The Scope of Irony: 2. Kinds of irony: a general theory Gregory Currie; 3. Irony and cognitive operations Francisco Ruiz de Mendoza; 4. The varieties of ironic experience Raymond W. Gibbs, Jr., Patrawat Samermit and Christopher Karzmark; Part III. Irony's Impact: 5. Irony as social work: opposition, expectation violation, and contrast Herbert Colston; 6. Rorty, irony and neoliberalism Claire Colebrook; 7. Irony and its consequences in the public sphere Paul Simpson; Part IV. Irony in Linguistic Communication: 8. Constructions in verbal irony production: the case of rhetorical questions Angeliki Athanasiadou; 9. Tracking the ironical eye: eye tracking studies on irony and sarcasm Salvadore Attardo; 10. Inferring irony online Francisco Yus; 11. Irony and thought: developmental insights Penny Pexman; 12. Vocal strategies in ironic communication Gregory Bryant; 13. Great expectations and EPIC fails: a computational perspective on irony and sarcasm Tony Veale; Part V. Irony, Affect and Related Figures: 14. Irony and humor Marta Dynel; 15. Emotional responses to sarcasm Ruth Filik; 16. Irony, exaggeration and hyperbole: no embargo on the cargo! John Barnden; 17. Irony and its overlap with hyperbole and understatement Laura Neuhaus; 18. Irony and satire Christian Burgers; 19. Hypocrisy and situational irony Cameron Shelley; Part VI. Irony in Expressive, Nonlinguistic Media: 20. Ironies in film James McDowell; 21. An ear for irony Katherine Turner and Sabatino DiBernardo; 22. Pictorial irony and sarcasm Albert Katz.

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Book SynopsisRobert Brandomâs rationalist philosophy of language, expounded in his highly influential Making It Explicit, has been the subject of intense scrutiny and debate, establishing him as one of the leading philosophers of his generation. In A Spirit of Trust, Brandom presents the fruits of his thirty-year engagement with Hegel. He submits that the Phenomenology of Spirit holds not only many lessons for todayâs philosophy of language, but also a moral lesson much needed in todayâs increasingly polarized societies, in the form of a postmodern ethics of trust.In this outstanding collection, leading philosophers examine and assess A Spirit of Trust. The twelve specially commissioned chapters explore topics including: negation and truth empirical and speculative concepts experience conflict and recognition varieties of idealism premodern ethical life and modern alienation a postmodernTable of ContentsIntroduction Gilles Bouché Part I: Semantics 1. Brandom on Hegel on Negation Robert B. Pippin 2. Truth and Incompatibility Elena Ficara 3. Brandom on the Introduction to the Phenomenology John McDowell 4. The Possibility of a Semantic Interpretation of Hegel’s Conception of Consciousness Paul Redding 5. Where is the Conflict in Brandom’s Theory of Recognition (and Why Should There Be Any)? Georg W. Bertram 6. Intentional Agency and Conceptual Idealism: Brandom on Hegelian Reason Dean Moyar Part II: With an Edifying Intent 7. Semantic Self-Consciousness Terry Pinkard 8. Is Brandom a Positivist? Notes on Alienation, Trust, Confession, and Forgiveness J.M. Bernstein 9. Spirit and Alienation in Brandom’s A Spirit of Trust: Entfremdung, Entäußerung, and the Causal Entropy of Normativity Italo Testa 10. A Pure Philosophy of Language with an Edifying Intent: Brandom’s Reply to Rorty Gilles Bouché 11. Brandom on Postmodern Ethical Life: Moral and Political Problems Franz Knappik 12. Brandom’s Hegel Charles Taylor. Index

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Book SynopsisBeyond Language (Oltre il Linguaggio) is one of Italian philosopher Emmanuele Severino's major works, wrestling with whether it's possible to think meaningfully outside of the restrictions of language. Increasingly recognised as a truly foundational thinker in the formation of contemporary theory, Severino's ideas around self-expression, forms of communication and the limitations of language continue are brought to the fore in this book. Beyond Language specifically opens the door to the themes that Severino developed in his later works, including the concrete meaning of self-being and the decline of language. The depth and breadth of Severino's philosophical insight is as profound today as it was when first penned in 1992, making this first English translation of a key work in the history of continental philosophy crucial reading for those engaged with contemporary theory.Table of ContentsForeword: Being Beyond Language, by Ines Testoni and Giulio Goggi Beyond Translation, by Damiano Sacco Part I 1. Violence and Salvation 2. Anxiety and Will to Power 3. Scientific Specialisation and Nothingness Part II 4. Nietzsche and Gentile 5. Problematicism and Actual Idealism 6. Socrates, Silenus, and Virtue Part III 7. On Identity and Difference 8. The Unfolding of Language and the Appearing of Destiny 9. Language and Destiny

