Universal Languages and Scientific Taxonomy in the Seventeenth Century
Overview
In the seventeenth century, a series of proposals and schemes for an artificial language intended to replace Latin as the international medium of communication gained currency. Fully developed, these schemes consisted of a classification of all known 'things' and a set of self-defining names designed to reflect the divisions of the classification. This attempt to create a specialized and scientific form of language was enthusiastically taken up by a number of eminent scientists of the day, including Bacon, Descartes, Newton and other members of the Royal Society. Dr Slaughter demonstrates that the idea of a universal language was a rational response to the inadequacy of seventeenth-century language, a result of social and cultural changes precipitated by the rise of science, the spread of print and literacy, and the subsequent development of a literate culture. A valuable addition to the study of history and literature, this book also has relevance for contemporary languages with similar problems of development.
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Details
- ISBN-13: 9780521135443
- ISBN-10: 0521135443
- Publisher: Cambridge University Press
- Publish Date: March 2010
- Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.65 inches
- Shipping Weight: 0.94 pounds
- Page Count: 288
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