[sci.lang] General Semantics

trash@oliveb.UUCP (Tom Repa) (08/29/87)

in article <141@snark.UUCP>, eric@snark.UUCP (Eric S. Raymond) says:
 >Xref: oliveb sci.lang:1236 rec.arts.sf-lovers:6588
 >In <1629@watcgl.waterloo.edu >, kdmoen@watcgl.waterloo.edu (Doug Moen) writes:
 >> (eg, his references to the discredited theory of General Semantics).

 > I *strongly* recommend to Mr. Moen and others interested in linguistics,
 > psychology or simply getting the best use out of one's cognitive equipment
 > that they forget the stench of Van Vogt and Hubbard and investigate General
 > Semantics *itself*. I had the good fortune to be exposed to GS in my early
 > teens fifteen years or so ago, and believe it has done more to help me use my
 > mind effectively than any other single part of my background (not excluding
 > my major in theoretical mathematics and minor in philosophy!).
 > -- 
 >  Eric S. Raymond
 >  UUCP:  {{seismo,ihnp4,rutgers}!cbmvax,sdcrdcf!burdvax,vu-vlsi}!snark!eric
 >  Post:  22 South Warren Avenue, Malvern, PA 19355    Phone: (215)-296-5718

	All right, I'll bite. How about some good references for 
me to read up on General Semantics? Clearly I can look up the authors
own works, but are there any others? I think Heinlein mentions GS in
one of his old books, but I didn't know it was a real theory.

				Tom Repa(trash@oliven)

smith@COS.COM (Steve Smith) (09/01/87)

In article <4063@oliveb.UUCP> trash@oliveb.UUCP (Tom Repa) writes:

>	All right, I'll bite. How about some good references for 
>me to read up on General Semantics?

For an excellent college level textbook in General Semantics, see
"Language in Thought and Action" by S. I. Hayakawa.  There are four
editions;  my own favorite is the third.  Incidentally, this is the
funniest "textbook" that I've ever run across.

The "original source" is "Science and Sanity" by Alfred Korzybski.  It
is tough going, first because Korzybski tries very hard to follow
his own prescriptions (which gets tedious) and because he uses some
rather dated examples.  We've learned just a bit about the brain since
1948...

At one time, there was a journal called "Etc." devoted to General
Semantics.  The few copies that I've seen have not been impressive.

As to General Semantics being "discredited", let's just say that a
system that purports to train people to recognize and counteract the
claims of virtually any variety of snake oil salesmen tends to attract
criticism.  As long as you confine your analyses to things like Pepsi
commercials, you're OK, but when you do a shred job on Karl Marx or
Ayn Rand (perfectly justified in both cases, by the way), you should
hear the screams!

Anyway, get ahold of the Hayakawa book.  Do the "applications" (much
more fun than excercises).  Have fun watching what the snake oil
salesmen are trying to do to you (and ignoring them).
-- 
                           __
 -- Steve          /      /  \      /         "Truth is stranger than
S. G. Smith      I \ O    |  _    O \ I        fiction because fiction
smith@cos.com      /      \__/      /          has to make sense."

eric@snark.UUCP (Eric S. Raymond) (09/01/87)

In article <4063@oliveb.UUCP>, trash@oliveb.UUCP (Tom Repa) writes:
> 	All right, I'll bite. How about some good references for 
> me to read up on General Semantics?

The definitive work is _Science_and_Sanity_, by Alfred Korzybski.
Unfortunately, Korzybski's milk language was not English and the writing is
*really* tough to plow through. I only ever saw a copy once; I don't think
it's in print.

My exposure was through via a book called _People_In_Quandaries_ lent to
me by my grandfather, who was a friend of L. Ron Hubbard's around the time
the man was founding Dianetics. Grand-dad left Hubbard's group for all the
obvious reasons, but maintained an interest in GS. Unfortunately, I returned
the book to him so long ago that I no longer remember the author's name.

I have heard recommended a book called _The_Tyranny_Of_Words_, by a gentleman
with the name of (William P.?) (Stuart P.?) Chase.

Sessue Hayakawa, the maverick U.S. congresscritter from Hawaii, is a dedicated
booster of GS; I think he's written a popular treatment or two.

There is an "Institute for General Semantics" that publishes a lively and
interesting journal called _Etc._; you can look it up in your library's
international directory of organizations (ask for it in the Reference section).

I'm sorry these aren't more detailed. Can anyone with more recent contact with 
the GS mainstream fill in the gaps?

-- 
      Eric S. Raymond
      UUCP:  {{seismo,ihnp4,rutgers}!cbmvax,sdcrdcf!burdvax,vu-vlsi}!snark!eric
      Post:  22 South Warren Avenue, Malvern, PA 19355    Phone: (215)-296-5718

arnold@mucs.UX.CS.MAN.AC.UK (Toby Howard) (09/04/87)

I didn't see the original posting, so apologies if this is old hat.

   Martin Gardner devotes a chapter of his 'Fads and Fallacies in the Name
of Science' (Dover) to Count Alfred Habdank Skarbek Korzybski and his
General Semantics. Gardner is guardedly skeptical, and mentions that the
Count regarded himself to be one of the world's greatest living thinkers,
regarding his "Science and Sanity" as the third book of `an immortal
trilogy', the others being Aristotle's 'Organon' and Bacon's 'Novum
Organon'. Interestingly, Gardner reports that the Institute of General 
Semantics was founded in 1938 with funds provided by a Chicago 
manufacturer of bathroom equipment, and that the good Count always wore
Army-type khakis, and was in many was the `dynamic leader' type so often
associated with cults.

   I can recommend Gardner's book as a welcome antidote to `fringe science'
and pseudo-science in general. Although last updated in 1957, much is
still relevant. Please use the address below for replies.

                            - Toby Howard -   
Computer Graphics Unit, Department of Computer Science
Manchester University, England, M13 9PL. Phone: 061 273 7121 x5429/5406
Janet: thoward@uk.ac.man.cs.cgu  
ARPA:  thoward%cgu.cs.man.ac.uk@cs.ucl.ac.uk                    

bill@ut-ngp.UUCP (Bill Jefferys) (09/04/87)

In article <147@snark.UUCP> eric@snark.UUCP (Eric S. Raymond) writes:
=Sessue Hayakawa, the maverick U.S. congresscritter from Hawaii, is a dedicated
=booster of GS; I think he's written a popular treatment or two.
=
Minor nits:
	Sessue Hayakawa was a movie actor.
	S (for Samuel, I think) I. Hayakawa is the author of
		Language in Thought and Action, a classical
		introduction to practical semantics and an
		excellent book. He is a former U.S. Senator
		from California.

Bill Jefferys