Historical Roots of Linguistic Theories (Studies in the History of the Language Sciences)

Most of the papers collected in this volume concentrate on the history of linguistic ideas in France and Italy in the modern period (from the Renaissance to the present day). Some of them are specifically focused on the links between the two traditions of reflection on language. The contributions have a common methodological outlook: the authors do not believe that the history of linguistic ideas is a separate activity from research on language or that it is marginal with respect to the latter. On the contrary, they are convinced that in contemporary research into language we can still discern the influence — positive or negative as this may be — of factors deriving from the (sometimes distant) past. A historical analysis of these factors — whether it rejects them as superseded, or redefines them in order to elicit the fruitful suggestions they may still contain — has a contribution to make to the progress of theory. Content: HISTORICAL ROOTS OF LINGUISTIC THEORIES Editorial page Title page Copyright page Table of contents Foreword Linguistic Historiography between Linguistics and Philosophy of Language On the Origins of Historical Linguistics. Materials and proposals for the Italian case The Legacy of Classical Rhetorics Mechanical Models and the Language Sciences in the 18th Century The Beginnings of Psycholinguistics. Natural and artificial signs in the treatment of language disorders The Theory of Interjections in Vico and Rousseau The French Sources of Leopardi's linguistics. Intellectual History, History of Ideas, History of Linguistic Ideas. The 'Imperfect' Language. Notes on Alessandro Manzoni's linguistic ideas Old Debates and Current Problems. Völkerpsychologie and the question of the individual and the social in language The Question of the Significatum. A problem raised and solved The Embarassment of Communication from Mandeville to Grice The Semiological Sources of Semantics The Language User in Saussure (and after) The Analysis of French between the two World Wars (1914-1940) Forms of Imperfect Augustinianism. The Convention of Geneva. History of linguistic ideas and history of communicative practices Index of Authors Index of Subjects and Terms. The Studies in the History of the Language Sciences series has been established as a companion to the international journal for the history of linguistics, Historiographia Linguistica. It is intended to meet the revival of interest of scholars in the history of linguistic thought and to provide an organized and informative reservoir of information concerning the heritage of linguistic ideas of more than two millennia. In accordance with these goals, Studies in the History of the Language Sciences (SiHoLS) will publish book-length studies by scholars working in the history of linguistics, whether they concern a particular aspect of the discipline or a special period of its development. In addition, the series will include re-editions or entirely new translations into English of 'classic' accounts in the field which have been out of print for many years and have become rare books even in larger university libraries. Each of these new editions will be prefaced by an introductory essay by a present-day specialist in the discipline who will place the book in its original historical context and analyze its significance in the light of contemporary work in the history of linguistic thought. This text examines the history of linguistic theories. Chapters discuss such historical topics as the state of the language sciences in the 18th century and provide an analysis of French between the two World Wars. Edited By Lia Formigari, Daniele Gambarara. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.