Chomsky, Structuralism and the Subverting of Science
Chomsky, Structuralism and the Subverting of Science

Author: J. Paul N. Cant

Publisher: Paragon Publishing

Published: 2015

Total Pages: 254

ISBN-13: 1782224122

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This collection of papers opposes what has been the dominant linguistic theory in Western academies for over fifty years. Deriving initially from the structuralist ideas of Ferdinand de Saussure, the theory was proposed by Noam Chomsky as transformational generative grammar. Though it proved hugely influential and has gone through many modifications and revisions, J. Paul N. Cant argues that it was based on a number of false assumptions and much misleading epistemological confusion. Further, in elaborating the theory, Chomsky and his followers often failed to observe the rigour and disciplines of science. “The most incisive critique of Chomsky I have read in my life — Prof. Willie van Peer, Formerly Chair of Intercultural Hermeneutics, Ludwig Maximillian University, Munich, Germany.

Semiology and Parables
Semiology and Parables

Author: Daniel Patte

Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers

Published: 2004-06-15

Total Pages: 409

ISBN-13: 0915138115

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This book consists of the papers presented at a conference on Semiology and Parable held at Vanderbilt University. What is striking, once they are gathered together in one volume, is their unity beneath the diversity of approaches, methods, and theoretical and ideological backgrounds. This unity is not an homogeneity based upon some orthodox interpretation of parables, whatever their sources. Rather it is the product of a consistent network of problems, an open field of reading and research, a great variety of paths traced among texts but all merging toward a few nodal points that are the loci not of solutions but of fundamental questions concerning textual understanding and interpretation. We are confronted with three types of questions: in the domain of methods and technical procedures, we have the problem of the transfer of structural analysis and semiotic models from myths to parables; in that of disciplines, the relationships of anthropology, history, and semiology; and at last, in that of the philosophical presuppositions implied in any textual analysis, the status of meaning and reference, the theory of reading and interpretation, the question of textual indeterminacy and interpretive determinations. It is easy to identify in such a network the basic questions of our time regarding texts and their meaning-effect. But by embracing them in the study of a specific and complex kind of narrative rather than debating general problems in a programmatic way, the participants to the conference made valuable contributions both to their respective fields of interest and to a more rigorous analysis of certain literary texts. Louis Marin

Mindprint, the subconscious art code
Mindprint, the subconscious art code

Author: Edmond Furter

Publisher: Lulu.com

Published: 2014-04-11

Total Pages: 274

ISBN-13: 0620596856

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Visual archetypes are the DNA of culture. In artefacts and artworks, where archaeo-astronomers see ancient star maps, archaeologists see cultural traditions, and anthropologists see initiation secrets, appear a standard sequence of types, on an axial grid. Structural archaeology uses constellations as myth maps to find the structure of our perception. All inspired artists, in the Stone, Ice, Bronze and Iron Ages; Babylonians, Egyptians, Chinese, Celts, Mayans, Vikings and moderns, subconsciously express mindprint, our eternal artefact. The sixteen clusters of attributes are demonstrated in 200 examples of famous art and rock art works from every continent and culture. Archetypes are statistically proven, and their 'camouflage' is explained in terms of archaeology, anthropology, art history, psychology, philosophy, archaeo-astronomy, esoterica and spirituality. Readers will never look at art, artists or culture as a cumulative, learned or evolved craft again.

French Discourse Analysis
French Discourse Analysis

Author: Glyn Williams

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2014-04-04

Total Pages: 346

ISBN-13: 1317854004

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For the first time in English, Glyn Williams draws together current debates in linguistics and social theory, and provides the first study in English of the principles and theories of French discourse analysis.

