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General Semantics Literature

General Semantics Literature. A short review by Tom Valcanis. Branches of GS. Alfred Korzybski, “Science and Sanity”. The first formulation of General Semantics and non-Aristotelian Systems 2 nd text on time-binding The Principia Mathematica of General Semantics

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General Semantics Literature

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  1. General Semantics Literature A short review by Tom Valcanis

  2. Branches of GS

  3. Alfred Korzybski, “Science and Sanity” • The first formulation of General Semantics and non-Aristotelian Systems • 2nd text on time-binding • The Principia Mathematica of General Semantics • Introduced almost all still-used principles of GS

  4. Stuart Chase, “The Tyranny of Words” • Stuart Chase was a public intellectual in the time of FDR – thought to have coined the term “The New Deal” • Dealt with General Semantics in conjunction with linguistics – Ogden and Richards et. al. • Applied GS principles to public discourse and political communication

  5. Samuel I. Hayakawa, “Language and Thought in Action” • Written in 1942 in response to the Nazi propaganda machine • A professor of English, jazz critic and later successful U.S. Senator of California (R) • Updated frequently and once as a textbook for communications and media studies esp. journalism • Modified structural differential as “abstraction ladder” still used today

  6. Susan and Bruce Kodish, “Drive Yourself Sane” • One of the more modern texts on GS • Husband and wife team with “40 years of experience in GS, psychology, personal coaching, movement therapy/education, and mind-body awareness” • Laid out specifically for beginners and specifically for General Semantics unlike two previous texts

  7. First Wave of GS Texts • Mostly written while Korzybski was still alive • Expanded upon general formulations and explored different areas • Emerged alongside new technical and scientific discoveries in Relativity, Electronics and Cell Biology • Wendell Johnson, “People in Quandaries” • Irving J. Lee, “Language Habits in Human Affairs” • Anatol Rapoport, “Science and the Goals of Man”

  8. Second Wave of GS Texts • Written after the passing of Korzybski and during the time of ETC., The Review of General Semantics journal • Harry Weinberg, “Levels of Knowing and Existence” • Samuel Bois, “The Art of Awareness” • Gregory Bateson, “Steps to an Ecology of Mind”

  9. Influence on Psychotherapy • Directly influenced Albert Ellis’ Rational Emotive Therapy and Fritz Perls’ Gestalt therapy • Fritz Perls et. al. “Gestalt Therapy: Excitement and growth in the human personality” • Drs. Albert Ellis and Robert Harper “A Rational Guide to Living” • Also inspired Milton Erickson, Paul Watzlawick, Gregory Bateson, Richard Bandler and John Grinder among others

  10. Contributions to Media Studies • Started the Media Ecology movement • Neil Postman was a student and practitioner of GS, also editor of ETC. • Neil Postman, “Amusing Ourselves To Death”, “Technopoly” and GS text “Crazy Talk, Stupid Talk” • Also used GS principles in education – the “inquiry method” • 2nd wave: Dr. Lance Strate, Doug Rushkoff

  11. GS in Fiction • GS themes have made their way into fiction • A. E. van Vogt, “The World of Null-A” • Robert Anton Wilson “Schrodinger’s Cat” and “Illuminatus! Trilogy” • Wilson was a great proponent of GS • Influenced L. Ron Hubbard (but we don’t like to talk about that) • Themes shared in Jorge Luis Borges books and short stories such as “Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius”

  12. How can GS be used? • A more pertinent question is how can’t it be used – but that’s not the point here • GS as a inquiry based method for • Critical thinking • Rational, empirical thinking and evaluation • “Fuzzy” logical induction • Map/territory distinction and relation • Non-allness • Consciousness of abstraction

  13. Thank you for listening! Enjoy your afternoon at the conference.

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