Going Nucular: Language, Politics, and Culture in Controversial Times
Mr. Nunberg spoke about his book, Going Nucular: Language, Politics, and Culture in Controversial Times, published by PublicAffairs. In the … read more
Mr. Nunberg spoke about his book, Going Nucular: Language, Politics, and Culture in Controversial Times, published by PublicAffairs. In the book, the author notes that words convey the ideas of our time and, through careful consideration, can shed light on important and controversial issues. He suggests that "there are discrepancies between what a word means and what we think it means". Mr. Nunberg compares the origins of several words with their current meanings to illustrate the way in which definitions change over time. He also examines the language used by Republican and Democratic speakers, and attempts to explain why they use certain words and not others. He says that Ronald Reagan is an example of a speaker who used stylized language to simulate a sense of closeness. close
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