Language, Thought, and Reality (Classic Reprint): Selected Writings of Benjamin Lee Whorf: Selected Writings of Benjamin Lee Whorf (Classic Reprint) - Softcover

Inhaltsangabe

Language and thought shape how we see the world—and the words we use may change what we can think.

This collection presents Benjamin L. Whorf’s bold ideas about linguistic relativity and how language conditions concept and perception. Drawing on the Hopi language and other linguistic cases, the text argues that our habitual thoughts and even scientific concepts are influenced by the structures we use to talk about the world. The book surveys two core ideas: first, that higher levels of thinking depend on language; second, that the language we speak can alter how we understand our environment. It contrasts Western and non‑Western linguistic patterns, showing how different grammars and vocabularies may guide attention to space, time, matter, and causation. Throughout, the emphasis is on how language acts as a tool for meaning and a mirror of human thought, not a static library of facts.

• How language can shape our perception of space, time, and causality
• Examples drawn from Hopi and other language families to compare thought patterns
• Discussion of how grammatical categories (such as plurality, tense, and parts of speech) influence experience
• reflections on how studying exotic languages reveals biases in our own thinking

Die Inhaltsangabe kann sich auf eine andere Ausgabe dieses Titels beziehen.