Against Nativist Language Concepts : Lawrence Krader on the Diversity, Culturality, and Creativity of Language

Dive into the pioneering work of Lawrence Krader (1919–1998), the trailblazing American ethnologist and philosopher, who challenged conventional linguistics with unparalleled fervor. This edited volume unveils Krader’s unpublished manuscripts and essays in linguistics and semantics, where he critiques innate language theories, universal grammar, and biolinguistics championed by Chomsky and others. Krader’s comparative exploration of human language and animal communication illuminates the intricacies of the human use of symbols and intentionality. He highlights the uniqueness of speech by contrasting the dynamic duality of social interactions with mechanistic computerized languages and artificial intelligence. Finally, Krader presents captivating etymological and semantic interpretations of famed works by Shakespeare and Goethe that emphasize the creativity and inventive nature of the human mind in meaning-making.

This volume will appeal to all those interested in Lawrence Krader’s life and work, as well as researchers and students working on linguistics and semantics.

Sabine Sander is an Academic Research Associate and former Visiting Professor in the Department of Sociology at McMaster University. She teaches Cultural Studies and Philosophy at the University of Koblenz in Germany. She received her PhD in Cultural Studies at the University of Leipzig and is the author of Dialogische Verantwortung (2017), for which she earned the Max Weber Award.