Conversational Realities: Constructing Life through Language (Inquiries in Social Construction series) (Paperback)

by Dr John Shotter (Author) "One of the aims of formulating a rhetorical-responsive version of social constructionism corresponds with that mentioned above by Foucault: it can confront us with the..." (more)
Key Phrases: conversational background, conversational realities, responsive understanding, Miller Mair, Don Bannister, The Possibility of Naturalism (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
`I like this book, will recommend it to colleagues and students, and expect it to become a staple citation in articles and books I publish... Sometimes books an academic reads enable a person to make connections among previously disconnected pieces of experience, recurring preferences and passions, and particular life decisions. Reading Conversational Realities accomplished this for me... it is theoretically rich, philosophically thoughtful and experientially evocative' - Human Studies

`[An] immensely thoughtful, informative and persuasive treatment of the "rhetorical-responsive version of social constructionism" via an eclectic blend of, principally, European and American linguistics, philosophy and social psychology... Shotter's book is most important for continuing the work begun by Billig and others bringing recognition via recollection to the rhetorical corpus. He claims to target his recovery of these materials toward psychologists; readers in related disciplines will certainly also benefit' - Discourse & Society

`This book is fascinating... It is important for several reasons. First, it provides an overview of an approach to the social sciences known as social constructionism... Second, Shotter maintains that the fundamental human reality is persons in conversations... Third, Shotter is concerned with practical implications, not just theoretical conceptions' - Studies in Second Language Acquisition

Product Description
This imaginative and original book challenges the traditional scientific view that naturally occurring psychological and sociological `realities' of a systematic kind are to be discovered underlying appearances. Instead, it claims that such orderly realities are both socially constructed and sustained within the context of people's disorderly, everyday conversational activities.

John Shotter's interdisciplinary analysis highlights the socially contested but imaginary nature of many of the `things' we talk about in social life and illuminates the processes of their construction. He offers a broad-ranging exploration of the rhetorical, argumentative nature of conversational communication, using interesting examples taken from psychotherapy, management and everyday life.

Drawing on psychology, communication studies, anthropology, sociology, history and sociolinguistics, this volume will be essential reading for anyone with an interest in current debates across the social and human sciences.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Sage Publications Ltd; 1 edition (January 20, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0803989334
• ISBN-13: 978-0803989337
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: No customer reviews yet. Be the first.
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #965,871 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)