The Politics Of Language
Year:
2023Published in:
Princeton University PressA provocative case for the inherently political nature of language In The Politics of Language, David Beaver and Jason Stanley present a radical new approach to the theory of meaning, offering an account of communication in which political and social identity, affect, and shared practices play as important a role as information. This new view of language, they argue, has dramatic consequences for free speech, democracy, and a range of other areas in which speech plays a central role. Drawing on a wealth of disciplines, The Politics of Language argues that the function of speech—whether in dialogue, larger group interactions, or mass communication—is to attune people to something, be it a shared reality, emotion, or identity. Reconceptualizing the central ideas of pragmatics and semantics, Beaver and Stanley apply their account to a range of phenomena that defy standard frameworks in linguistics and philosophy of language—from dog whistles and covert persuasion to echo chambers and genocidal speech. The authors use their framework to show that speech is inevitably political because all communication is imbued with the resonances of particular ideologies and their normative perspectives on reality. At a time when democracy is under attack, authoritarianism is on the rise, and diversity and equality are being demanded, The Politics of Language offers a powerful new vision of the language of politics, ideology, and protest.
Related by author
56 publications found
Rationality Is Gendered
Publisher: Collabra: Psychology
Authors: Jason Stanley, Yarrow Dunham, Olivia Pavco-Giaccia, Martha Fitch Little
In Defense Of Truth, And The Threat Of Disinformation
Publisher: United States Advisory Commission
Authors: Jason Stanley
We Disagree On A Lot Of Things. Except The Danger Of Anti‑Critical Race Theory Laws.
Publisher: International New York Times
Authors: Jason Stanley, David French, Kmele Foster, Thomas Chatterton Williams
Knowledge And Practical Interests
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Authors: Jason Stanley
Modality And What Is Said
Publisher: Philosophical Perspectives
Authors: Jason Stanley
Propaganda
Publisher: Routledge
Authors: Jason Stanley, Anne Quaranto
How Propaganda Works
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Authors: Jason Stanley
Banning Ideas And Authors Is Not A ‘Culture War’ – It’s Fascism
Publisher: The Guardian
Authors: Jason Stanley
How Fascism Works: The Politics Of Us And Them
Publisher: Random House
Authors: Jason Stanley
Skill
Publisher: Noûs
Authors: Jason Stanley, Timothy Williamson