Babel No More：The Search for the World's Most Extraordinary Language Learners

作者: Michael Erard 著

出版社: Free Press

出版时间: 2012-01

ISBN: 9781451628258

定价: 185.00

装帧: 精装

开本: 其他

纸张: 其他

页数: 320页

正文语种: 英语

分类: 外文古旧书>英文书>综合性图书

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Wealllearnatleastonelanguageaschildren.Butwhatdoesittaketolearnsixlanguages,twenty...seventy?Suchfeatsoflinguisticprowessprovideaglimpseintowhatthehumanbrainiscapableof—andholdupamirrortoourdesiretolivewithoutlanguagebarriersonashrinkingplanet.InBabelNoMore,MichaelErard,“amonolingualwithbenefits,”setsoutonaquesttomeetlanguagesuperlearnersandmakesenseoftheirmentalpowers.Onthewayheuncoversthesecretsofhistoricalfigureslikethenineteenth-centuryItaliancardinalGiuseppeMezzofanti,whowassaidtospeakseventy-twolanguagesandwassuchalegendthatwhenhediedpeoplealloverEuropeviedforhisskull.EmilKrebs,apugnaciousfindesiècleGermandiplomat,spokesixty-eightlanguages,andErardseestheevidenceofthisinKrebs’sdissectedbrain.LombKató,aHungarianhyperpolyglotwhotaughtherselfRussianbyreadingRussianromancenovels,believedthat“onelearnsgrammarfromlanguage,notlanguagefromgrammar.”Thesemassivemultilingualshavelongofferedanaturalexperimentintothelimitsofthebrain;here,atlast,wecaninspecttheresults.Onhiswaytotrackingdowntheonemanwhocouldbecalledthemostlinguisticallytalentedpersonintheworld,Erardmeetsotherlivinglanguage-superlearners.AmongthemisAlexander,amodern-daypolyglotwithdozensoflanguageswhoshowshimthetricksofthetradeandgiveshimadarkglimpseintothelifeofobsessivelanguageacquisition.“Icametoconsiderhimasaholyman,”writesErard.“Othersdoyoga;Alexanderdoesgrammaticalexercises.”Withhisambitiousexaminationofwhatlanguageis,whereitlivesinthebrain,andtheculturalimplicationsofpolyglots’pursuits,Erardexplorestheupperlimitsofourabilitytolearnandtouselanguages,andilluminatestheintellectualpotentialineveryone.HowdosomepeopleescapethecurseofBabel—andwhatmightthegodshavedemandedoftheminreturn? MichaelErardhasgraduatedegreesinlinguisticsandrhetoricfromtheUniversityofTexasatAustin.He’swrittenaboutlanguage,linguists,andlinguisticsforWired,TheAtlantic,TheNewYorkTimes,andmanyotherpublicationsandisacontributingwriterforTheTexasObserverandDesignObserver.HeistheauthorofUm…:Slips,Stumbles,andVerbalBlunders,andWhatTheyMean.
内容简介:
Wealllearnatleastonelanguageaschildren.Butwhatdoesittaketolearnsixlanguages,twenty...seventy?Suchfeatsoflinguisticprowessprovideaglimpseintowhatthehumanbrainiscapableof—andholdupamirrortoourdesiretolivewithoutlanguagebarriersonashrinkingplanet.InBabelNoMore,MichaelErard,“amonolingualwithbenefits,”setsoutonaquesttomeetlanguagesuperlearnersandmakesenseoftheirmentalpowers.Onthewayheuncoversthesecretsofhistoricalfigureslikethenineteenth-centuryItaliancardinalGiuseppeMezzofanti,whowassaidtospeakseventy-twolanguagesandwassuchalegendthatwhenhediedpeoplealloverEuropeviedforhisskull.EmilKrebs,apugnaciousfindesiècleGermandiplomat,spokesixty-eightlanguages,andErardseestheevidenceofthisinKrebs’sdissectedbrain.LombKató,aHungarianhyperpolyglotwhotaughtherselfRussianbyreadingRussianromancenovels,believedthat“onelearnsgrammarfromlanguage,notlanguagefromgrammar.”Thesemassivemultilingualshavelongofferedanaturalexperimentintothelimitsofthebrain;here,atlast,wecaninspecttheresults.Onhiswaytotrackingdowntheonemanwhocouldbecalledthemostlinguisticallytalentedpersonintheworld,Erardmeetsotherlivinglanguage-superlearners.AmongthemisAlexander,amodern-daypolyglotwithdozensoflanguageswhoshowshimthetricksofthetradeandgiveshimadarkglimpseintothelifeofobsessivelanguageacquisition.“Icametoconsiderhimasaholyman,”writesErard.“Othersdoyoga;Alexanderdoesgrammaticalexercises.”Withhisambitiousexaminationofwhatlanguageis,whereitlivesinthebrain,andtheculturalimplicationsofpolyglots’pursuits,Erardexplorestheupperlimitsofourabilitytolearnandtouselanguages,andilluminatestheintellectualpotentialineveryone.HowdosomepeopleescapethecurseofBabel—andwhatmightthegodshavedemandedoftheminreturn?
作者简介:
MichaelErardhasgraduatedegreesinlinguisticsandrhetoricfromtheUniversityofTexasatAustin.He’swrittenaboutlanguage,linguists,andlinguisticsforWired,TheAtlantic,TheNewYorkTimes,andmanyotherpublicationsandisacontributingwriterforTheTexasObserverandDesignObserver.HeistheauthorofUm…:Slips,Stumbles,andVerbalBlunders,andWhatTheyMean.

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Babel No More：The Search for the World's Most Extraordinary Language Learners

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