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How Language Began: The Story of Humanity's Greatest Invention by Everett: Used
US $15.98
ApproximatelyC $21.87
Condition:
Good
A book that has been read but is in good condition. Very minimal damage to the cover including scuff marks, but no holes or tears. The dust jacket for hard covers may not be included. Binding has minimal wear. The majority of pages are undamaged with minimal creasing or tearing, minimal pencil underlining of text, no highlighting of text, no writing in margins. No missing pages. See the seller’s listing for full details and description of any imperfections.
- Buy It NowHow Language Began: The Story of Humanity's Greatest Invention by Everett: Used
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Item specifics
- Condition
- Book Title
- How Language Began: The Story of Humanity's Greatest Invention
- Publication Date
- 2017-11-07
- Pages
- 352
- ISBN
- 9780871407955
About this product
Product Identifiers
Publisher
Liveright Publishing Corporation
ISBN-10
0871407957
ISBN-13
9780871407955
eBay Product ID (ePID)
235653117
Product Key Features
Number of Pages
384 Pages
Language
English
Publication Name
How Language Began : the Story of Humanity's Greatest Invention
Publication Year
2017
Subject
Life Sciences / Neuroscience, Communication Studies, Linguistics / Historical & Comparative, Semiotics & Theory, Linguistics / Psycholinguistics, Linguistics / General
Type
Textbook
Subject Area
Literary Criticism, Language Arts & Disciplines, Science
Format
Hardcover
Dimensions
Item Height
1.1 in
Item Weight
21 Oz
Item Length
9.5 in
Item Width
6.4 in
Additional Product Features
Intended Audience
Trade
LCCN
2017-025673
Dewey Edition
23
Reviews
Ambitious...the subject-matter is completely enthralling...Everett is at the very top of his intellectual game., [Everett] mixes esoteric scholarly inquiry with approachable anecdotal interludes to surmise how humans developed written and spoken language and why it became vital for survival and dominance. As in his previous books, Everett energetically attacks the long-accepted theory of Noam Chomsky that humans are born with the language instinct, including innate rules of structure....That Everett is skilled at leavening an intellectually challenging treatise with humor is evident on the first page of the introduction., Provocative and ambitious. . . . Applying semantics, linguistic theory, cultural history, and popular culture, [Everett] makes a convincing case for the multimodal nature of language--a phenomenon that engages 'the whole person--intellectual emotions, hands, mouth, tongue, brain.' . . . This volume will be of interest to linguists, cultural critics, and anthropologists as well as informed readers interested in the evolution of language., When I first became interested in cultural evolution, cognitive revolutionaries would say that Noam Chomsky had proved that an innate language acquisition device was the key to linguistics. Daniel Everett is a leader of the counterrevolution that is putting culture and cultural evolution back at the center of linguistics, and cognition more generally, where I think it belongs. How Language Began is an accessible account of the case for a culture-centered theory of language., Moving far outside historical linguistics, Everett credits Homo erectus with having invented language nearly two million years ago. This communicative invention came not--in Everett's view--in one revolutionary breakthrough but, instead, at the slow pace typical of evolution, as early hominids gradually organized themselves in ever-more-complex social groupings, eventually learning to fashion culturally weighted symbols and then to manipulate such symbols in communicative strings, so setting the evolutionary stage for the planet's only loquacious species: Homo sapiens. . . . Certain to spark that liveliest form of language--debate!, An ambitious text.... Everett's amiable tone, and especially his captivating anecdotes from his field studies in the Amazonian rain forests, will help the neophyte get along. It's worth it in the end to get a glimpse of conversation through his eyes, as humanity's most impressive collective invention., Very few books on the biological and cultural origin of humanity can be ranked as classics. I believe that Daniel L. Everett's How Language Began will be one of them., [Everett] mixes esoteric scholarly inquiry with approachable anecdotal interludes to surmise how humans developed written and spoken language and why it became vital for survival and dominance. As in his previous books, Everett energetically attacks the long-accepted theory of Noam Chomsky that humans are born with the language instinct, including innate rules of structure....That Everett is skilled at leavening an intellectually challenging treatise with humor is evident on the first page of the introduction., How Language Began occupies a rare literary space that explains complex issues clearly to general readers while being an original contribution to scholarship...the arguments he marshals and insights he provides are impressive...anyone interested in language would gain from reading this book.
