Of Minds and Language: A Dialogue with Noam Chomsky in the Basque Country

by Massimo Piattelli-Palmarini, Noam Chomsky (introduction)

This book presents a state-of-the-art account of what we know and would like to know about language, mind, and brain. Chapters by leading researchers in linguistics, psycholinguistics, language acquisition, cognitive neuroscience, comparative cognitive psychology, and evolutionary biology are framed by an introduction and conclusion by Noam Chomsky, who places the biolinguistic enterprise in an historical context and helps define its agenda for the future.

The questions explored

What is our tacit knowledge of language?
What is the faculty of language?
How does it develop in the individual?
How is that knowledge put to use?
How is it implemented in the brain?
How did that knowledge emerge in the species?

The book includes the contributor's key discussions, which dramatically bring to life their enthusiasm for the enterprise and skill in communicating across disciplines. Everyone seriously interested in how language works and why it works the way it does are certain to find, if not all the answers, then a convincing, productive, and lively approach to the endeavour.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction

472 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1991

Reviews

[Robert Murphy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Generative Grammarians had a conference starring Noam Chomsky discussing biolinguistics and wrote down every word. They think they're speaking philosophically, but they're actually at the bottom of a deep presupposition pool. Still, interesting discussions, if taken with a cube of salt two meters on a side.