Gesture: Visible Action as Utterance

by Adam Kendon

Gesture, or visible bodily action that is seen as intimately involved in the activity of speaking, has long fascinated scholars and laymen alike. Written by a leading authority on the subject, this long-awaited study provides a comprehensive treatment of gesture and its use in interaction, drawing on the analysis of everyday conversations to demonstrate its varied role in the construction of utterances. Adam Kendon accompanies his analyses with an extended discussion of the history of the study of gesture - a topic little dealt with in previous publications - as well as exploring the relationship between gesture and sign language, and how the use of gesture varies according to cultural and language differences. Set to become the definitive account of the topic, Gesture will be invaluable to all those interested in human communication. Its publication marks a major development, both in semiotics and in the emerging field of gesture studies.

Genres: Linguistics, Nonfiction

Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Klaudia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Changed my mind

[Joey'S Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Without a doubt, Dr. Kendon is a very great scholar working on and contribute much to the field of gestures. However, he is not a very good writer as he loves to use sentences with many subordinate clauses and the like, which renders the reading of the work unnecessarily difficult. However, I am very grateful for his extensive research on and great contribution to this field.

[Simge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very extensive research, focusing on major works of pioneering figures in gesture studies.
Easy to read and understand, helped me a lot

[Harry Fulgencio · Rating 2 out of 5]

very scholarly written. Not my kind of book but could be interesting for specialized researchers.

[Livia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Scholarly written + easy read