The Language Hoax
The language we speak shapes how we experience life, creating a world view based on its vocabulary and grammar…right? Not so, says John McWhorter. Drawing from the scientific literature, McWhorter explains how this widely-held belief is not only false, it leads to dangerous assumptions about cultures and races that differ from our own – and asserts that while cultures emphasize the ways human groups differ, languages suggest what we have in common.
McWhorter is an associate professor of English and comparative literature at Columbia University. He is a regular columnist for Time; a contributor to numerous newspapers, magazines, and television programs; and author of The Language Hoax: Why the World Looks the Same in Any Language.
The language we speak shapes how we experience life, creating a world view based on its vocabulary and grammar…right? Not so, says John McWhorter. Drawing from the scientific literature, McWhorter explains how this widely-held belief is not only false, it leads to dangerous assumptions about cultures and races that differ from our own – and asserts that while cultures emphasize the ways human groups differ, languages suggest what we have in common.
John McWhorter is an associate professor of English and comparative literature at Columbia University. He is a regular columnist for Time; a contributor to numerous newspapers, magazines, and television programs; and author of The Language Hoax: Why the World Looks the Same in Any Language.
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