Illustrated
Yes
Dewey Decimal
401
Synopsis
Mankind has a distinct advantage over other terrestrial species: we talk to one another. But how did we acquire the most advanced form of communication on Earth? Daniel L. Everett, a "bombshell" linguist and "instant folk hero" (Tom Wolfe, Harper's ), provides in this sweeping history a comprehensive examination of the evolutionary story of language, from the earliest speaking attempts by hominids to the more than seven thousand languages that exist today. Although fossil hunters and linguists have brought us closer to unearthing the true origins of language, Daniel Everett's discoveries have upended the contemporary linguistic world, reverberating far beyond academic circles. While conducting field research in the Amazonian rainforest, Everett came across an age-old language nestled amongst a tribe of hunter-gatherers. Challenging long-standing principles in the field, Everett now builds on the theory that language was not intrinsic to our species. In order to truly understand its origins, a more interdisciplinary approach is needed--one that accounts as much for our propensity for culture as it does our biological makeup. Language began, Everett theorizes, with Homo Erectus , who catalyzed words through culturally invented symbols. Early humans, as their brains grew larger, incorporated gestures and voice intonations to communicate, all of which built on each other for 60,000 generations. Tracing crucial shifts and developments across the ages, Everett breaks down every component of speech, from harnessing control of more than a hundred respiratory muscles in the larynx and diaphragm, to mastering the use of the tongue. Moving on from biology to execution, Everett explores why elements such as grammar and storytelling are not nearly as critical to language as one might suspect. In the book's final section, Cultural Evolution of Language, Everett takes the ever-debated "language gap" to task, delving into the chasm that separates "us" from "the animals." He approaches the subject from various disciplines, including anthropology, neuroscience, and archaeology, to reveal that it was social complexity, as well as cultural, physiological, and neurological superiority, that allowed humans--with our clawless hands, breakable bones, and soft skin--to become the apex predator. How Language Began ultimately explains what we know, what we'd like to know, and what we likely never will know about how humans went from mere communication to language. Based on nearly forty years of fieldwork, Everett debunks long-held theories by some of history's greatest thinkers, from Plato to Chomsky. The result is an invaluable study of what makes us human., How Language Began revolutionizes our understanding of the one tool that has allowed us to become the "lords of the planet." Mankind has a distinct advantage over other terrestrial species: we talk to one another. But how did we acquire the most advanced form of communication on Earth? Daniel L. Everett, a "bombshell" linguist and "instant folk hero" (Tom Wolfe, Harper's ), provides in this sweeping history a comprehensive examination of the evolutionary story of language, from the earliest speaking attempts by hominids to the more than seven thousand languages that exist today. Although fossil hunters and linguists have brought us closer to unearthing the true origins of language, Daniel Everett's discoveries have upended the contemporary linguistic world, reverberating far beyond academic circles. While conducting field research in the Amazonian rainforest, Everett came across an age-old language nestled amongst a tribe of hunter-gatherers. Challenging long-standing principles in the field, Everett now builds on the theory that language was not intrinsic to our species. In order to truly understand its origins, a more interdisciplinary approach is needed--one that accounts as much for our propensity for culture as it does our biological makeup. Language began, Everett theorizes, with Homo Erectus , who catalyzed words through culturally invented symbols. Early humans, as their brains grew larger, incorporated gestures and voice intonations to communicate, all of which built on each other for 60,000 generations. Tracing crucial shifts and developments across the ages, Everett breaks down every component of speech, from harnessing control of more than a hundred respiratory muscles in the larynx and diaphragm, to mastering the use of the tongue. Moving on from biology to execution, Everett explores why elements such as grammar and storytelling are not nearly as critical to language as one might suspect. In the book's final section, Cultural Evolution of Language, Everett takes the ever-debated "language gap" to task, delving into the chasm that separates "us" from "the animals." He approaches the subject from various disciplines, including anthropology, neuroscience, and archaeology, to reveal that it was social complexity, as well as cultural, physiological, and neurological superiority, that allowed humans--with our clawless hands, breakable bones, and soft skin--to become the apex predator. How Language Began ultimately explains what we know, what we'd like to know, and what we likely never will know about how humans went from mere communication to language. Based on nearly forty years of fieldwork, Everett debunks long-held theories by some of history's greatest thinkers, from Plato to Chomsky. The result is an invaluable study of what makes us human., How Language Began revolutionizes our understanding of the one tool that has allowed us to become the "lords of the planet."
LC Classification Number
P116.E73 2017
Item description from the seller
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- m***m (2281)- Feedback left by buyer.Past monthVerified purchaseI’m thrilled with my recent purchase . The website was user-friendly, and the product descriptions were accurate. Customer service was prompt and helpful, answering all my questions. My order arrived quickly, well-packaged, and the product exceeded my expectations in quality. I’m impressed with the attention to detail and the overall experience. I’ll definitely shop here again and highly recommend from this seller to others. Thank you for a fantastic experience!
- a***n (43)- Feedback left by buyer.Past monthVerified purchaseMistakenly ordered a paperback that I thought was a hardcover, not sellers fault; it was described properly on the listing. Seller still processed a refund the day I went to return the item and let me keep the item anyway. A+++ service. Book arrived quickly in great condition and for a great price. Thank you so much! Amazing seller!
- n***c (94)- Feedback left by buyer.Past monthVerified purchaseseller was communicative about my shipment, media mail took a while and tracking wasn't updated frequently, but seller communicated to me very quickly on status. the item came new and wrapped as described, though the packaging in it was packed wasn't sturdy and falling apart when it got to me.
Seller feedback (511,621)
- m***m (2281)- Feedback left by buyer.Past monthVerified purchaseI’m thrilled with my recent purchase . The website was user-friendly, and the product descriptions were accurate. Customer service was prompt and helpful, answering all my questions. My order arrived quickly, well-packaged, and the product exceeded my expectations in quality. I’m impressed with the attention to detail and the overall experience. I’ll definitely shop here again and highly recommend from this seller to others. Thank you for a fantastic experience!
- a***n (43)- Feedback left by buyer.Past monthVerified purchaseMistakenly ordered a paperback that I thought was a hardcover, not sellers fault; it was described properly on the listing. Seller still processed a refund the day I went to return the item and let me keep the item anyway. A+++ service. Book arrived quickly in great condition and for a great price. Thank you so much! Amazing seller!
- n***c (94)- Feedback left by buyer.Past monthVerified purchaseseller was communicative about my shipment, media mail took a while and tracking wasn't updated frequently, but seller communicated to me very quickly on status. the item came new and wrapped as described, though the packaging in it was packed wasn't sturdy and falling apart when it got to me.