A witty look at doublespeak, language that is evasive, misleading, self-contradictory, and deceptive, explains how to dissect a politician's doublespeak, fight it, demand clear communication, and become critical listeners of language. $35,000 ad/promo. Tour.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
William Lutz, a professor of English at Rutgers University and former editor of the Quarterly Review of Doublespeak, has had enough of doublespeak--the inflated, involved and often deliberately ambiguous use of language or when "strategic misinterpretations" are used instead of lies. He argues that the practice has been growing in our culture, and he's right. In this book he reviews doubletalk by Democrats, Republicans, journalists, economists and Supreme Court justices, and shows how the repeated use of a phrase allows it to stay unchallenged in the lexicon. Say what you mean, argues Lutz, and we'll all be better off.
From School Library Journal
YA. This is the second book by the doublespeak detective who entertains, angers, and motivates with his continuing exposure of the nonsense language that pervades the public atmosphere. With brevity, clarity, and wit, Lutz explains that doublespeak is language that makes the bad seem good, the negative appear positive, the unpleasant appear attractive or at least tolerable. A tax increase, for example, is not a tax increase, but rather "revenue enhancement," "wage-based premium," "user fee," or "passenger facility charge." Workers are never laid off; they're "redundant," "transitioned," or offered "voluntary severance," or, as in the computer industry, they're "uninstalled." The author talks about fuzzy thinking, labels and mental maps, signs and symbols as well as cognitive dissonance in ways that are easily understood and humorously illustrated. His purpose is to help readers identify ways in which we are ripped off, hoodwinked, and otherwise manipulated by others due to the pervasive influence and acceptance of doublespeak. Lots of white space and relatively large type make the book readable. Chapter notes document all the references, and the 58 sources in the bibliography lead readers to additional thoughtful reading about the use and misuse of language.?Cynthia J. Rieben, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An excellent book that should be required college reading.,
By A Customer
This review is from: The New Doublespeak: No One Knows What Anyone's Saying Anymore (Paperback)
This text clearly defines how "doublespeak" is used in mass media and it should be a required text book for all communication and journalism majors. You will never watch the evening news again without listening for the doublespeak, nor will you be able to read a newspaper without noticicing how much is written while so little is said. I, too, checked this book out of the library and now I'm buying a copy for my reference library.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This book is an outstanding treatment of the subject.,
By Brian D. Newman flyer898@aol.com (Fortuna, CA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The New Doublespeak: Why No One Knows What Anyone's Saying Anymore (Hardcover)
William Lutz's book should be required reading in every class that is used to meet the college undergraduate critical thinking requirement. He formalizes a means of detecting and dealing with "double-speak;" and double-speak, unfortunately, is a part of eveyday life in this country.
An excellent book, after reading a copy from the college library, I am buying a copy for my home library.
8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
If you can overlook the political bias, it's excellent.,
By david_zack@yahoo.com (Spring Hill, Florida) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The New Doublespeak: No One Knows What Anyone's Saying Anymore (Paperback)
Mr. Lutz's book is brimming with references and an extensive bibliography. His research, notably the psychology, is thorough, and he expresses his ideas in the unadorned English he advocates. Orwell and Huxley would be proud! He could trim some chapters, however. In citing example after example of doublespeak, he tends to belabor the point; fewer examples and more references would suffice for those who wish to seek additional examples. His discussion centers around politics, where doublespeak abounds. His political examples, while proving his point, come almost exclusively from the Reagan and Bush administrations. It is not until the last third of the book that he mentions any of the Clinton administration's, or the Democratic National Committee's doublespeak, which we have been bombarded with over the past six years. If you can overlook Lutz's politically liberal bias, which becomes evident often, this book is a must-read, especially the chapter on how to fight doublespeak.
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