Suzette Haden Elgin’s latest endeavor, The Language Imperative:
The Power of Language to Enrich Your Life and Expand Your Mind,
explores the intricacies of modern-day multilingualism-a hotly
contested issue in American education and public policy. Elgin
does a remarkable job of defining multilingualism, outlining the
controversies and misunderstandings surrounding it, and explaining
the importance and desirability of multilingualism "within
the context of the larger topic of the power of language".

Elgin is a respected and well-known linguistics scholar, a specialist
in applied psycholinguistics, but she’s also a good storyteller.
The Language Imperative is peppered with surprising observations,
interesting stories, and savory bits of trivia. It is worth reading
for entertainment value alone, although the book’s message is
much deeper and should not be overlooked.

The Language Imperative explains some of the most complex
theories in linguistics and makes them relevant to the layperson.
One of those theories, "the linguistic relativity hypothesis",
posits that the way we perceive things varies depending upon which
languages we know. Elgin quotes linguist Dan Alford who gives
the example of an English-speaking parent playing ball with a
young child. According to Alford, when the ball bounces, the parent
will say to the child, "Look! Ball!’" But a Cheyenne-speaking
parent would say to the child, "Look! Bouncing!" The
stimulus is the same, but the perception is very different. Elgin
contemplates this theory in relation to medicine, business, religion,
and more.

The power of language is certainly not a new concept, but Elgin’s
research shows the tremendous depth and breadth of that power.
Language can be used as a weapon, it can bond families or tear
them apart, it can become a vehicle for entire systems of thought-it
can even be used to make war palatable to an entire citizenry.

The Language Imperative asks a question we don’t often
hear in the United States: Why don’t American schools teach additional
languages to young children until after their language acquisition
skills have diminished? Elgin’s thoughtful discussion on the subject
is a testament to the utility of linguistics research-and to books
like this one.

It may be prudent, however, to read The Language Imperative
with some skepticism. Elgin is highly opinionated and makes no
effort to appear otherwise. Her opinions about the desirability
of multilingualism are so thoroughly ingrained in the text that
it is sometimes difficult to discern whether Elgin is stating
fact or opinion. Elgin is, after all, the linguist who brought
us the book, How to Disagree Without Being Disagreeable,
and the entire Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense series.
She does know how to use language to achieve a desired purpose.
Still, this thought-provoking book is full of useful information
and well worth delving into.

© 2001 Chris S. Witwer

Chris S. Witwer is a freelance
writer living in Austin, Texas.

Categories: General

Keywords: Sociolinguistics, Language Arts / Linguistics / Literacy
Tags: Psychology