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Book SynopsisFree speech' has become central to discussions about racism, and is increasingly weaponised against anti-racist movements. This book argues that the weaponization of free speech' across the political spectrum, particularly by the far-right/alt-right, has been central to the resurgence, rehabilitation and normalisation of racism within the mainstream politics of western liberal democracies in the last decade. The dilemma then, for anti-racist movements, is how to respond to such a challenge for if free speech' allows racism, then it follows that the elimination of racism is not possible. Anshuman A. Mondal argues that liberalism has made it look as if there is something called free speech' when, in fact, speech is enabled by the structures of power within which we are all embedded. These structures determine who gets to say what, and whose voices are heard. They create and sustain racism, and anti-racism should look beyond the mythology of free speech' and focus instead on creating

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Book SynopsisBenveniste's lectures had a shaping influence on a generation of scholars that includes Barthes, Deleuze, Foucault, Derrida, Kristeva and Todorov and here, for the first time, these are made available in English for a new generation of linguists and philosophers of language.

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Book SynopsisThe philosophical significance of Maurice Blanchot's writings has rarely been in doubt. Specifying the nature and implications of his thinking has proved much less easy, particularly in reference to the key figure of G. W. F. Hegel. Examination reveals that Blanchot's thinking is persistently oriented towards a questioning of the terms of Hegel's thought, while nevertheless remaining within its themes, whichshows how rigorously he studied Hegel's works but also how radical his critique of them became. Equally, it allows for a crucial discussion of the differences between Blanchot's responses to Hegel and those of Jacques Derrida, with the implicit suggestion that in some ways Blanchot's critique of Hegel is more far-reaching than that developed by Derrida. William S. Allen demonstrates those aspects of Hegelian thought that permeate Blanchot's writings and, in turn, develops a detailed three-way analysis of Derrida, Hegel, and Blanchot. The key question around which this analysis deveTrade Review[Allen’s] work offers a forceful corrective to the simplifications or even outright parodies of Hegel one sometimes finds in work on Blanchot and many of his fellow-travellers in twentieth-century French literary philosophy ... Allen’s book is unlikely to be surpassed as a philosophically robust and clearsighted guide to the entretien infini between Hegel and Blanchot, philosophy and literature, and negation and negativity. * Hegel Bulletin *How does one approach a written work that problematizes the regulative ideal of a legible book? This question is associated with Derrida’s deconstruction of Hegel. As William S. Allen demonstrates in this fascinating study, it was posed in a unique way by Blanchot, whose own engagements with Hegel invite us to rethink the relation between the terms différance and aufheben. * Andrew Cutrofello, Professor of Philosophy, Loyola University Chicago, USA *Illegibility: Blanchot and Hegel applies near-exhaustive knowledge, and laser-like insights, to develop a reading of Hegel through Blanchot, with judicious reference to other thinkers such as Derrida. Hegel stands as a figure for a type of double, even dialectical reflection, in which Blanchot found inspiration even as he challenged and rewrote the Enlightenment philosopher's thinking. Allen’s profound and sustained analysis, based on careful attention to texts, represents what the humanities is best able to do, and he proceeds by means of a nonetheless rigorous scientificity that should be the gold standard for researchers in any field. * David Wills, Professor of French Studies and Director of Graduate Studies, Brown University, USA *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Abbreviations Introduction: Marks of Experience 1. Roussel and Lautréamont 2. Derrida: Infinite Outline 3. Hegel: Uneasy Infinite 4. Blanchot: Nothing Doubled 5. Blanchot: Wholly Impossible References Index

