B.F. Skinner
Verbal Behavior by B.F. Skinner is the only book on this subject that matters. To see us going backwards from science to superstition is pathetic. Steven Pinker is an embarrassment to science and understanding. If you want understanding read Verbal Behavior by B.F. Skinner. Don't read this psuedo-science.
Utterly fascinating
When I was a freshman in college I used my roommate's computer all the time. She frequently had this book open on her desk as part of her study of HumBio (Human Biology). At some point I picked it up to take a look...and I didn't put it down until I was finished. An outstanding, utterly readable and deeply compelling look at the structures of the brain, the mind they inform and the human culture they produce. Highly recommended for all humans.
The Language Instinct
This book exploded for me. As a student in the 1970s, I had been taught that language determined thought (no word, no concept, right?) and this book reverses that completely. When Pinker notes, in the chapter called "The Tower of Babel," that a Martian would observe that human beings speak a single language, albeit one composed of 6,000 dialects, it lands with a "crash." This has been a tough book to put down -- it demands to be read and savored. The middle portions about grammar make me regret having napped through my English classes in (ironically) Grammar School when we diagrammed sentences and learned about S(ubject)V(erb)Object. It's never too late!
Bringing Science Home
Human language, from BEV to ASL and everything in between, is a genetically endowed by-product of human evolution, that even though it may set us apart from every other organism, it is no more unique to humans than a trunk is to an elephant or wings is to a bird. This is an essential point that Pinker makes, one that throws SSSM and other standard-setting scientists out the window, making way for the public to grasp a general understanding of the science of language.
Pinker makes language, and everything it emcompasses, accessible to the general public; with catchy chapter titles to hilarious examples and rips on "language mavens", this text is the utmost route to linguistics. Honestly, what more can up expect from a master of language? Regardless of that fast, what better way to understand Mentalese than with clear-cut examples and scientific backing? How would one scuff through morphology, phonetics, syntax, and the theory of Universal Grammer without being able to make a connection with examples from bunk-media clippings and hasty scientifically backed theories? Some may critique his wordy and lengthy style, but he/she must consider his audience. What is easier clearly expressed ideas and examples in plane ole' English or Chomsky-short-hand (p.96)?
Its Linguistics 101 with a twist. Not many people want to read dry text unless he/she has to. Pinker lightly peruses the tip of the iceberg, with explanations on Pidgin, Creole, the meaning of Standardized testing, Baby Geniuses, and theories on the origin of language, as well as fine points made by other linguistics that Pinker may not agree with, he satisfies the criteris for an introduction to language syllabus.
Language Instinct shines a bright light on a topic that is more important now and in the future than ever before, especially during a time of extreme globalization, language is the key to understanding many aspects of communication and Pinker targets a huge audience. Above all I would consider Pinker a credible and reliable source of information. And this is important, especially in this day and age, where anyone can write-off anything as fact.
However, I must say that Pinker clearly expresses the downfall of being so well-informed. It is important to draw a mental picture for one that is not so familiar with the concepts found in this book. But the fact of the matter is that tt is easy to get carried away in the nitty-gritty boroque examples that carry on for pages.
Last, perhaps Pinkers main set-back would be his theory on the language gene.
Overall, Pinker has a good grasp on his knowledge and writing style. He brings science down a notch so that the understanding of language can become accessible to those that it matters to most, everyone! This is a great introduction to Chomskian Theory. As a general advocate or good communication, Pinkers efforts to eduacte the public on language as a tool for understanding the owrld, mind, and culture should not go without notice.
The Best
This is by far the best lay account of an ongoing scientific breakthrough: The discovery of the biological underpinnings of language. Steven Pinker writes like a dream, and his wry and lucid descriptions are within the grasp of anyone curious about the phenomenon of language.
The clarity is a breath of fresh air to anyone who's tried (like me) to get through Noam Chomsky's books on language.
Speaking of which, some reviewers apparently believe Pinker is a Chomsky disciple, and they spend their reviews attacking Chomsky's Universal Grammar, rather than this book. Although Pinker acknowledges the deep debt that linguistics owes to Chomsky's ideas, he is clearly skeptical about Universal Grammar, and I think he discusses it for the sake of completeness, and because to do otherwise would seem disrespectful. Actually, most linguists aren't orthodox Chomskyites, because the rules of Universal Grammar get more complex, and murkier, as each new exception is discovered.
Likewise, some reviewers try to shoehorn Pinker into the "Nativist" category, as in the great debate of Nature vs. Nurture. While Pinker is clearly a Nativist at the fundamental level, so is everyone else: You can't teach a cow to speak French. But at the human level, he acknowledges the role played by both nature and nurture. He spends more time with nature because that's where the new stuff is happening.
I heartily recommend this book to anyone who interested in how, and why, we talk.
