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"This book is not about music, cookery, or sex. But it is about how we talk about music, cookery, and sex--or, indeed, anything at all." Language is so fundamental to everyday life that we take it for granted. But as linguist Crystal makes clear, language is an extremely powerful tool that defines the human species. Crystal offers general readers a personal tour of the intricate workings of language. He moves effortlessly from big subjects like the origins of languages, how children learn to speak, and how conversation works to subtle but revealing points such as how email differs from both speech and writing in important ways, how language reveals a person's social status, and how we decide whether a word is rude or polite. Broad and deep, but with a light and witty touch, this is a layman's guide to how we communicate with one another.--From publisher description.… (more)
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Language is our birthright, an essential part of our humanity. Yet specific languages are potentially dangerous, more powerful than national cultures and identity. However, we cannot clearly define any one language. There are no standards to draw the line between languages or between dialects. Thus we guess there are perhaps 6000 human languages – some thriving, some endangered, all equally modern.
But what else should I pick upon? Ending sentences with prepositions? Starting sentences with a conjunctive? I should say the author is not another pop-linguist. He seeks to inform not to entertain or pontificate. For instance, he explains why a monograph ought not to be a monologue. He ably shows that an author can engage a reader in a feigned dialogue with appropriate cues to upcoming contents and required mode of thinking.
The explanations are beautiful spun, and easily accessed. Hence the book is well worth reading.