ABSTRACT: Treatments of human communication mostly draw on cognitive and word-centred models to present it as predominantly a matter of words. This, Ruth argues, seriously underestimates the far-reaching multi-modal qualities of human interconnecting and the senses of touch, olfaction, and, above all, audition and vision that we draw on.

 

In this authoritative and readable account, Ruth Finnegan brings together research from linguistic and sensory anthropology, material culture, non-verbal communication, computer-mediated communication, and, strikingly, research on animal communication, such as the remarkable gesture systems of great apes. She draws on her background in classical studies and her long anthropological experience to present illuminating examples from throughout the world, past and present. The result is to uncover an amazing array of sounds, sights, smells, gestures, looks, movements, touches, and material objects used by humans to interconnect both nearby and across space and time.

      She goes on to explore, first, the extra-sensory modes of communication now being revealed in the extraordinary “new science” research, and, then, in an incendiary conclusion, to deny the long-prevailing story of human history by questioning whether orality really came before literacy; whether it was really

through “the acquisition of language” that our prehistoric cave painting ancestors made a sudden leap into being “true humans”; and finally, astonishingly, to ask whether human communicating had its first roots not, after all, in verbal language but something else?

     Not to be missed, this highly original book brings a fresh perspective on, among other things, that central topic of interest today – the dawn of human history – and on what being homo sapiens really means. This revised and updated edition has additional illustrations, updated chapters, and a new concluding chapter. A provocative and controversial account that will stir worldwide debate, this book is an essential transdisciplinary overview for researchers and advanced students in language and communication, anthropology, and cultural studies".

      She goes on to explore, first, the extra-sensory modes of communication now being revealed in the extraordinary “new science” research, and, then, in an incendiary conclusion, to deny the long-prevailing story of human history by questioning whether orality really came before literacy; whether it was really

through “the acquisition of language” that our prehistoric cave painting ancestors made a sudden leap into being “true humans”; and finally, astonishingly, to ask whether human communicating had its first roots not, after all, in verbal language but something else?

      Not to be missed, this highly original book brings a fresh perspective on, among other things, that central topic of interest today – the dawn of human history – and on what being homo sapiens really means. This revised and updated edition has additional illustrations, updated chapters, and a new concluding chapter. A provocative and controversial account that will stir worldwide debate, this book is an essential transdisciplinary overview for researchers and advanced students in language and communication, anthropology, and cultural studies.

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1st Nov 2023, Review: Fantastic

This is a fantastic, fascinating, well-written, and high-quality read! While the price is definitely very steep, the incredible length of the book, along with the quality of the content within its pages, justifies the price quite a bit, in my opinion. I flew through this much quicker than I expected purely because of how invested and interested I was, and the fantastic pacing and explanations definitely helped in that regard, too. I highly recommend getting yourself a copy of this if you're interested as you're extremely unlikely to regret it, in my opinion (James B, UK)