The Language Web: The Power and Problem of Words - The 1996 BBC Reith LecturesCambridge University Press, 1997 - 139 pages Language is like a vast spider's web. In this volume Jean Aitchison explores the different facets of this web. She begins with the cobweb of false worries which surrounds language. She then discusses how language evolved in the human species, how children acquire it, and how educated English speakers remember 50,000 or more words. Finally, she argues that people are right to be concerned about language, though not in the ways traditionally assumed. This is the text of the 1996 BBC Reith lectures, slightly revised for publication, with illustrations and full references, and an afterword which looks at the reception of the lectures. |
Table des matières
A web of worries | 1 |
A web of deceit | 21 |
Building the web | 41 |
A web of words | 61 |
A worldwide web | 79 |
Afterword | 97 |
Notes | 107 |
| 125 | |
| 135 | |
Expressions et termes fréquents
A. N. Wilson acquire adult alarm calls animal Ayto babies behaviour Belfast birds Blackwell Cambridge University Press century chapter Chicago child language chimp claimed cobweb Cognition communication dictionary discussed double negative editors English speakers Estuary English evolution example gobbledegook grammar guage Guardian handbook of child human language ideas Jean Aitchison Kanzi kilometre language change language origin learning Lenneberg letter lexical linguistic Liz Forgan London Longman Lord Reith MacWhinney Mark Lawson Marler Martin Amis meaning mental Mermecolions metaphor Milroy mind monkey naming insight natural number of words origin of language Papousek parents patterns Paul Johnson Penelope Lively Penguin pointed primates pronouns pronunciation quotation quoted Reith lectures Robert Hanks rules Scientific American semantic sequence social sometimes sounds speech Standard English suggested syllable talk tion tongue topic usage verbs Vervet vocabulary vocal Whorf wimp wine worries writer Yomp York