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Synopsis
Why do certain words make us blush or wince? Why do men and women really speak different languages? Why do nursery rhymes in vastly different societies possess similar rhyme and rhythm patterns? What do slang, riddles and puns secretly have in common?
This erudite yet irresistibly readable book examines the game of language: its players, strategies, and hidden rules. Drawing on the most fascinating linguistic studies--and touching on everything from the Marx Brothers to linguistic sexism, from the phenomenon of glossolalia to Apache names for automobile parts--Word Play shows what really happens when people talk, no matter what language they happen to be using."synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
About the Author
Peter Farb's early work in the comparative study of Mediterranean languages, as well as his research collecting folk ballads and various styles of speech in isolated communities in the American South, led to a distinguished career in anthropological linguistics, where he specialized in remote, non-European languages. His extensive knowledge of a variety of American Indian languages--in North America as well as in Mexico, Central America, and Brazil--produced two best-selling books, Man's Rise to Civilization as Shown by the Indians of North America and Face of North America. His various works have been translated into 14 languages.Mr. Farb served as a consultant at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, and as curator of American Indian Cultures at the Riverside Museum in New York City.
From the Back Cover
Why do certain words make us blush or wince? Why do men and women really speak different languages? Why do nursery rhymes in vastly different societies possess similar rhyme and rhythm patterns? What do slang, riddles and puns secretly have in common?
This erudite yet irresistibly readable book examines the game of language: its players, strategies, and hidden rules. Drawing on the most fascinating linguistic studies--and touching on everything from the Marx Brothers to linguistic sexism, from the phenomenon of glossolalia to Apache names for automobile parts--Word Play shows what really happens when people talk, no matter what language they happen to be using.
"A captivating, almost entirely unpedantic book...solidly founded in scholarship, love of language, and an unabashed worldliness about play itself."--Washington Post
"Absorbing...so curious, amusing, and enlightening...we almost inadvertently learn a great deal about linguistics. [But] it seems scarcely to matter what we've learned...we've simply had too much fun."--The New York Times
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherVintage Books
- Publication date1993
- ISBN 10 0679734082
- ISBN 13 9780679734086
- BindingPaperback
- LanguageEnglish
- Number of pages384
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Word Play: What Happens When People Talk
Published by
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1993
ISBN 10: 0679734082
ISBN 13: 9780679734086
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Paperback
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Word Play: What Happens When People Talk
Published by
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1993
ISBN 10: 0679734082
ISBN 13: 9780679734086
Used
Paperback
Seller: ThriftBooks-Atlanta, AUSTELL, GA, U.S.A.
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Word Play: What Happens When People Talk
Published by
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1993
ISBN 10: 0679734082
ISBN 13: 9780679734086
Used
Paperback
Seller: ThriftBooks-Dallas, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Paperback. Condition: Very Good. No Jacket. May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.7. Seller Inventory # G0679734082I4N00
Quantity: 1 available
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Word Play: What Happens When People Talk
Published by
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1993
ISBN 10: 0679734082
ISBN 13: 9780679734086
Used
Paperback
Seller: ThriftBooks-Atlanta, AUSTELL, GA, U.S.A.
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Word Play: What Happens When People Talk
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Word Play : What Happens When People Talk
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ISBN 10: 0679734082
ISBN 13: 9780679734086
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Taschenbuch. Condition: Gut. 6. Auflage, 1993, Bibliotheksexemplar * Einband: leichte Gebrauchsspuren, in Folie eingeschlagen * Schnitt: nachgedunkelt * Seiten: leichte Lesespuren, an den Rändern nachgedunkelt. Seller Inventory # RN-O6KT-RW81
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Word Play: What Happens When People Talk
Published by
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ISBN 10: 0679734082
ISBN 13: 9780679734086
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Word Play: What Happens When People Talk
Published by
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1993
ISBN 10: 0679734082
ISBN 13: 9780679734086
Used
Softcover
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