With an interesting title, Women talk more than men… and other myths about language explained, Abby Kaplan actually presents a textbook by addressing a wide range of language myths. What makes the book fascinating to read is that each chapter focuses on popular beliefs about language, such as gender differences, from a linguistic perspective. As a textbook, it offers readers the knowledge of how to study language in the sense that linguists might employ the term. This work is ideal for survey courses in linguistics that cover cognitive, social, and historical topics.
The book consists of eleven chapters, which are organized into three thematic sections. Except for chapter 1, the introductory chapter, each section addresses one language-related topic. Chapters 2, 3 and 4 serve the first theme, which explores three types of language use that are generally believed to be less than ‘real’: dialects, sign languages, and the use of linguistic systems by nonhuman animals. Chapter 2 focuses on an important issue, that is, the rule-governed nature of language, even though the rules only exist subconsciously and cannot be explicitly described. Chapter 3 emphasizes that sign languages are very much like spoken languages. Chapter 4 is about ape language, which is fundamentally different from human language.
The second thematic section (chapters 5, 6, and 7) looks at the process of learning a language and at the consequences of being bilingual. Chapter 5 is about how children learn language and whether parents’ interaction helps them in acquiring language. Chapter 6 focuses on whether adults can learn a second language as well as children. Chapter 7 explores whether bilingualism lowers or raises children's intelligence.
The final section brings together four chapters that examine the relationship between the use of language and other aspects of daily life. Chapter 8 refers to whether gender differences in the use of language exist. Chapter 9 clarifies the myth that text messaging might harm people's literacy. Chapter 10 turns to the factors that might influence aesthetic judgments about particular languages. Chapter 11 discusses the mutual relationship between language and thought.
The structure of each chapter is rather interesting and reader friendly as well. Each chapter begins with an overview of the area, especially general beliefs about language. Comparison of these beliefs with the converging evidence that linguists actually get from research is followed by the conclusion sections called ‘for further reflection’ and ‘for further reading’, which provide exercises, resources, and information for interested readers.
