3 Review(s)

People have been concerned with fundamental questions about language and communication for thousands of years. How did human language originate? Why are there so many different languages? Are features of language and communication arbitrary or do universal patterns prevail? By introducing readers to these kinds of questions, this alphabetically arranged volume presents a complete and detailed picture of how Western and non-Western traditions influence one another. Readers will discover the sociocultural rules one must learn in order to use language. By examining how people from different cultural backgrounds rely on traditional and emerging cultural rules for social interaction, readers should have a greater sensitivity to many of the communication barriers that exist in the modern world.