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Book SynopsisAlthough Mikhail Bakhtin's study of the novel does not focus in any systematic way on the role that translation plays in the processes of novelistic creation and dissemination, when he does broach the topic he grants translation''a disproportionately significant role in the emergence and constitution of literature. The contributors to this volume, from the US, Hong Kong, Finland, Japan, Spain, Italy, Bangladesh, and Belgium, bring their own polyphonic experiences with the theory and practice of translation to the discussion of Bakhtin's ideas about this topic, in order to illuminate their relevance to translation studies today. Broadly stated, the essays examine the art of translation as an exercise in a cultural re-accentuation (a transferal of the original text and its characters to the novel soil of a different language and culture, which inevitably leads to the proliferation of multivalent meanings), and to explore the various re-accentuation devices employed overTrade ReviewThis collection of essays restores Bakhtin’s fundamental significance to translation studies as an inter-cultural dialogue with philosophy, literary studies, and diverse creative practices. * Suzanne Jill Levine, Professor Emeritus, University of California, Santa Barbara, USA, and author of The Subversive Scribe: Translating Latin American Fiction *The Art of Translation explores how Mikhail Bakhtin’s heteroglossic approach to the study of texts might be relevant to the work of translation. How should we take into account the different understandings of context? Can the dialogic method in literary analysis be applied not only to translating poetry and art narrative but to the prosaic genres as well? The contributors’ responses to these questions are thoughtful and provocative. * Norbert Francis, Professor Emeritus of Bilingual and Multicultural Education, Northern Arizona University, USA *The Art of Translation represents a truly original and well-argued collection of essays. The volume features scholars from the United States, Europe, and Asia, and presents twelve studies on an impressive variety of topics related to Bakhtin, translation, and re-accentuation. Whether dealing with James Joyce, Margaret Mitchell, Eduardo Mendoza, Lewis Carroll, or Antonio Muñoz Molina, the book provides valuable insights about Bakhtin’s continuing importance in the twenty-first century. * Ricardo Castells, Professor Emeritus of Spanish, Florida International University, USA *Table of ContentsIntroduction Slav N. Gratchev (Marshall University, US) 1. Dubliners retranslated: Re-accentuating Multi-voicedness Kris Peeters (University of Antwerp, Belgium), Guillermo Sanz Gallego (Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium), and Monica Paulis (University of Antwerp, Belgium) 2. Bakhtin’s Dialogism and Language Interpretation Ida Day (Marshall University, US) 3. Heteroglossia, Liminality, and Literary Translation Bo Li (Lingnan University, Hong Kong) 4. What Is an ‘Original’? Creation, Translation, “Re-accentuation,” and the Question of Primacy Michael Eskin (Independent Scholar, US) 5. A Study of Three Scarletts: The Homeopathic Effect of Role Language Yumi Tanaka (Japan Women's University) 6. Translating Bakhtin, and Bakhtin on Translation Margarita Marinova (Christopher Newport University, US) 7. Eduardo Mendoza Lost and Found in Translation Melissa Garr (Florida Southern College, US) 8. Dialogue Disrupted Victor Fet (Marshall University, US) 9. Accentuation and re-accentuation in translation Susan Petrilli (Bari University, Italy) and Augusto Ponzio (Bari University, Italy) 10. Sifting through Dialogic Ashes: Translating Complex Meanings in Muñoz Molina’s Beatus Ille Steven Mills (Buena Vista University, US) 11. Carnivalizing Carroll: Intersemiotic Translation of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Riitta Oittinen (Independent Scholar, Finland) 12. Juvenile Quixotes in Eighteenth Century England Scott Pollard (Christopher Newport University, US) Afterword Galin Tihanov (Queen Mary University of London, UK) List of Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisHave you have ever felt at a disadvantage when joining in a conversation on a subject that you aren't confident about? If yes, this new book series is for you. Each book features definitions of two hundred words frequently used to describe and discuss a smart subject.200 Words to Help You Talk About Philosophy is designed to demystify jargon-based philosophic language and make you at ease holding a conversation on the topic. Philosophy can be baffling, as well as fascinating, to the best of us. Let Anja Steinbauer guide you through doubt, dialectic, Dao, and much more. The book is written with digestible text enabling a quick and easy understanding of various topics while broadening your philosophical vocabulary. 200 Words to Help You Talk About Philosophy is one of two new titles beginning a series of smart subjects, also including art, psychology, and music.

