The Language Hoax

Japanese has a term that covers both green and blue Russian has separate terms for dark and light blue Does this mean that Russians perceive these colors differently from Japanese people Does language control and limit the way we think, such that each language gives its speakers a different worldview This short, opinionated book addresses the Sapir Whorf hypothesis, which argues that the language we speak shapes the way we perceive the world Linguist John McWhorter argues that while this idea is mesmerizing, it is plainly wrong Cultural differences are quite real However, the way languages grammar world, and the random ways that their vocabularies happen to describe the world whether time is expresses with vertical expressions instead of horizontal ones, whether a language happens to have a word for stick out or wipe do not correspond to its speakers experience of living The fact that a language has only one word for eat, drink and smoke as many do doesn t mean its speakers don t process the differences between food and beverages as vividly as other people, and those who use the same word for blue and green perceive those two colors just as vividly as others do McWhorter shows not only how the idea of language as a lens fails but also why we want so badly to believe it we re eager to celebrate diversity by acknowledging the intelligence of peoples who may not think like we do Though well intentioned, our belief in this idea poses an obstacle to a better understanding of human nature and even trivializes the people we seek to celebrate The reality that all humans think alike provides another, better way for us to acknowledge the intelligence of all peoples. Free Read The Language Hoax author John McWhorter For Kindle ePUB or eBook – kino-fada.fr McWhorter has written a book that entirely refutes the Sapir Whorf hypothesis Whorphianism which is essentially that how we see the world is determined by the words we use, the language we speak Essentially the language we learn in the culture we grow up in determines our thinking McWhorter says rubbish, we all see the world the same no matter what language we speak He says that the determining factor for our differering world views is culture not the language we think in or express our vie McWhorter has written a book that entirely refutes the Sapir Whorf hypothesis Whorphianism which is essentially that how we see the world is determined by the words we use, the language we speak Essentially the language we learn in the culture we grow up in determines our thinking McWhorter says rubbish, we all see the world the same no matter what language we speak He says that the determining factor for our differering world views is culture not the language we think in or express our views in I read this book straight after Steven Pinker s The Language Instinct How the Mind Creates Language which is about the brain being wired to acquire language, to organise words with grammar and to instinctively know how to use the grammar to express oneself It isn t quite the same as Chomsky s, but Pinker respects Chomsky s theories a lot, unlike McWhorter ...John McWhorter is a linguist who makes linguistics not only simple to understand but interesting I have read all his books on language and so reading this new one was like coming home to a comfy sofa and a cup of coffee This book is good, but I have given it only three stars because I thought its rather narrow focus on one particular issue went on too long.That issue is this The belief among anybody who is not a linguist that languages influence how you think and not the other way around Thi John McWhorter is a linguist who makes linguistics not only simple to understand but interesting I have read all his books on language and so reading this new one was like coming home to a comfy sofa and a cup of coffee This book is good, but I have given it only three stars because I thought its rather narrow focus on one particu...Does the structure of the language we speak affect the way we think and how we perceive the world If you are intrigued by that idea and don t mind re examining any cherished Sapir Whorf beliefs you may have, this short but spirited and well argued book will be of interest When we think of the fascinatingly structured Navajo language there is some appeal to the idea that its speakers have a special, maybe advanced, way of understanding reality, but with his usual well informed wit McWhorter mak Does the structure of the language we speak affect the way we think and how we perceive the world If you are intrigued by that idea and don t mind re examining any cherished Sapir Whorf beliefs you may have, this short but spirited and well argued book will be of interest When we think of the fascinatingly structured Navajo language there is some appeal to the idea that its speakers have a special, maybe advanced, way of understanding reality, but with his usual well informed wit McWhorter makes the case that if you accept that and take ...How does a guy who spends his life studying language have so little sense of its gracefulness, its subtleties, its sounds, its rhythms How can he be so tone deaf It s like this book was dictated through a megaphone And what editor glanced at this Who passed on sentences such as this one However, what they demonstrate is cultural traits that language ...This small book is a bit of a rant, but it s something interesting to think about and it s by John McWhorter, so we can all forgive him a published rant and also be very interested in what he has to say Basically, McWhorter objects to the idea that language controls thought, to the extent that differences in language can determine that people who speak one language physically experience the world differently and think differently than people who speak a different language.The pernicious ide This small book is a bit of a rant, but it s something interesting to think about and it s by John McWhorter, so we can all forgive him a published rant and also be very interested in what he has to say Basically, McWhorter objects to the idea that language controls thought, to the extent that differences in language can determine that people who speak one language physically experience the world differently and think differently than people who speak a different language.The pernicious idea here is called Whorfianism Contrary to what you might think, it turns out Wh...It was very frustrating for me to get through the book as I had very high expectations for it I had some problems with the tone his use of rhetoric detracting from actual credible claims , but mostly with the lack of evidence to support his claims He evokes intuition, but that made the argument very unscientific and uncredible In the end, McWhorter s argument did not conflict with many proponents of the idea of linguistic relativity, and his actual ar...John McWhorter s concise little book, while written in his ever entertaining style, nevertheless illuminates a serious issue which has vexed the popular understanding of linguistics for decades the Sapir Whorf hypothesis, or Whorfianism the idea that what kind of language one speaks, specifically in terms of how its grammar expresses ideas, shapes one s thought to such a degree that speakers of different languages actually perceive the world differently Shades of blues arevivid to Russi John McWhorter s concise little book, while written in his ever entertaining style, nevertheless illuminates a serious issue which has vexed the popular understanding of linguistics for decades the Sapir Whorf hypothesis, or Whorfianism the idea that what kind of language one speaks, specifically in terms of how its grammar expresses ideas, shapes one s thought to such a degree that speakers of different languages actually perceive the world differently Shades of blues arevivid to Russian eyes, with their two different words for lighter and darker varieties of what English and many, but by ...McWhorter is not, as I had assumed before reading this, a complete anti Whorfian But he is troubled by the popular misunderstandings of Neo Whorfian theories that exaggerate a few minuscule variations in how speakers may or may not perform on extremely subtle tests to mean that a language actually shapes how its speakers think and see the world McWhorter take Deutscher s Through the Language Glass Why the World Looks Different in Ot...Well written, persuasive, fascinating, and rigorous, McWhorter s most recent book tries to slay, once and for all, the persistent Whorfian myths that plague the public s conception of language Although McWhorter studiously avoids straw men and caricatures, many adherents of Whorfian ideas will nevertheless insist that he is attacking a position that nobody holds He is also careful to point out that Neo Whorfian research actually has uncovered some evidence for extremely weak versions of the Sa Well written, persuasive, fascinating, and rigorous, McWhorter s most recent book tries to slay, once and for all, the persistent Whorfian myths that plague the public s conception of language Although McWhorter studiously avoids straw men and caricatures, many adherents of Whorfian ideas will nevertheless insist that he is attacking a position that nobody holds He is also careful to point out that Neo Whorfian research actually has uncovered some evidence for extremely weak versions of the Sapir Whorf hypothesis, but he provides detailed evidence that shows just how utterly trivial and inconsequential this evidence is Yes, it turns out language can affect though...McWhorter sets out to debunk popular misconceptions about the Sapir Whorf hypothesis At first he does so by showing what modern science says about it namely that it s only true to such a trivial extent that it could never have an impact on how societies develop Great End of book.Except he keeps going He trots out a bunch of thought experiments to support his arguments, but these are always ...

• English
• 08 March 2017
John McWhorter
• Hardcover
• 182 pages
• 0199361584
• John McWhorter
• The Language Hoax