EPISODE · Aug 21, 2017 · 1H 4M
John McWhorter on the Evolution of Language and Words on the Move
from Rob Wiblin's top recommended EconTalk episodes v0.2 Feb 2020 · host EconTalk: Russ Roberts
How did bad come to mean good? Why is Shakespeare so hard to understand? Is there anything good about "like" and "you know?" Author and professor John McWhorter of Columbia University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the unplanned ways that English speakers create English, an example of emergent order. Topics discussed include how words get short (but not too short), the demand for vividness in language, and why Shakespeare is so hard to understand.
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John McWhorter on the Evolution of Language and Words on the Move
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