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Book SynopsisA major collection of essays and interviews from an iconic 20th-century philosopher in five volumes, now all available together in paperback. Roland Barthes was a restless, protean thinker. A constant innovator—often as a daring smuggler of ideas from one discipline to another—he first gained an audience with his pithy essays on mass culture and then went on to produce some of the most suggestive and stimulating cultural criticism of the late twentieth century, including Empire of Signs, The Pleasure of the Text, and Camera Lucida. In 1976, this one-time structuralist outsider was elected to a chair at France’s preeminent Collège de France, where he chose to style himself as a professor of literary semiology until his death in 1980. The greater part of Barthes’s published writings has been available to a French audience since 2002, but now, translator Chris Turner presents a collection of essays, interviews, prefaces, book reviews, and other journalistic material for the first time in English and divided into five themed volumes. In volume one, A Very Fine Gift, Barthes attempts to frame his lifelong curiosities in theoretical form, from his early musings on the sociology of literature through his high period of structuralism to his later reflections on Derrida.Table of ContentsShould Grammar Be Killed Off? A Brief Sociology of the Contemporary French Novel An Innovation in Criticism New Problems of Realism Works of Mass Culture and Explication de Texte The Human Sciences and the Works of Lévi-Strauss Mass Culture, High Culture Response to a Survey on Structuralism A Dialectical Writing Practice Interview on Structuralism Linguistics and Literature Ten Reasons to Write A Problematic of Meaning The Linguistics of Discourse On Theory A Very Fine Gift Letter to Jean Ristat For a Theory of Reading Supplement Writing Responses A Kind of Manual Labour Foreword to ‘Jakobson’ Relations between Fiction and Criticism according to Roger Laporte

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Book SynopsisJourney into the heart of language to reveal its power in shaping our existence and perception of reality.

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Book SynopsisThough not without its rivals, Latin stood at the apex of Western culture from the Renaissance until relatively recently. Françoise Waquet offers an enthralling, original history of the language's uses, its detractors and defenders, and the social hierarchies its practitioners inscribed. Granted a new lease of life by the Humanists and the Catholic Church, Latin was the form in which generations of schoolchildren were taught to read, millions of people worshipped, and an international community of scholars communicated with one another. It conveyed sacredness, but also obscenity; learning, as well as pedantry; science, but also trickery and mumbo-jumbo. Few individuals even among the clergy or the most learned scholars have ever managed to speak it with any degree of correctness or fluency, let alone elegance. Why, despite rationalist criticisms that Latin was inaccessible to the great majority of people, and inconvenient and time-consuming for the rest, did it maintain such a strong presence - some would say a tyranny - for so long?Trade ReviewA splendid book: original in method, suggestive in argument, and a pleasure to read. -- Anthony Grafton * London Review of Books *... [a] fascinating and lively survey of the place of Latin western culture during the past 400 years. * Independent *... richly researched and delightful ... with scholars of Waquet's generosity and ability, the old language might yet have a future. * New Criterion *... detailed and wide-ranging ... * Los Angeles Times Book Review *... an eloquent obituary ... * Spectator *Fascinating. -- A.C. Grayling * Guardian, Summer Choice *Latin is dead and this book is its epitaph ... it is the merit and interest of Waquet's survey that she finds Latin not only deployed for the liturgy, but also to describe things carnal, pornographic, or otherwise shameful. * Daily Telegraph *A wonderful survey. -- A. N. Wilson

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Book SynopsisA trenchant analysis of the thought of Sebastiano Timpanaro, one of the most original leftist thinkers of the 20th century

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Book Synopsis'Marvellously clear... playfully persuasive' Richard Dawkins'Full of Fascinating details. A delight to read.' Tim Harford'Highly original and convincing ... a delight to read!' - Daniel EverettWhat is language?Why do we have it?Why does that matter?Language is perhaps humanity's most astonishing accomplishment and one that remains poorly understood.Upending centuries of scholarship (including, most recently, Chomsky and Pinker) 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.Drawing on entertaining and persuasive examples from across the world the book explains:· How our short-lived memory copes with the on-rushing deluge of sound that is everyday speech.· Why it is that language is such a challenge for language scientists but learnt effortlessly by toddlers.· Why the languages of the world are so spectacularly varied---and why no two people speak quite the same language.· Why humans have language, but chimps don't.· How language gave us a big brain and changed the course of evolution.· How language doesn't limit, but does shape, how we think.·And ultimately, why all we know about language should give us hope.Christiansen and Chater's The Language Game draws on a fascinating range of examples to show the way language works, has shaped our evolution and is critical to our future.

