The Story of Human Language /
John McWhorter ; The Teaching Company.
- 1st ed.
- Chantilly, VA : The Teaching Company, 2004.
- 6 DVDs (1080 min.) : sd., col. ; 4 3/4 in. + 1 course Guidebook (201 p. : ill. ; 19 cm)
- The Great Courses Literature and Language Linguistics .
Includes 36 x 30 min. lectures. Also Includes Course Guidebook.
The Course Guidebook includes a glossary and bibliographical references.
"Dr. John McWhorter, one of America's leading linguists and a frequent commentator on network television and National Public Radio, addresses these and other questions as he takes you on an in-depth, 36-lecture tour of the development of human language, showing how a single tongue spoken 150,000 years ago has evolved into the estimated 6,000 languages used around the world today." (Publisher's Website) CONTENTS: DISC 1 Lecture 1. What is Language? Lecture 2. When Language Began Lecture 3. How Language Changes - Sound Change Lecture 4. How Language Changes - Building New Material Lecture 5. How Language Changes - Meaning and Order Lecture 6. How Language Changes - Many Directions DISC 2 Lecture 7. How Language Changes - Modern English Lecture 8. Language Families - Indo-European Lecture 9. Language Families - Tracing Indo-European Lecture 10. Language Families - Diversity of Structures Lecture 11. Language Families - Clues to the Past Lecture 12. The Case Against the World's First Language DISC 3 Lecture 13. The Case For the World's First Language Lecture 14. Dialects - Subspecies of Species Lecture 15. Dialects - Where Do You Draw The Line? Lecture 16. Dialects - Two Tongues in One Mouth Lecture 17. Dialects - The Standard as Token of the Past Lecture 18. Dialects - Spoken Style, Written Style DISC 4 Lecture 19. Dialects - The Fallacy of Blackboard Grammar Lecture 20. Language Mixture - Words Lecture 21. Language Mixture - Grammar Lecture 22. Language Mixture - Language Areas Lecture 23. Language Develops Beyond the Call of Duty Lecture 24. Language Interrupted DISC 5 Lecture 25. A New Perspective on the Story of English Lecture 26. Does Culture Drive Language Change? Lecture 27. Language Starts Over - Pidgins Lecture 28. Language Starts Over - Creoles I Lecture 29. Language Starts Over - Creoles II Lecture 30. Language Starts Over - Signs of the New DISC 6 Lecture 31. Language Starts Over - the Creole Continuum Lecture 32. What is Black English? Lecture 33. Language Death - The Problem Lecture 34. Language Death - Prognosis Lecture 35. Artificial Languages Lecture 36. Finale - Master Class
"Dr. John McWhorter, one of America's leading linguists and a frequent commentator on network television and National Public Radio, addresses these and other questions as he takes you on an in-depth, 36-lecture tour of the development of human language, showing how a single tongue spoken 150,000 years ago has evolved into the estimated 6,000 languages used around the world today." (Publisher's Website) DVD CONTENTS:
DISC 1 Lecture 1. What is Language? Lecture 2. When Language Began Lecture 3. How Language Changes - Sound Change Lecture 4. How Language Changes - Building New Material Lecture 5. How Language Changes - Meaning and Order Lecture 6. How Language Changes - Many Directions
DISC 2 Lecture 7. How Language Changes - Modern English Lecture 8. Language Families - Indo-European Lecture 9. Language Families - Tracing Indo-European Lecture 10. Language Families - Diversity of Structures Lecture 11. Language Families - Clues to the Past Lecture 12. The Case Against the World's First Language
DISC 3 Lecture 13. The Case For the World's First Language Lecture 14. Dialects - Subspecies of Species Lecture 15. Dialects - Where Do You Draw The Line? Lecture 16. Dialects - Two Tongues in One Mouth Lecture 17. Dialects - The Standard as Token of the Past Lecture 18. Dialects - Spoken Style, Written Style
DISC 4 Lecture 19. Dialects - The Fallacy of Blackboard Grammar Lecture 20. Language Mixture - Words Lecture 21. Language Mixture - Grammar Lecture 22. Language Mixture - Language Areas Lecture 23. Language Develops Beyond the Call of Duty Lecture 24. Language Interrupted
DISC 5 Lecture 25. A New Perspective on the Story of English Lecture 26. Does Culture Drive Language Change? Lecture 27. Language Starts Over - Pidgins Lecture 28. Language Starts Over - Creoles I Lecture 29. Language Starts Over - Creoles II Lecture 30. Language Starts Over - Signs of the New
DISC 6 Lecture 31. Language Starts Over - the Creole Continuum Lecture 32. What is Black English? Lecture 33. Language Death - The Problem Lecture 34. Language Death - Prognosis Lecture 35. Artificial Languages Lecture 36. Finale - Master Class COURSE GUIDEBOOK CONTENTS:
INTRODUCTION Professor Biography Course Scope
LECTURE GUIDES Lecture 1: What is Language? Lecture 2: When Language Began Lecture 3: How Language Changes - Sound Change Lecture 4: How Language Changes - Building New Material Lecture 5: How Language Changes - Meaning and Order Lecture 6: How Language Changes - Many Directions Lecture 7: How Language Changes - Modern English Lecture 8: Language Families - Indo-European Lecture 9: Language Families - Tracing Indo-European Lecture 10: Language Families - Diversity of Structures Lecture 11: Language Families - Clues to the Past Lecture 12: The Case Against the World's First Language Lecture 13: The Case For the World's First Language Lecture 14: Dialects - Subspecies of Species Lecture 15: Dialects - Where Do You Draw The Line? Lecture 16: Dialects - Two Tongues in One Mouth Lecture 17: Dialects - The Standard as Token of the Past Lecture 18: Dialects - Spoken Style, Written Style Lecture 19: Dialects - The Fallacy of Blackboard Grammar Lecture 20: Language Mixture - Words Lecture 21: Language Mixture - Grammar Lecture 22: Language Mixture - Language Areas Lecture 23: Language Develops Beyond the Call of Duty Lecture 24: Language Interrupted Lecture 25: A New Perspective on the Story of English Lecture 26: Does Culture Drive Language Change? Lecture 27: Language Starts Over - Pidgins Lecture 28: Language Starts Over - Creoles I Lecture 29: Language Starts Over - Creoles II Lecture 30: Language Starts Over - Signs of the New Lecture 31: Language Starts Over - the Creole Continuum Lecture 32: What is Black English? Lecture 33: Language Death - The Problem Lecture 34: Language Death - Prognosis Lecture 35: Artificial Languages Lecture 36: Finale - Master Class
SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL Language Maps Timeline Glossary Bibliography
Not rated.
DVD, region 1.
Literature Language Linguistics Historical Linguistics Human History