Serendipities (1998)Language and LunacyA non fiction book by
Umberto EcoIn this volume Umberto Eco unlocks the riddles of
history in an exploration of the "linguistics of the lunatic",
stories told by scholars, scientists, poets, fanatics, and ordinary
people in order to make sense of the world. In a careful
unravelling of the fabulous and the false, Eco shows us how
serendipities - unanticipated truths - often spring from mistaken
ideas. From Leibniz's belief that the "I Ching" illustrated the
principles of calculus to Marco Polo's mistaking a rhinoceros for a
unicorn, Eco tours the labyrinth of intellectual history,
illuminating the ways in which we project the familiar onto the
strange. Exploring the "Force of the False" Eco uncovers layers of
mistakes, such as Columbus's assumption that the world was much
smaller than it is, leading him to seek out a quick route to the
East via the West and thus fortuitously "discovering" America.About
Umberto EcoUmberto Eco is an Italian writer of fiction, essays,
academic texts, and children's books, and certainly one of the
finest authors of the twentieth century. A professor of semiotics
at the University of Bologna, Ecos brilliant fiction is known for
its playful use of language and symbols, its astonishing array of
allusions and references, and clever use of puzzles and narrative
inventions. His per...more Umberto Eco is an Italian writer of
fiction, essays, academic texts, and children's books, and
certainly one of the finest authors of the twentieth century. A
professor of semiotics at the University of Bologna, Ecos brilliant
fiction is known for its playful use of language and symbols, its
astonishing array of allusions and references, and clever use of
puzzles and narrative inventions. His perceptive essays on modern
culture are filled with a delightful sense of humor and irony, and
his ideas on semiotics, interpretation, and aesthetics have
established his reputation as one of academias foremost thinkers.
Serendipities: Language and Lunacyby Umberto EcoSerendipities:
Language and Lunacy 3.83 of 5 stars 3.83 rating details 828 ratings
57 reviewsSerendipities is a careful unraveling of the fabulous and
the false, a brilliant exposition of how unanticipated truths often
spring from false ideas. From Leibniz's belief that the I Ching
illustrated the principles of calculus to Marco Polo's mistaking a
rhinoceros for a unicorn, Umberto Eco offers a dazzling tour of
intellectual history, illuminating the ways in which w...more
Serendipities is a careful unraveling of the fabulous and the
false, a brilliant exposition of how unanticipated truths often
spring from false ideas. From Leibniz's belief that the I Ching
illustrated the principles of calculus to Marco Polo's mistaking a
rhinoceros for a unicorn, Umberto Eco offers a dazzling tour of
intellectual history, illuminating the ways in which we project the
familiar onto the strange to make sense of the world. Uncovering
layers of mistakes that have shaped human history, Eco offers with
wit and clarity such instances as Columbus's voyage to the New
World, the fictions that grew around the Rosicrucians and Knights
Templar, and the linguistic endeavors to recreate the language of
Babel, to show how serendipities can evolve out of mistakes. With
erudition, anecdotes, and scholarly rigor, this new collection of
essays is sure to entertain and enlighten any reader with a passion
for the curious history of languages and ideas.Paperback, 144
pagesPublished November 1st 1999 by Mariner Books (first published
1998)Serendipities: Language and lunacyISBN0156007517 (ISBN13:
9780156007511)(showing 1-30 of 1,936 reviews)Riku SayujJan 03, 2014
Riku Sayuj rated it 3 of 5 starsShelves: translated, r-r-rs,
history-civilizations, myth-religionThe Force of FalsityEco
illustrates through multiple examples on what tenuous grounds much
of our accepted history of today stands. What we believe, exists.
