Communication, Meaning and Misconceptions

“This book bridges the gap between an academic introduction and an engaging dinner-table conversation. Basic concepts, meanings and misconceptions in the study of language are introduced in a lively interaction between two friends and provide fascinating insights into language and communication.” -Andreas H. Jucker, University of Zurich, Switzerland “Karol Janicki is right: the general public is still not fully aware of the important role language plays in our society. I wish his new book, which is written in a very comprehensible and dialogue-based style, many readers – particularly with a lay, non-linguistic background.” -Martin Stegu, Vienna University of Economics and Business, Austria “Karol Janicki’s is a much needed, clearly written text for non-linguists who tend to be naïve users of language, despite the fact that most of what they do for a living (think of medical doctors, lawyers, teachers, journalists, politicians etc.) cruciallydepends on their use of language. One strong selling point is that the entire work is presented in dialogs rather than classical academic prose.” -Miklós Kontra, Károli Gáspár University, Budapest, Hungary This book covers several related topics anchored in the idea of how meaning is created. The central focus in the book is, however, on how language awareness may help us communicate smoothly and solve social problems. The book takes up language misconceptions and their social significance, and promotes the view that regarding meaning (and language in general) as open and flexible, rather than closed and rigid, may lead to critical thinking, innovation, and creativity. The book covers topics such as words and things, words and emotions, fake news and hate speech, and it has been written in the form of short informal dialogues to engage readers and make linguistic concepts accessible. Karol Janicki is Professor Emeritus inthe Department of Foreign Languages at the University of Bergen, Norway. His recent research interests have focused on language and conflict, lay people’s language problems, language and education, general semantics, applied cognitive linguistics, and socio-political aspects of language.