Through The Language Glass: Why The World Looks Different In Other Languages Summary
Effects of Language on Perceptions and Experiences
Jaclyn Caserta
University of North Carolina Greensboro
2 December 2014
Through the Language Glass: Why the World Looks Different In Other Languages written by Guy Deutscher discusses the long argued theory of nature versus culture and how language is affected. The book attempts to demonstrate that through all the back and forth arguments, the disproval of many a theory and the flat out naivety of some of the most respected names in linguistics that our mother tongue does in fact play a part in forming our experiences of the world. A journey is laid out before any reader prepared to take a step into the past to follow the footsteps of the greats in the nature versus culture war that has gotten us thus far. With many missteps by the greatest linguistic and anthropological minds, Guy Deutshers’ language glass is a fascinating quest taking readers through the language of colour and cultural language differences such as time, and spatial references. Taking the famous Sapir-Whorf hypothesis Deutscher manages to present a compelling argument for the case of languages presence in our perceptions and understanding of the world we live in and that nature and DNA …show more content…
It begins fascinatingly enough with the development of the colour language throughout history, beginning with the work of Ewart Gladstone on the writings of Homer. Continuing through to modern day civilizations and the varying cultures, with the orders colours appear and the leeway nature provides for culture to dictate their names and importance in language. Guy Deutscher discusses and contemplates the varying hypothesis that have occurred as to why the vast array of names for colours have not always been present throughout every
Jaclyn Caserta
University of North Carolina Greensboro
2 December 2014
Through the Language Glass: Why the World Looks Different In Other Languages written by Guy Deutscher discusses the long argued theory of nature versus culture and how language is affected. The book attempts to demonstrate that through all the back and forth arguments, the disproval of many a theory and the flat out naivety of some of the most respected names in linguistics that our mother tongue does in fact play a part in forming our experiences of the world. A journey is laid out before any reader prepared to take a step into the past to follow the footsteps of the greats in the nature versus culture war that has gotten us thus far. With many missteps by the greatest linguistic and anthropological minds, Guy Deutshers’ language glass is a fascinating quest taking readers through the language of colour and cultural language differences such as time, and spatial references. Taking the famous Sapir-Whorf hypothesis Deutscher manages to present a compelling argument for the case of languages presence in our perceptions and understanding of the world we live in and that nature and DNA …show more content…
It begins fascinatingly enough with the development of the colour language throughout history, beginning with the work of Ewart Gladstone on the writings of Homer. Continuing through to modern day civilizations and the varying cultures, with the orders colours appear and the leeway nature provides for culture to dictate their names and importance in language. Guy Deutscher discusses and contemplates the varying hypothesis that have occurred as to why the vast array of names for colours have not always been present throughout every