Forget the language instinctâthis is the story of how we make up language as we go
Language isâŻperhaps humanityâsâŻmost astonishingâŻcapacityâand one that remains poorly understood. In The Language Game, cognitive scientists Morten H. Christiansen and Nick Chater show us where generations of scientists seeking the rules of language got it wrong. Language isnât about hardwired grammars but about near-total freedom, something like a game of charades, with the only requirement being a desire to understand and be understood. From this new vantage point, Christiansen and ChaterâŻfind compelling solutions to major mysteries like the origins of languages and how language learning is possible, and to long-running debates such as whether having two words for âblueâ changes what we see.âŻIn the end, they show that the only real constraint on communication is our imagination.
The Language Game - Morten H. Christiansen & Nick Chater
Forget the language instinctâthis is the story of how we make up language as we go
Language isâŻperhaps humanityâsâŻmost astonishingâŻcapacityâand one that remains poorly understood. In The Language Game, cognitive scientists Morten H. Christiansen and Nick Chater show us where generations of scientists seeking the rules of language got it wrong. Language isnât about hardwired grammars but about near-total freedom, something like a game of charades, with the only requirement being a desire to understand and be understood. From this new vantage point, Christiansen and ChaterâŻfind compelling solutions to major mysteries like the origins of languages and how language learning is possible, and to long-running debates such as whether having two words for âblueâ changes what we see.âŻIn the end, they show that the only real constraint on communication is our imagination.