Distributed Languaging, Affective Dynamics, and the Human Ecology Volume I: The Sense-making Body

Language is a vital part of human life, but the traditional view of language as a set of inter-related levels of formal linguistic organization has limited our understanding of what language is and does. Thibault's study presents a new perspective shift on language called the Distributed Language view, which argues that languaging behavior is a bio-cultural organization of process that is embodied, multimodal, and integrated across multiple space-time scales. The book grounds languaging in process theory and relates it to dialogical theories of human sense-making, distributed language, ecological psychology, and inter-individual affective dynamics. The two volumes aim to bring our understanding of human languaging closer to human embodiment, experience, and feeling while also showing how languaging enables humans to transcend local circumstances and dialogue with cultural tradition.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 318 pages
Publication date: 30 May 2022
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Language holds a pivotal position in the intricate tapestry of human existence, yet the confines imposed by the language sciences of the 20th century and the traditions they have inherited may have hindered our comprehensive understanding of what language truly encompasses. In two interconnected volumes, Thibault's study unveils profoundly significant facets of a burgeoning new perspective shift on language, the Distributed Language view, which is gaining increasing international recognition. This perspective challenges the traditional notion that the fundamental architecture of language can be localized as a series of interrelated levels of formal linguistic organization, functioning as coded inputs and outputs to one another. Instead, the distributed language view posits that languaging behavior is a bio-cultural organization of process that is embodied, multimodal, and seamlessly integrated across multiple space-time scales.

Thibault compellingly argues that we must view human languaging as the distinctive manner in which we shape our identities and engage with the broader human ecosystem, enabling the types of experiences that this entails. Paradoxically, this also necessitates exploring language from non-linguistic perspectives that transcend the confines of conventional meta-languages used to understand human languaging. Thibault's book establishes a foundation for languaging within the realm of process theory, emphasizing that languaging and the forms of experience it realizes are always dynamic events, not static objects that we merely employ. By adopting a distinctively interdisciplinary approach, the book weaves together dialogical theories of human sense-making with the distributed view of human cognition, recent insights into distributed language, ecological psychology, and languaging as inter-individual affective dynamics rooted in the subjective experiences of selves.

Through this lens, the book explores the intricate coordination between languaging and the broader socio-cultural context, shedding light on the ways in which language shapes and is shaped by human interactions and social structures. By broadening our perspective on language, Thibault's study invites us to reimagine the possibilities for communication, creativity, and understanding, fostering a deeper appreciation for the multifaceted nature of language and its profound impact on our lives.

Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367535537