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Book Synopsis`E: Erroneous: Capable of being proved true'; `J: Jolly: The downfall of our enemies'; `M: Mystery: What I understand and you don't' . . . Enter the delightful, satirical world of the Good Citizen, according to one of the best-known writers and philosophers of modern times. In this pocket-sized book, Bertrand Russell's witty, subversive A-Z encompasses pedants and nincompoops, knowledge and virtue, providing a diverting and entertaining guide to the English alphabet. Brought back into print for the first time since the 1970s, the brief texts are illustrated with the lively drawings of Franciszka Themerson, a leading figure of the twentieth century avant-garde, whose apt and amusing images add an anarchic spirit to this delightful gift book - perfect for linguistic novices and eloquent eggheads alike. Facsimile pages reproduce the vintage look and feel of the original 1953 publication.

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Book SynopsisThis book investigates the study of World Englishes from the perspective of Cultural Linguistics, a theoretical and analytical framework for cultural cognition, cultural conceptualisations and language that employs and expands on the analytical tools and theoretical advancements in a number of disciplines, including cognitive psychology/science, anthropology, distributed cognition, and complexity science. The field of World Englishes has long focused on the sociolinguistic and applied linguistic study of varieties of English. Cultural Linguistics is now opening a new venue for research on World Englishes by exploring cultural conceptualisations underlying different varieties of English. The book explores ways in which the analytical framework of Cultural Linguistics may be employed to study varieties of English around the globe.Trade Review“The volume is an impressive achievement and I was pleasantly surprised by the degree of innovation and methodological creativity apparent in many of the contributions. … the volume highlights the astonishing diversity and uniqueness of World Englishes and is hugely inspiring in terms of its scope. … Cultural Linguistics and World Englishes provides ample proof that Cultural Linguistics is not only alive but also open to continuous theoretical and methodological innovations and advancements … .” (Sven Leuckert, English World-Wide, Vol. 43 (3), 2022)Table of ContentsChapter 1. Cultural Linguistics and world Englishes.- Chapter 2. Australian Aboriginal English and Linguistic Inquiry.- Chapter 3. A Corpus-based Exploration of Aboriginal Australian Cultural Conceptualisations in John Bodey’s The Blood Berry Vine.- Chapter 4. Re-schematization of Chinese Xiao (filial piety) across Cultures and Generations.- Chapter 5. “So you’re One of those Vegetarians?” Emergence of the Korean English.- Chapter 6. Don’t kiasu and rush ok? A Cultural-Linguistic take on the Interaction Between Loanwords and Constructions in World Englishes.- Chapter 7. ‘Till Death Do Us Wed’1 – About Ghost Marriages and Chicken Rrides in Hong Kong English.- Chapter 8. Decoding yuán and duyên across Chinese, Vietnamese and other Asian cultural practices.- Chapter 9. Bilingual Creativity in Saudi English.- Chapter 10. A Space for Everybody? Conceptualisations of the Hijras in Indian English as a Showcase for Gendered Space in Indian Society.- Chapter 11. Family Matters: Cultural-linguistic Investigations into the Domain of Family in Indian English.- Chapter 12. "Cultural Conceptualizations of Yoga in Indian and American English: A Corpus-Based Study".- Chapter 13. Expressive and Reserved Cultures: British and American Pride Clusters.- Chapter 14. The Interplay of Blended Languages and Blended Cultures in Memes: Cultural Conceptualisations Used by Serbian Speakers of English.- Chapter 15. ‘A Successful Business Negotiation is Resource Sharing’: Investigating Brazilian and German Cultural Conceptualisations in Conceptual Scripts.- Chapter 16. ‘My Muthi is YourAanswer’ – A Cultural Linguistic Analysis of Healers, Herbalists, Sangomas and (witch) Doctors in Black South African English Classifieds.- Chapter 17. Culture-specific Conceptualisations of Corruption in African English: Linguistic Analyses and Pragmatic Applications.