The Cambridge Handbook of Phonology
The Cambridge Handbook of Phonology

Author: Paul de Lacy

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2007-02-01

Total Pages: 660

ISBN-13: 1139462059

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Phonology - the study of how the sounds of speech are represented in our minds - is one of the core areas of linguistic theory, and is central to the study of human language. This handbook brings together the world's leading experts in phonology to present the most comprehensive and detailed overview of the field. Focusing on research and the most influential theories, the authors discuss each of the central issues in phonological theory, explore a variety of empirical phenomena, and show how phonology interacts with other aspects of language such as syntax, morphology, phonetics, and language acquisition. Providing a one-stop guide to every aspect of this important field, The Cambridge Handbook of Phonology will serve as an invaluable source of readings for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, an informative overview for linguists and a useful starting point for anyone beginning phonological research.

Engaging Minds
Engaging Minds

Author: Brent Davis

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2015-05-01

Total Pages: 435

ISBN-13: 1317444299

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Engaging Minds: Cultures of Education and Practices of Teaching explores the diverse beliefs and practices that define the current landscape of formal education. The 3rd edition of this introduction to interdisciplinary studies of teaching and learning to teach is restructured around four prominent historical moments in formal education: Standardized Education, Authentic Education, Democratic Citizenship Education, Systemic Sustainability Education. These moments serve as the foci of the four sections of the book, each with three chapters dealing respectively with history, epistemology, and pedagogy within the moment. This structure makes it possible to read the book in two ways – either "horizontally" through the four in-depth treatments of the moments or "vertically" through coherent threads of history, epistemology, and pedagogy. Pedagogical features include suggestions for delving deeper to get at subtleties that can’t be simply stated or appreciated through reading alone, several strategies to highlight and distinguish important vocabulary in the text, and more than 150 key theorists and researchers included among the search terms and in the Influences section rather than a formal reference list.

What Counts as Evidence in Linguistics
What Counts as Evidence in Linguistics

Author: Martina Penke

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing

Published: 2007-01-01

Total Pages: 312

ISBN-13: 9789027222374

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What counts as evidence in linguistics? This question is addressed by the contributions to the present volume (originally published as a Special Issue of Studies in Language 28:3 (2004). Focusing on the innateness debate, what is illustrated is how formal and functional approaches to linguistics have different perspectives on linguistic evidence. While special emphasis is paid to the status of typological evidence and universals for the construction of Universal Grammar (UG), this volume also highlights more general issues such as the roles of (non)-standard language and historical evidence. To address the overall topic, the following three guiding questions are raised: What type of evidence can be used for innateness claims (or UG)?; What is the content of such innate features (or UG)?; and, How can UG be used as a theory guiding empirical research? A combination of articles and peer commentaries yields a lively discussion between leading representatives of formal and functional approaches.

The Terms of Order
The Terms of Order

Author: Cedric J. Robinson

Publisher: UNC Press Books

Published: 2016-03-09

Total Pages: 311

ISBN-13: 1469628228

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Do we live in basically orderly societies that occasionally erupt into violent conflict, or do we fail to perceive the constancy of violence and disorder in our societies? In this classic book, originally published in 1980, Cedric J. Robinson contends that our perception of political order is an illusion, maintained in part by Western political and social theorists who depend on the idea of leadership as a basis for describing and prescribing social order. Using a variety of critical approaches in his analysis, Robinson synthesizes elements of psychoanalysis, structuralism, Marxism, classical and neoclassical political philosophy, and cultural anthropology in order to argue that Western thought on leadership is mythological rather than rational. He then presents examples of historically developed "stateless" societies with social organizations that suggest conceptual alternatives to the ways political order has been conceived in the West. Examining Western thought from the vantage point of a people only marginally integrated into Western institutions and intellectual traditions, Robinson's perspective radically critiques fundamental ideas of leadership and order.

Criticism and Truth
Criticism and Truth

Author: Roland Barthes

Publisher: A&C Black

Published: 2007-02-22

Total Pages: 84

ISBN-13: 1441151893

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Roland Barthes (1915-1980) was a major French writer, literary theorist and critic of French culture and society. His classic works include Mythologies and Camera Lucida. Criticism and Truth is a brilliant discussion of the language of literary criticism and a key work in the Barthes canon. It is a cultural, linguistic and intellectual challenge to those who believe in the clarity, flexibility and neutrality of language, couched in Barthes' own inimitable and provocative style.