The freedom of words : abstractness and the power of language / Anna M. Borghi.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Borghi, Anna M., author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Language and languages--Philosophy.

Language and languages.

Abstraction.

Psycholinguistics.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xii, 299 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, United Kingdom ; New York, NY : Cambridge University Press, 2023.

Summary:

The Freedom of Words is for anyone interested in understanding the role of body and language in cognition and how humans developed the sophisticated ability to use abstract concepts like 'freedom' and 'thinking'. This volume adopts a transdisciplinary perspective, including philosophy, semiotics, psychology, and neuroscience, to show how language, as a tool, shapes our minds and influences our interaction with the physical and social environment. It develops a theory showing how abstract concepts in their different varieties enhance cognition and profoundly influence our social and affective life. It addresses how children learn such abstract concepts, details how they vary across languages and cultures, and outlines the link between abstractness and the capability to detect inner bodily signals. Overall, the book shows how words - abstract words in particular, because of their indeterminate and open character - grant us freedom.

Contents:

The power of language. Language as a physical tool

Language as an inner/cognitive tool

Language as a social tool

Evolving language in interaction

On abstractness and language. Different varieties of abstract concepts

Abstractness and language as a physical tool

Abstractness and language as an inner tool

Abstractness and language as a social tool.

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 31 Jul 2023).

Other Format:

Print version:

ISBN:

9781108913294 (ebook)