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Book SynopsisPinpoints how dogwhistles and figleaves, two kinds of linguistic trick, distort political discourse and normalize racismIt is widely accepted that political discourse in recent years has become more openly racist and more accepting of wildly implausible conspiracy theories. Dogwhistles and Figleaves explores ways in which such changes--both of which defied previously settled norms of political speech--have been brought about. Jennifer Saul shows that two linguistic devices, dogwhistles and figleaves, have played a crucial role. Some dogwhistles (such as 88, used by Nazis online to mean Heil Hitler) serve to disguise messages that would otherwise be rejected as unacceptable, allowing them to be transmitted surreptitiously. Other dogwhistles (like the 1988 Willie Horton ad) work by influencing people in ways that they are not aware of, and which they would likely reject were they aware. Figleaves (such as just asking questions) take messages that could easily be recognized as unacceptablTrade ReviewIt's a scrupulous look at a damaging linguistic phenomenon that often hides in plain sight. * Publishers Weekly *What is interesting about Saul's study is the instability of meaning it reveals, the layers of deception employed not only by speakers, but by listeners, who are occasionally deluding themselves ... clear, engaging and very readable. * Roisin Kiberd, Irish Independent *There is no doubt that our current political climate is posing a threat to democracy. It is not only that we are polarized, but polarization is fueled by an onslaught of (often thinly veiled) manipulative speech and falsehoods. Media consumers absorb distorting messages without even being aware of it, and speakers are not held responsible. Dogwhistles and Figleaves provides an essential tool for seeing how our ability to communicate and to coordinate is being undermined. This theoretically rich and highly readable book is essential for those who value democracy, and the kind of public discourse that makes it possible. * Sally Haslanger, Ford Professor of Philosophy and Women's and Genders Studies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology *Table of ContentsIntroduction Part 1: Racism 1: White Racism, White Folk Racial Theory, and White Racial Discourse 2: Racist Dogwhistles 3: Figleaves for Racism Part 2: Falsehood 4: The Rise of Blatant Falsehood and Wild Conspiracism 5: Figleaves, Dogwhistles, and Falsehood 6: Obvious Falsehoods Without Deniability 7: Dogwhistles, Figleaves, and the Fight Against Racism and Blatant Falsehood

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewChomsky's writings invariably reflect the force of intellect and cogency of thought that befits one of the greatest thinkers of our times—this work is no exception. -- Robert May, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy & Linguistics, University of California, DavisNoam Chomsky is arguably the most influential thinker of our time, having made seminal contributions to linguistics and philosophy, as well as political and social thought. In one succinct and powerfully argued volume, he presents a synthesis of his key ideas. -- Howard Gardner, Hobbs Professor of Cognition and Education, Harvard UniversityNoam Chomsky launches this remarkable discussion with the age old question, "What kind of creatures are we?" Thus begins an extended inquiry into human cognition that takes him from the ancients to contemporary theorists of language and science, to politics. Chomsky's erudition is formidable, and I read his disquisition with pleasure and many "aha' moments. But what stands out for me is his wisdom; he accepts that being mere biological creatures, there is much that we can never know, and yet he is deeply empathetic with us, his fellow creatures who must struggle and try to impact our world, even though we ultimately cannot know. -- Frances Fox Piven, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, Graduate Center of the City University of New YorkIt's always spring in Mr. Chomsky's garden. Like John Ashbery, Noam Chomsky seems to come up with thoughts that are always fresh, unaffected by the polluting clichés that most of us inhale and exhale all day and night. To read his sentences is a life-giving elixir. -- Wallace Shawn, author, EssaysEngaging. * Library Journal *Recommended. * Choice *A rewarding and challenging read. * PsycCritiques *Differentiating between problems, which we can solve, and mysteries, which we cannot, Chomsky concludes that the relationship between brain and consciousness may well be a mystery. Still, we can explore. -- Jackson Lears * London Review of Books *This work is elemental; it touches and hints at some fundamental thoughts at the pivot of our existence and it invites the reader to pursue detailed studies of linguistics, hermeneutics, ethics, and metaphysics. Chomsky often speaks the mind of the readers. -- Editor * Prabuddha Bharata *Table of ContentsForeword1. What Is Language?2. What Can We Understand?3. What Is the Common Good?4. The Mysteries of Nature: How Deeply Hidden?NotesIndex

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