Cognitive Exploration of Language and Linguistics (review)

Written with an audience of linguistic neonates in mind, this introduction to contemporary linguistics offers a perceptive overview of major issues in the field which will make for rewarding reading even for more advanced students. Separate chapters are devoted to topics such as language and thought, lexicology, morphology, and syntax. The editors have taken pains to give equal weight to firmly established areas of research and relatively recent contributions to the discipline. Alongside chapters on historical linguistics and phonetics and phonology, we find stimulating discussions of text linguistics, contrastive linguistics, and pragmatics. Of particular interest to many readers will be a chapter on cross-cultural semantics—which I will certainly return to for its lucid summary of principal assumptions underlying research most closely associated with the name of Anna Wierzbicka.

One of the principal merits of the book lies in its coverage of approaches which are frequently given short shrift in comparable publications. Another notable feature is the uniform structure of the individual chapters, which generally contain introductory and summary sections as well as suggestions for further reading. First-year students in particular will applaud the inclusion of assignments at the end of each chapter which offer ample opportunity to put one’s newly acquired knowledge to the test in a variety of interesting tasks.

The striking consistency in structure is all the more remarkable for the fact that the book is the result of the concerted efforts of fifteen scholars from a wide range of countries. The volume is a multilingual and multicultural project, with contributors from Belgium, Germany, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Spain, The Netherlands, Australia, and the US. The variety of perspectives which is the welcome result of this multicultural authorship is counterbalanced by the editors’ successful attempt to adapt the individual contributions to a general format and ‘keep the book coherent in contents’ (xii).

In general, the various chapters strike a balance between accessibility and scientific accuracy. Still, in some places the discussion does not appear to do full justice to the subject matter. Take, for example, Ch. 2. The discussion of metonymy, or more precisely contiguity, initially gives the impression of reducing the notion to part-whole relationships—which would not be in line with conventional wisdom. In what follows, however, we are offered a somewhat different account. Contiguity, it is claimed, can be more broadly construed as involving some kind of contact. This explanation will ring familiar to anyone who has dipped into the subject matter. Unfortunately, since contiguity is to be taken in a very broad sense—covering ‘abstract associations’ as well as cases of concrete physical contact— the definition is of little help once it comes to the notorious problem of distinguishing between metaphor and metonymy. For many metaphors could also be characterized in terms of abstract associations.

In light of the introductory character of the volume, these are minor quibbles. In any case, the selection of a particular chapter for critical comment is somewhat arbitrary and not meant to detract from its intrinsic value. On the whole, the book can be most enthusiastically recommended for learners and teachers alike.