The Bilingual Mind: And What it Tells Us about Language and Thought

Aneta Pavlenko

doi:10.1017/CBO9781139021456

If languages influence the way we think, do bilinguals think differently in their respective languages? And if languages do not affect thought, why do bilinguals often perceive such influence? For many years these questions remained unanswered because the research on language and thought had focused solely on the monolingual mind. Bilinguals were either excluded from this research as 'unusual' or 'messy' subjects, or treated as representative speakers of their first languages. Only recently did bi- and multilinguals become research participants in their own right. Pavlenko considers the socio-political circumstances that led to the monolingual status quo and shows how the invisibility of bilingual participants compromised the validity and reliability of findings in the study of language and cognition. She then shifts attention to the bilingual turn in the field and examines its contributions to the understanding of the human mind.

‘A very thoughtful examination not only of bilingualism but of the nature and uses of language generally. It deals with deep issues, but does so with notable clarity.’

Jerome Bruner - University Professor Emeritus, New York University

‘This is a wonderful book which brings critical insights deriving from a bilingual perspective to bear on linguistic theory in general. While one may disagree with Pavlenko’s complete rejection of semantic universals, the book will surely have a galvanizing effect on the study of language and cognition, and many will see it, I expect, as a milestone in the history of linguistics.’

Anna Wierzbicka - Australian National University

‘Aneta Pavlenko addresses the intriguing relationship between language and thought in bi- and multilinguals in a unique, comprehensive and refreshing manner. Her beautifully written and lively work deserves to become a milestone in the field.’

François Grosjean - University of Neuchâtel

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The Bilingual Mind

And What it Tells Us about Language and Thought

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Contents

Frontmatter
pp i-iv

Contents
pp v-vi

List of Tables
pp vii-viii

Acknowledgments
pp ix-x

Preface
pp xi-xvi

1 - The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis and the bilingual turn in the study of language and cognition
pp 1-39

2 - Material worlds
pp 40-83

3 - Multidimensional worlds
pp 84-125

4 - Dynamic worlds
pp 126-168

5 - Narrative worlds
pp 169-205

6 - Discursive worlds
pp 206-244

7 - Emotional worlds
pp 245-298

8 - The bilingual mind and what it tells us about language and cognition
pp 299-315

References
pp 316-368

Author index
pp 369-377

Subject index
pp 378-382

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The Bilingual Mind

And What it Tells Us about Language and Thought

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