Mind over Memes by Diana Senechal
Too often our use of language has become lazy, frivolous, and even counterproductive. We rely on clich s and bromides to communicate in such a way that our intentions are lost or misinterpreted. In a culture of takeaways and buzzwords, it requires study and cunning to keep language alive. In Verbal Resistance: Waking Our Language from Everyday Clich s, Diana Senechal examines words, concepts, and phrases that demand reappraisal. Targeting a variety of terms, the author contends that a good fit may not always be desirable; delivers a takedown of the adjective toxic; and argues that social justice must take its place among other justices. This book also includes a critique of our modern emphasis on takeaways, quick answers, and immediate utility. By scrutinizing words and phrases that serve contemporary fads and follies, this book stands up against the excesses of language and offers some engaging alternatives. Drawing on literature, philosophy, social sciences, music, and technology, the author offers a rich framework to make fresh connections between topics. Combining sharp criticism, lyricism, and play, Verbal Resistance argues for judicious and imaginative speech.
This concisely argued book will be of interest to anyone who wishes to deconstruct the truisms that infect so much public discourse* Publishers Weekly *
Overall, the text is well illustrated, thoughtful, and clear, with examples that distinguish between mind-set and theory. An alluring choice for readers with an academic bent. * Library Journal *
Diana Senechal is a unique voice in American education today—energetic, inquisitive, and always curious for the next experience that might surprise her into thought. When she detects a fallacy in received ideas like 'implicit bias' and 'the toxic personality,' or in clichés like 'the takeaway,' she looks under the surface and asks what could have led us there. These essays are the work of a born teacher and a gifted observer of our intellectual culture. -- David Bromwich, author of Moral Imagination: Essays
Woe to peddlers of bromides, quick fixes, and slogans. Begone, TED talk mountebanks and jargon-mongers. Diana Senechal strides through the marketplace of compromised words, examining the wares with devastating lucidity, inviting the reader to skepticism and thoughtful critique. This book shows what it is to have a free mind. -- Rosanna Warren, author of Ghost in a Red Hat: Poems
Overall, the text is well illustrated, thoughtful, and clear, with examples that distinguish between mind-set and theory. An alluring choice for readers with an academic bent. * Library Journal *
Diana Senechal is a unique voice in American education today—energetic, inquisitive, and always curious for the next experience that might surprise her into thought. When she detects a fallacy in received ideas like 'implicit bias' and 'the toxic personality,' or in clichés like 'the takeaway,' she looks under the surface and asks what could have led us there. These essays are the work of a born teacher and a gifted observer of our intellectual culture. -- David Bromwich, author of Moral Imagination: Essays
Woe to peddlers of bromides, quick fixes, and slogans. Begone, TED talk mountebanks and jargon-mongers. Diana Senechal strides through the marketplace of compromised words, examining the wares with devastating lucidity, inviting the reader to skepticism and thoughtful critique. This book shows what it is to have a free mind. -- Rosanna Warren, author of Ghost in a Red Hat: Poems
Diana Senechal is an educator and author whose writing has appeared in The New Republic,Education Week,American Educator, and The New York Times. Senechal is the 2011 winner of the Hiett Prize and the author of Republic of Noise: The Loss of Solitude in Schools and Culture (Rowman & Littlefield Education, 2012), which was a Choice Outstanding Academic title.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781538115169 |
| ISBN 10 | 1538115166 |
| Title | Mind over Memes |
| Author | Diana Senechal |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Rowman & Littlefield |
| Year published | 2018-09-12 |
| Number of pages | 196 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |