LINGUIST List 9.941

Wed Jun 24 1998

Books: Cognitive Linguistics

Editor for this issue: Anita Huang <anitalinguistlist.org>

Directory

1. Vivien Eng, Cognitive Linguistics

POSSESSION: COGNITIVE SOURCES, FORCES AND GRAMMATICALIZATION

Bernd Heine (University of Cologne); Possession: Cognitive Sources,
Forces and Grammaticalization; ISBN: 0-521-55037-8; Hardback, 6 X 9,
290 pp.; Pub. Date: 6/30/97 PUBLISHER:Cambridge University Press;
$64.95; 

Bernd Heine argues that the structure of grammatical categories is
predictable to a large extent once we know the range of possible
cognitive structures from which they are derived. The author uses as
his example the structure of predicative possession, and shows how
most of the possessive constructions to be found in the world's
languages can be traced back to a small set of basic conceptual
patterns. Using grammaticalization theory Heine describes how each
affects the word order and morphosyntax of the resulting possessive
construction.; Contents: 1. The state/ 2. The process/ 3. On
attributive possession/ 4. From possession to aspect/ 5. Evaluation/
Appendix: a world-wide survey of have-constructions/ References; 

Order Info: http://www.cup.org/order.html


COLOR CATEGORIES IN THOUGHT AND LANGUAGE

Color Categories in Thought and Language; ISBN: 0-521-49693-4;
Hardback, 6 X 9, 414 pp.; C.L. Hardin, ed. (Emeritus, Syracuse
University); Pub. Date: 7/30/97 PUBLISHER:Cambridge University Press;
$74.95; 

Twenty-five years ago, Berlin and Kay argued that there are
commonalities of basic color term use that extend across languages and
cultures, and probably express universal features of perception and
cognition. In this volume, a distinguished team of contributors from
visual science, psychology, linguistics and anthropology examine how
these claims have fared in the light of current knowledge, surveying
key ideas, results and techniques from the study of human color vision
as well as field methods and theoretical interpretations drawn from
linguistic anthropology.
Order Info: http://www.cup.org/order.html


MAPPINGS IN THOUGHT AND LANGUAGE

Gilles Fauconnier (University of California, San Diego); Mappings in
Thought and Language; ISBN: 0-521-46062-X; Hardback, 6 x 9, 217 pp.;
Pub. Date: 4/30/97 PUBLISHER:Cambridge University Press; $54.95;

Meaning in everyday thought and language is constructed at lightning
speed. We are not conscious of the staggering complexity of the
cognitive operations that drive our simplest behavior. This book
reveals the creativity that underlies our effortless use of language
in everyday life, when we engage in conversation, understand humor, or
solve puzzles. The capacities and principles that we develop from
infancy for ordinary thinking and talking are also the ones that drive
scientific and artistic thought, high-level reasoning, and conceptual
change.; Content: 1. Mappings/ 2. Mental Space Connections/ 3. Tense
and Mood/ 4. Analogical Counterfactuals/ 5. Matching/ 6. Blends; 
Order Info: http://www.cup.org/order.html


LANGUAGE AND CONCEPTUALIZATION

Language and Conceptualization; ISBN: 0-521-55303-2; Hardback, 6 X 9,
289 pp.; Jan Nuyts, ed. (University of Antwerp); Pub. Date: 5/31/97;
PUBLISHER:Cambridge University Press; $59.95; 

To what extent is conceptualization based on linguistic
representation? And to what extent is it variable across cultures,
communities or even individuals? Of crucial importance in the attempt
to develop a comprehensive theory of human cognition, these remain
among the most difficult questions in the cognitive sciences. This
volume brings together ten new contributions from leading scholars
working in a wide cross section of disciplines, including linguistics,
anthropology, psychology and philosophy.; Contents: 1. Overview: on
the relationship between language and conceptualization, Jan Nuyts and
Eric Pederson/ 2. from outer to inner space: linguistic categories and
non-linguistic thinking, Stephen C. Levinson/ 3. Spatial operations in
deixis, cognition and culture, Balthasar Bickel/ 4. Remote worlds: the
conceptual representation of linguistic would, Paul Werth/ 5. Role and
individual representations of change predicates, Eve Sweetser/
6. Changing place in English and German: language-specific preferences
in the conceptualisation of spatial relations, Mary Carroll/
7. Mapping conceptual representations into linguistic representations:
the role of attention in grammar, Russell S. Tomlin/ 8. Growth points
cross-linguistically, David McNeill/ 9. On the modularity of sentence
processing: semantical generality and the language of thought, Jay
Atlas/ 10. The contextual basis of cognitive semantics, Ronald
W. Langacker/ 11. The cognitive foundations of pragmatic principles:
implications for theories of linguistic and cognitive representation,
Edward A Robinson.
Order Info: http://www.cup.org/order.html


COMPREHENSION: A PARADIGM FOR COGNITION

Walter Kintsch (University of Colorado, Boulder); Comprehension: A
Paradigm for Cognition; ISBN: 0-521-58360-8; Hardback, 6 x 9, 461 pp.;
PUBLISHER:Cambridge University Press; $69.95; 

In this book, Walter Kintsch presents a theory of human text
comprehension and extends his analysis to related areas.
Comprehension is conceptualized as a two-stage process: first,
approximate, inaccurate representations are constructed via context
insensitive construction rules, which are then integrated via a
spreading activation constraint satisfaction process. In Part I, the
general theory is presented and an attempt is made to situate it
within the current theoretical landscape in cognitive science. The
second part addresses many of the topics that are typically found in a
cognitive psychology text, including how word meanings are identified
in a discourse context; how words are combined to form coherent
representations of texts, both at the local and global level; what the
role is of working memory in comprehension; how relevant knowledge
is activated during reading; and what is the distinction between
remembering a text and learning from a text.; Contents:
1. Introduction/ PART I. THE THEORY/ 2. Cognition and Representation/
3. Propositional Representations/ 4. Modeling Comprehension Processes:
The Construction-Integration Model/ PART II. MODELS OF COMPREHENSION/
5. Word Identification in Discourse/ 6. Textbases and Situation
Models/ 7. The Role of Working Memory in Comprehension/ 8. Memory for
Text/ 9. Learning from Text/ 10. Word Problems/ 11. Beyond Text; 
Order Info: http://www.cup.org/order.html
		

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