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Slips, Stumbles, and Verbal Blunders, and What They Mean
Pantheon
September 2007
On Sale: August 21, 2007
304 pages
ISBN: 0375423567
EAN: 9780375423567
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction
UmΓ’β¬Β¦ is about how you really speak, and why itΓ’β¬β’s normal for your casual, everyday speech to be filled with verbal blunders Γ’β¬β about one in every ten words. Why do they happen? Why canΓ’β¬β’t we control them? What can you tell about the people who make them? In this charming, engaging account of language in the wild, linguist and writer Michael Erard also explains why our attention to some verbal blunders rises and falls. Why was the spoonerism named after Reverend Spooner, not some other absent-minded person? Where did the Freudian slip come from? Why do we prize "umlessness" in speaking? And how do we explain the American presidents who are famous for their verbal blundering? YouΓ’β¬β’ll have new ways to listen to yourself and others once youΓ’β¬β’ve met the people who work with verbal blunders every day Γ’β¬β journalists, transcribers, interpreters, police officers, linguists, psychologists, among others Γ’β¬β and when youΓ’β¬β’ve learned what verbal blunders tell about who we are and what we want. A rich investigation of a fascinating subject, full of entertaining examples, Um. . . is essential reading for talkers and listeners of all stripes.
 Media BuzzOn The Media - October 12, 2007
All Things Considered - September 1, 2007
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