Animal languages / Eva Meijer ; translated by Laura Watkinson.
2019
QL776 .M447 2019 (Mapit)
Available at General Collection
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Details
Title
Animal languages / Eva Meijer ; translated by Laura Watkinson.
Author
Meijer, Eva, 1980- author.
Uniform Title
Dierentalen. English
ISBN
9780262044035 (hardcover)
026204403X (hardcover)
026204403X (hardcover)
Published
Cambridge, Massachusetts : The MIT Press, 2019.
Language
English
Description
x, 276 pages : illustrations ; 21 cm
Call Number
QL776 .M447 2019
Dewey Decimal Classification
591.59
Summary
"Animals use far more elaborate and complex language than we think. They chat, gossip, mourn, rhyme, speak in dialects and make jokes. Whales sing a different series of songs each season, which rhyme and are picked up by other whales in passing, making them 'hits'. Some species of bird have dialects that differ from one region to the next, and the birds that live on the regional boundaries are bilingual. Eva Meijer combines her field of study, philosophy, with her love of animals. That combination of academic interest and personal passion has produced a lucid and inspiring plea to listen more carefully to animals. She presents a history of philosophical thought about animals and language, addressing questions such as: when can you call communication a language? And what exactly is a language, anyway? Descartes decided that animals do not have a soul because they do not have rationality, and the best proof of rationality is the power of speech. Meijer shows that every species of animal speaks in its own way. Animals even have grammar: dolphins in their clicks, cephalopods in the colour patterns of their skin, and whales in the structure of their songs. There are some from whom humans could learn lessons about the efficient use of language: prairie dogs alert each other by a single call to the height and proximity of a potential interloper, even including the colour of their clothes and what they are carrying. This book makes clear that animals speak, not just by instinct but for social, emotional and creative reasons. Along with ideas from Aristotle, Descartes and Wittgenstein, Meijer takes Heidegger's beliefs about language as her guide: language gives us insight into the world around us and helps us to shape it. This notion is central to Animal Languages. Studying the languages of animals gives us a starting point for new relationships with them. Meijer argues that we should enter into conversation with animals, rather than making them the object of study"-- Provided by publisher.
Note
First published as Dierentalen in the Netherlands in 2016 by ISVW.
This translation first published with subtitle: Revealing the secret conversations of the living world. London : John Murray (Publishers), a Hachette company. 2019.
This translation first published with subtitle: Revealing the secret conversations of the living world. London : John Murray (Publishers), a Hachette company. 2019.
Bibliography, etc. Note
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Added Author
Watkinson, Laura, translator.
Translation of
Dierentalen.
Record Appears in
On-Campus Resources > Books
All Resources
All Resources
Table of Contents
Preface
Introduction
1. Speaking in human language
2. Conversations in the living world
3. Living with animals
4. Thinking with the body
5. Structure, grammar and decoding
6. Metacommunication
7. Why we need to talk with the animals.
Introduction
1. Speaking in human language
2. Conversations in the living world
3. Living with animals
4. Thinking with the body
5. Structure, grammar and decoding
6. Metacommunication
7. Why we need to talk with the animals.