Reviewed by Kristen Fredriksen, University of Georgia
The massive amount of minimalist language we encounter on a daily basis often goes unnoticed, from road signs to the money in our pockets. Even if we paused to contemplate the variety of ways language permeates our lives, we would hardly come close to naming all the diverse situations that Alexander Humez, Nicholas Humez, and Rob Flynn describe in this fascinating book. Short cuts is an able guide to the wide range of abbreviated discourse.
Ch. 1, ‘In the eye of the beholder: What’s your sign?’, discusses fleeting language and the relationship between words and graphics. The authors highlight the broad extent of non-verbal communication through computer icons, street signs, billboards, graffiti, skywriting, and cartoons. Ch. 2, ‘In the dictionary: The lexicographers have spoken’, gives a history of dictionaries. The authors establish guidelines for what makes a good dictionary and explain that dictionaries occasionally include ghost words or Mountweazels (deliberately falsified entries) to catch plagiarists.
In Ch. 3, ‘By the great crikes!: Oaths both sacred and profane’, the authors provide an entertaining history of swearing, cursing, and blessing. Ch. 4, ’On or about your person: The talk of the territories of the self’, shows how identity and attitude are tied to the language and symbols found on clothing, jewelry, personal possessions, and even physical attributes. Ch. 5, ‘On the lam: The world of word crime’, discusses forensic linguistics, the language of crime and the law. Characteristic language can lead to a suspect’s arrest, and law enforcement officers must know what kind of language to use when sending out wanted posters, missing persons alerts, and more.
Ch. 6, ‘In the news: All that’s fit to print, and then some’, deconstructs the typical newspaper. The authors describe several regular newspaper features, including gripe and gossip columns, reviews, and ads, all of which tailor their minimalist language to a target audience. Ch. 7, ‘On the phone: Your call is important 2 us’, addresses the history of talking over the phone and the new language that has arisen thereby, including texting speech. Ch. 8, ‘In the mail: from SVBE to SWAK’, discusses the ever-decreasing time it takes for language to be communicated and the different styles of written letters.
Ch. 9, ‘In and out of trouble: Warnings, excuses, and remedial work’, shows how we use and manipulate language in warnings, threats, codes, apologies, and confessions. Lastly, Ch. 10, ‘In the end: Last words’, examines the language of departure, temporary (e.g. until then, bye) and permanent (e.g. suicide notes and epitaphs).
The authors write in a humorous and entertaining style while presenting a plethora of information. The authors succeed in making the reader aware of the diverse brief forms of speech we encounter on a daily basis. The numerous pop-culture references and creative illustrations of concepts allow the reader to easily discover and understand the miniature ways in which we communicate.