Wordwatching

Wordwatching PDF Author: Julian Burnside
Publisher: Scribe Publications
ISBN: 1921640170
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 353

Book Description
A bonzer (p. 288) discussion of the strange but dinkum (p. 289) pedigree (p. 224) of the naughty (p. 202), nice (p. 212), and, sometimes, obscene (p. 217) English language. We live in a torrent of words — from radio and television, books and newspapers, and now from the internet. But, as Julian Burnside reminds us in this new edition of the bestselling Wordwatching, words are a source both of pleasure and power, and can be deployed for good or for ill. Some of these essays explore curiosities in odd corners of the language simply to remind us of the extraordinary richness of the English language. Other pieces use small matters of language to illustrate larger processes of cultural borrowing and change. Burnside’s musings remind us that we should not be alarmed at the instability of the language; rather, we should see its wanton borrowings as a source of its strength and vitality. Wordwatching also reminds us of the need to be aware of the misuse of language in the service of sinister purposes — whether political, ideological, social, or personal. An ear well-tuned to the nuances of vocabulary inoculates the hearer against this epidemic of deception. With nine new essays, dealing with subjects as diverse as deadlines, fancy words, the problems with ‘issue’, odd sounds, oxymorons, and the fallacy of ‘wading in’, this revised and expanded edition of Wordwatching is a fascinating demonstration of the power and the pleasure of the English language.

Wordwatching

Wordwatching PDF Author: Julian Burnside
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781921215100
Category : English language
Languages : en
Pages : 291

Book Description
We live in a torrent of words from radio and television, books and newspapers, and now from the internet. But, as Julian Burnside reminds us in this witty and erudite collection, words are both a source of pleasure and power, and can be deployed for good or for ill. Some of these essays explore curiosities in odd corners of the language simply to remind us of the extraordinary richness of the English language: we learn, for example, that the word pedigree refers to the shape of a stork's foot, and that halcyon recalls an early Greek love story. Other pieces use small matters of language to illustrate larger processes of cultural borrowing and change. Burnside's musings remind us that we should not be alarmed at the instability of the language; rather, we should be see its wanton borrowings as a source of strength and vitality. Wordwatching also reminds us of the need to be aware of the misuse of language in the service of sinister purposes whether political, ideological, social or personal.

On Privilege

On Privilege PDF Author: Julian Burnside
Publisher: Hachette Australia
ISBN: 0733644031
Category : Literary Collections
Languages : en
Pages : 37

Book Description
Renowned barrister, ethicist and human rights advocate Julian Burnside QC's grandparents lived in a world of handsome cars, elegant tennis parties and coiffed women. As a five-year-old, he saw privilege before he heard the word or learned its meaning. In this powerful broadside that takes in politicians and infamous legal cases, Julian Burnside explores the concept of privilege and the people who have it.

My Israel Question

My Israel Question PDF Author: Antony Loewenstein
Publisher: Melbourne Univ. Publishing
ISBN: 9780522854183
Category : Arab-Israeli conflict
Languages : en
Pages : 500

Book Description
The undeclared war in the Middle East is the abiding conflict of our era, with little apparent hope of resolution despite years of peace talks. On one side of the conflict, in the face of suicide bombings and international criticism over its military aggression, Israel asserts the right of the Jewish state to exist in Palestine. On the other, the Palestinian people struggle, some peacefully, some violently, for survival. Far beyond Israel's disputed borders, in New York and Washington, London and Paris, Sydney and Melbourne, the conflict is replayed in passionate public debate by Holocaust survivors, Zionist organisations, Arab advocates, the anti-war movement, newspaper columnists, presidents and prime ministers, and politicians and activists of all shades. In MY ISRAEL QUESTION, a young Australian Jew, Antony Loewenstein, asks how much Zionism - the ideology of Jewish nationalism - is to blame for this intractable conflict. He fearlessly investigates the ways in which the Jewish diaspora in Australia and elsewhere have campaigned on Israel's behalf, in the media and in political and business spheres. He also considers the historical rationale for Zionis - including the centuries of virulent European antisemitism from which it grew - and asks how relevant and sustainable twentieth-century Zionism is today. A searching discussion from a significant new voice in one of the most important debates of our times.

Stepping Up to the Plate

Stepping Up to the Plate PDF Author: Graham Maddox
Publisher: Melbourne Univ. Publishing
ISBN: 0522870309
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 305

Book Description
Americans call themselves a democracy, but they are not. America has redefined democracy to make it conform to the capitalist economy and rule by wealth elites. When American leaders say they wish to make the world safe for democracy, they really mean that they want the world, including Australia, to subsume itself into this US project. Any process resulting in Australia absorbing more of the United States' corporatist political culture will result in the serious erosion of our own democratic ideals. Australia should resist this, especially at a time when such corporatist politics is losing its legitimation. We are better served by our own robust system of democracy.

Minimal English for a Global World

Minimal English for a Global World PDF Author: Cliff Goddard
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319625128
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 299

Book Description
This book introduces a new tool for improving communication and promoting clearer thinking in a world where the use of Global English can create numerous comprehension and communication issues. Based on research findings from cross-linguistic semantics, it contains essays and studies by leading experts exploring the value and application of ‘Minimal English’ in various fields, including ethics, health, human rights discourse, education and international relations. In doing so, it provides informed guidelines and practical advice on how to communicate in clear and cross-translatable ways in Minimal English. This innovative edited collection will appeal to students and scholars of applied linguistics, language education and translation studies.

Language of the Heart

Language of the Heart PDF Author: Eva Desiree van den Berg
Publisher: Blue Dome Press
ISBN: 1935295950
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 317

Book Description
This book seeks to examine how Sufi thought might provide critical understanding of contemporary life and a pathway towards the recovery of a more meaningful existence. Rumi’s mystical teachings are of great value at a time of rampant materialism and indiscriminate consumerism, and have the potential to illuminate the precarious state of the world, as well as revitalize contemporary social critique, eco-philosophy and bio-semiotics in what is increasingly being regarded as a post-secular age.

Diplomacy, Communication, and Peace

Diplomacy, Communication, and Peace PDF Author: William Maley
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000224082
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 447

Book Description
This book is composed of interconnected essays which reflect on challenging new issues related to diplomacy, communication, and peace. This book begins by drawing out some of the challenges for diplomacy that arise from modern theories of semantics and of strategic communication, as well as those posed by the need for secrecy, and by the activities of agents of influence. It then proceeds to examine important issues in contemporary diplomacy, including refugee diplomacy, humanitarian diplomacy, sovereignty, norms, and consular activities. It concludes with an exploration of dilemmas that confront attempts to promote peace through multilateral means, such as the limitations of peacemaking diplomacy, the difficulty of promoting democratic governance, and the problems associated with dealing with morally repugnant actors. The book is grounded in the conception of diplomacy as a social practice with multiple players, and recognises that ‘the state’ has many different elements, and that ‘state actors’ live in worlds shaped not just by their relations with other states, but also by their own complex domestic politics. This book will be of much interest to students of diplomacy, foreign policy, and International Relations.
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