John Benton

Shaping the Future of Language Studies John Benton

Shaping the Future of Language Studies is a ground-breaking appeal to students and professionals in the field of Linguistics and Literature and the Philosophy of Language. It presents a coherent challenge to those who are struggling with the problem of language universals and to those who are trying to find a principle of integration in the broad field of language studies. The full reach of the work is summed up in the title to Chapter 9: "Towards Methodological Restructuring in Language Studies." In the field of Linguistics, the Greenberg School, reaching quite beyond previous efforts such as that of Chomsky, was looking for and grasping at a principle for methodological restructuring. However, the principle necessary for successful restructuring was not hinted at adequately either in the field of Linguistics or within the broad field of Language Studies itself. The elusive principle emerged more clearly in the field of Theology. That principle also furnished a precise dynamic underpinning for restructuring language studies by bringing to light two fundamental components: first, a focal shift in grammatology (treated mainly in chapters 1-4) and secondly, a functional relating of sub-fields of language (mainly discussed in chapters 8 and 9). The book proceeds "on the basis of empirical observation, rather than by speculation" (p. 1) with solutions drawn from long-neglected achievements in Aristotle, Thomas Aquinas and Bernard Lonergan and presented in conjunction with a rich panorama of linguistic specimens and performance. This study anticipates a future transformation of language instruction from junior kindergarten to advanced post-secondary levels of education, and ultimately, a lifting of education in the Humanities toward richer research and more adequate communication.