Language A to Z
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Language A to Z
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Narrated by:
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John McWhorter
About this listen
Linguistics, the study of language, has a reputation for being complex and inaccessible. But here's a secret: There's a lot that's quirky and intriguing about how human language works-and much of it is downright fun to learn about. But with so many potential avenues of exploration, it can often seem daunting to try to understand it. Where does one even start?
In these twenty-four 15-minute lectures by one of the best-known popularizes of language, you'll discover a delightful way to get accessible, bite-sized introductions to language. Using the English alphabet as a unique, offbeat way to approach the subject, Professor McWhorter has crafted a hopscotch tour of some of the field's major topics, hot-button issues, and more.
You'll learn why it can actually be OK to use slang like "LOL." Why English speakers don't use words like "thou" and "thee" anymore. What makes "mama" and "papa" a child's first words-in many languages. How popular rhymes like "Eeny, meeny, miney, moe") actually derive from the words for numbers in an early relative of Welsh. Why "like" is here to stay in common American speech. And much more.
These and other fascinating topics are all delivered in Professor McWhorter's light-hearted yet informative teaching style, which makes this series essential for anyone looking for a welcoming window into the quirks, curiosities, and intricacies of how language works. Filled with humor, whimsy, and no shortage of insights, it's a fast-paced tour of the same territory linguists tread each and every day.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.
©2012 The Great Courses (P)2012 The Teaching Company, LLCListeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about Language A to Z
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Rockesh Gurtu
- 06-07-23
Great!
It was great listening to to professor John McWhorter, always a pleasure, learnt a lot !
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Guðrún Pétursdóttir
- 23-08-18
Nice introduction to linguistics
For anyone even mildly interested in languages or just words in general and the best part is that it's not just English although it is a kind of point of departure for most lecturers. Just wished they were longer.
McWorther is very knowledgeable about his subject but makes sure to "dumb" it down without patronizing his listener, and he seems to be having a lot of fun it too. Note he is a bit hyperactive but it makes it fun although it might be annoying to begin with, you will get used to it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Gerry Lynch
- 05-10-22
Enthusiasm
What I certainly learnt from this course is how enthusiastic linguistics are. That aside it was an interesting course wuth a lot if facts well presented
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Fiona
- 14-09-20
Fabulous insight and superb delivery
What a superb presenter - I can’t see how the lecture delivery could be improved. The lectures move quickly, but just at the right pace including John McWhorter’s amazing accents and funny asides. I’ve only ever studied European languages and this has given me a very useful perspective to see how languages sit together and develop. I would thoroughly recommend the book
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Andrew
- 11-07-22
What a fantastic lecturer
I have listened to and loved a lot of the Great Courses series on Audible, but McWhorter has to be my favourite lecturer of the lot. Very entertaining.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kira Adams
- 10-01-19
Hugely entertaining albeit a little shallow
This is the third Great Courses lecture set by John McWhorter I have listened to, and although I have enjoyed all of them equally, this one did was a little different from the others.
This “course” takes the form of 24 short talks, each covering a topic inspired by a letter of the alphabet. As such, it’s kind of reminiscent of QI: entertaining tidbits of trivia. It’s perfectly set up to listen to as “mini episodes” as and when you wish, in any order you wish, as opposed to the other courses which are much more structured. However, this is also its downfall: the bite-size nature of the set means that it is much shallower than the other two courses.
John McWhorter is, as always, a hugely engaging and entertaining lecturer and I cannot fault him. In fact, this lecture so it might be the perfect introduction to him for listeners who are more interested in something that they can pick up and put down rather than a more “heavy” course.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Ms. J. Parish
- 25-10-24
Zappy and snappy
Fast paced, entertaining and often funny zip through interesting aspects of human language - ambitious without being overly technical. Like other lecture series by John McWhorter, it sits somewhere between academia and stand-up. His compressed delivery is a celebration of the nuance, breadth and elegant brevity of human speech, and the world seems forever different after listening to it. I can’t see anyone not being impressed after hearing their first John McWhorter lecture. And he’d never use a double negative to make a positive.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Nicus
- 25-10-22
English-centric and shallow
The description says the lessons are about linguistics, but the material is just about American English and targeted to monolingual speakers (other languages use double negatives? no kidding!).
The author manages to make it about English even when he is talking about Aramaic.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Liz
- 17-10-23
So smug
I read a lot about linguistics, language and indeed just words, and while the book has some interesting stories few are new, even to my non-academic study and all are marred by his super smug style. I'm sure he feels he's being entertaining but it comes across as a lot of the things I'm sure he feels he isn't - condescending, amero-centric and supercilious.
Note to self - avoid more by this author for your own sanity. A few new stories is not worth this much eye rolling
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