Recognising the human in humanities [Australian Review of Applied Linguistics]
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Rhonda Oliver
Abstract
In this essay we reflect upon Wolfgang Klein’s 1989 paper Schreiben oder Lesen, aber nicht beides, oder: Vorschlag zur Wiedereinführung der Keilschrift mittels Hammer und Meißel (Zeitschrift für Literaturwissenschaft und Linguistik 74. 116–119) about the exponential development of knowledge and the imbalance between the production and reception of this. Whilst appreciating the sentiment, we argue against what seems to be his underestimation of the contribution of humanities. Klein suggests those in our field are content because unlike natural scientists, we “do not harm”: We contend we do much more – supporting and enhancing the lives of humankind. When addressing the question of “why do we do what we do?”, we answer by saying humanities and specifically applied linguistic researchers make a difference. We strive to understand the linguistic landscape, and to heighten awareness and understanding about culture, language, language learning and communication. Those working in the field advocate for and support those who are marginalised and lack agency, giving voice to those who are often silenced.
References
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© 2024 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Editorial
- Reading: An anniversary conversation with journal editors
- Article
- Schreiben oder Lesen, aber nicht beides, oder: Vorschlag zur Wiedereinführung der Keilschrift mittels Hammer und Meißel
- Commentaries
- Sobre el acceso a la bibliografía académica desde el Sur: diagnóstico, estrategias de resistencia y un proyecto disruptivo concreto [Anuario de Glotopolítica]
- Toward un-WEIRDing academic publishing about language [Applied Linguistics]
- Recognising the human in humanities [Australian Review of Applied Linguistics]
- 文字简化、学术产出与技术进化—来自中国的经验 [Chinese Journal of Language Policy and Planning]
- Meine kleine Lesemaschine: Reflexion zur Begrenzung der Produktion von wissenschaftlichen Texten [International Journal of Multilingualism]
- The politics of writing and reading: An Arabic sociolinguistics perspective [Journal of Arabic Sociolinguistics]
- To read is to cite: A moral proposition [Journal of Linguistic Anthropology]
- Sociolinguistics towards a culturalist turn: a sociolinguistic response to the challenges of mankind [Journal of Multicultural Discourses]
- Wolfgang Klein as Don Quixote [Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development]
- An extended lunch break: a response to Wolfgang Klein [Journal of Pragmatics]
- The economic reterritorialization of academic publishing and the politics of reading [Journal of Sociolinguistics]
- How I learned to stop worrying and love the explosion of information [Journal of Southeast Asian Linguistics Society]
- Writing and publishing language studies in the Arab region [Khitabaat Journal]
- Accouchons des idées, pas des articles: politiser la proposition de Wolfgang Klein pour repenser le travail scientifique [Langage et Société]
- Reading or writing is not the question: politicizing the politics of scholarly production and reception [Language, Culture and Society]
- Writing to be read, or how to achieve more through less [Language Matters]
- Writing or reading? An incommensurable choice? [Language in Society]
- Can we escape the textocalypse? Academic publishing as community building [Language on the Move]
- Acceleration, capitalist temporalities and collective challenges in academic publishing [Language Policy]
- On close reading and slow writing [Multilingua]
- Where global discourses meet local realities: the case of scholarly publishing in Sinhala [Sāhityaya]
- Navigating a national linguistics journal through local interests and global pressures: an editorial view on the problem of academic overproduction [Slovo a slovesnost]
- What is the place of African languages in knowledge production? [South African Journal of African Languages]
- Publishing issues and overwhelm [Southern African Linguistics and Applied Language Studies]
- Strengthening local academic publishing in the age of academic fast fashion [TILAMSIK]
- Dromm und die verlorene Balance [The Mouth: Critical Studies on Language, Culture and Society]
- Meritocracy, governmental intervention, and academic nepotism: a South Korean academic publishing landscape [The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea]
- Indagando a aceleração da produção acadêmica com bom humor: Uma visão do sul [Trabalhos em Linguística Aplicada]
- Final Commentary
- How to amend the supply-demand imbalance in research?
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Editorial
- Reading: An anniversary conversation with journal editors
- Article
- Schreiben oder Lesen, aber nicht beides, oder: Vorschlag zur Wiedereinführung der Keilschrift mittels Hammer und Meißel
- Commentaries
- Sobre el acceso a la bibliografía académica desde el Sur: diagnóstico, estrategias de resistencia y un proyecto disruptivo concreto [Anuario de Glotopolítica]
- Toward un-WEIRDing academic publishing about language [Applied Linguistics]
- Recognising the human in humanities [Australian Review of Applied Linguistics]
- 文字简化、学术产出与技术进化—来自中国的经验 [Chinese Journal of Language Policy and Planning]
- Meine kleine Lesemaschine: Reflexion zur Begrenzung der Produktion von wissenschaftlichen Texten [International Journal of Multilingualism]
- The politics of writing and reading: An Arabic sociolinguistics perspective [Journal of Arabic Sociolinguistics]
- To read is to cite: A moral proposition [Journal of Linguistic Anthropology]
- Sociolinguistics towards a culturalist turn: a sociolinguistic response to the challenges of mankind [Journal of Multicultural Discourses]
- Wolfgang Klein as Don Quixote [Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development]
- An extended lunch break: a response to Wolfgang Klein [Journal of Pragmatics]
- The economic reterritorialization of academic publishing and the politics of reading [Journal of Sociolinguistics]
- How I learned to stop worrying and love the explosion of information [Journal of Southeast Asian Linguistics Society]
- Writing and publishing language studies in the Arab region [Khitabaat Journal]
- Accouchons des idées, pas des articles: politiser la proposition de Wolfgang Klein pour repenser le travail scientifique [Langage et Société]
- Reading or writing is not the question: politicizing the politics of scholarly production and reception [Language, Culture and Society]
- Writing to be read, or how to achieve more through less [Language Matters]
- Writing or reading? An incommensurable choice? [Language in Society]
- Can we escape the textocalypse? Academic publishing as community building [Language on the Move]
- Acceleration, capitalist temporalities and collective challenges in academic publishing [Language Policy]
- On close reading and slow writing [Multilingua]
- Where global discourses meet local realities: the case of scholarly publishing in Sinhala [Sāhityaya]
- Navigating a national linguistics journal through local interests and global pressures: an editorial view on the problem of academic overproduction [Slovo a slovesnost]
- What is the place of African languages in knowledge production? [South African Journal of African Languages]
- Publishing issues and overwhelm [Southern African Linguistics and Applied Language Studies]
- Strengthening local academic publishing in the age of academic fast fashion [TILAMSIK]
- Dromm und die verlorene Balance [The Mouth: Critical Studies on Language, Culture and Society]
- Meritocracy, governmental intervention, and academic nepotism: a South Korean academic publishing landscape [The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea]
- Indagando a aceleração da produção acadêmica com bom humor: Uma visão do sul [Trabalhos em Linguística Aplicada]
- Final Commentary
- How to amend the supply-demand imbalance in research?
