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? 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. It is language that reflects culture and worldview, not the other way around. The fact that a language has only one word for eat, drink, and smoke doesn't mean its speakers don't process the difference between food and beverage, 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.

Let the squeamish beware! Watch Your F*cking Language takes a no-holds-barred approach to taboo words and expressions. It shows you how to use them to your advantage -- and have fun doing so. Building on the lessons learned in English as a Second F*cking Language, this book emphasizes traditional English swears as well as powerful (and hidden) expressions from other cultures and languages. Through numerous examples, it puts the real language of real people into context: FLOYD: I just heard a Dan Quayle speech. It was really f*cking confusing. RUBY: I just got back from a Mongolian cluster f*ck. It was really confusing f*cking. The name of the game is communication, and Watch Your F*cking Language shows readers how to hammer home their messages with confidence and gusto. Among its features: *Numerous examples of proper (and so-called improper) usage *An Idioms section that emphasizes the niceties of swearing *A "Need to Know, "Nice to Know," and "Forget It" system for identifying swear words *A Final F*cking Exam

Here is an informative introduction to language: its origins in the past, its growth through history, and its present use for communication between peoples. It is at the same time a history of language, a guide to foreign tongues, and a method for learning them. It shows, through basic vocabularies, family resemblances of languages -- Teutonic, Romance, Greek -- helpful tricks of translation, key combinations of roots and phonetic patterns. It presents by common-sense methods the most helpful approach to the mastery of many languages; it condenses vocabulary to a minimum of essential words; it simplifies grammar in an entirely new way; and it teaches a language as it is actually used in everyday life.

Click here for updates to this edition. Journalists trade in words. Using language accurately, clearly, and consistently is part of their job--and this skill is equally important for writers and editors. Watch Your Words is designed as a handbook for quick and accessible classroom and newsroom use. Consistent with The Associated Press Stylebook, it establishes a baseline for language-skills knowledge in the areas of punctuation, grammar and usage, as well as AP style. Self-tests, answer keys, and sections on spelling and copyediting symbols are also included. Mastery of the material in Watch Your Words can equip the student or professional with the basic tools for producing clean copy. For information on how to bundle this book with other Rowman & Littlefield textbooks, contact [email protected].

“Dazzling . . . a verbal and visual feast that defies genres.” —The Washington Post From the National Book Award–winning author of Lighthead, Terrance Hayes, a fascinating collection of graphic reviews and illustrated prose addressing the last century of American poetry—to be published simultaneously with his latest poetry collection, So to Speak Canonized, overlooked, and forgotten African American poets star in Terrance Hayes's brilliant contemplations of personal, canonical, and allegorical literary development. Proceeding from Toni Morrison's aim to expand the landscape of literary imagination in Playing in the Dark ("I want to draw a map, so to speak, of a critical geography"), Watch Your Language charts a lyrical geography of reading and influence in poetry. Illustrated micro-essays, graphic book reviews, biographical prose poems, and nonfiction sketches make reading an imaginative and critical act of watching your language. Hayes has made a kind of poetic guidebook with more questions than answers. "If you don't see suffering's potential as art, will it remain suffering?" he asks in one of the lively mock poetry exam questions of this musing, mercurial collection. Hayes's astonishing drawings and essays literally and figuratively map the acclaimed poet's routes, roots, and wanderings through the landscape of contemporary poetry.

The most accessible and practical book on the market about improving your personal and professional conversations, by internationally respected conversation expert Rob Kendall. Watch Your Language makes good communication easy, offering a huge range of case studies, easy-to-absorb concepts such as the Bad Place and the Tangle, and a unique "talking heads" page design that dissects examples of problematic conversations. It explains exactly why our daily conversations go wrong, how to respond when they do and provides tips on how to stop them from deteriorating in the first place. Communications expert Rob Kendall draws on over 30 years of experience to reveal: How to avoid conversations escalating into destructive arguments How to prepare for and conduct challenging conversations How to avoid defensiveness and emotional lockdown How to read the warning signals that a conversation is going off-track Short digestible chapters look at a wide variety of conversational scenarios, showing how to have rewarding and effective interactions with everyone in your life – from your partner, parents and children to your colleagues, boss and neighbours.

This fun book is about words: their origins, histories, surprises, colorful use and misuse. It may alter your mental landscape for several months or less.