And the belief outweighs the actual existence, or lack thereof.Each
of these stories/examples have a virtue: as narratives, they seem
genuinely plausible, more than everyday or historical reality,
which is far more complex and less credible. The stories seemed to
explain something that was otherwise hard to understand. Hard to
understand wit...moreThe Force of FalsityEco illustrates through
multiple examples on what tenuous grounds much of our accepted
history of today stands. What we believe, exists. And the belief
outweighs the actual existence, or lack thereof.Each of these
stories/examples have a virtue: as narratives, they seem genuinely
plausible, more than everyday or historical reality, which is far
more complex and less credible. The stories seemed to explain
something that was otherwise hard to understand. Hard to understand
without accepting the Force of Falsity in shaping perception and
thus History.In other words, what links the essays collected here
is that they are about ideas, projects, beliefs that exist in a
twilight zone between common sense and lunacy, truth and error,
visionary intelligence and what now seems to us stupidity, though
it was not stupid in its day and we must therefore reconsider it
with great respect.It is not easy sailing, moving through these
essays. Eco assumes a familiarity with the Italian language and
histories of secret societies, that is hard to summon for the
casual reader. But if you can just go along with the flow and
accept the few over-shots, the general thrust and playfulness is
still enjoyable enough.The first half of the book on these
'falsities' and their impact on history is a delight. The rest of
the pieces are half-lunatic essays into the origins of language,
from a biblical perspective. It is very hard to follow with the
numerous references to biblical scholars and medieval studies and
almost exclusive obsession with the more obscure aspects of Dante
scholarship."False tales are, first of all, tales, and tales, like
myths, are always persuasive. And we could mention many, many other
false tales,for example, the myth of the Terra Australis, that
immense continent that supposedly extended all along the polar cap
and subtropical Antarctica. The firm belief in the existence of
this land (affirmed by countless maps showing the globe encircled,
to the south, by a broad terrestrial band), drove navigators from
various nations for at least three centuries to try to explore the
south seas and even the Antarctic.What can be said of the idea of
Eldorado and the fountain of youth, which led mad, brave heroes to
explore the two Americas? Or the stimulus given to nascent
chemistry by hallucinations inspired by the phantom of the
philosophers stone? And what about the tale of Phlogiston, the tale
of cosmic ether?Let us forget for a moment that some of these false
tales produced positive effects, while others produced horror and
shame. All created something, for better or worse. Nothing in their
success is inexplicable. What represents a problem is rather the
way they managed to replace other tales that today we consider
true. Although instruments, whether empirical or conjectural, exist
to prove that some object is false, every decision in the matter
presupposes the existence of an original, authentic and true, to
which the fake is compared. The truly genuine problem thus does not
consist of proving something false but in proving that the
authentic object is authentic.descriptionAnd yet this obvious
consideration must not lead us to the conclusion that a criterion
of truth does not exist and that tales now called false and tales
that today we believe true are equivalent because both belong to
the genre of narrative fiction.There exists a process of
verification that is based on slow, collective, public performance
by what Charles Sanders Peirce called the Community.It is thanks to
human faith in the work of this community that we can say, with
some serenity, that the Donation of Constantine was false, that the
earth turns around the sun, and that Saint Thomas at least knew the
planet is round. At most, recognizing that our history was inspired
by many tales we now recognize as false should make us alert, ready
to call constantly into question the very tales we believe true,
because the criterion of the wisdom of the community is based on
constant awareness of the fallibility of our learning."flag 21
likes Chat_bubbles view 1 commentlisa_emilyOct 17, 2008 lisa_emily
rated it 3 of 5 starsRecommends it for: linguctualsRecommended to
lisa_emily by: micShelves: literary-intellectual-studiesI read this
book because a friend gave it to me- he had an extra copy- and I
wanted to read more Eco, (or at least another book by Eco, as so
far I have read only one) this one looked thin and
non-intimidating. If you have not read his "The Search for the
Perfect Language", this little book of essays may seem as though it
is coming from left field, since all the essays deal with the
search for the original language and the degenerate manifestations
of the so-called original language. You may als...more I read this
book because a friend gave it to me- he had an extra copy- and I
wanted to read more Eco, (or at least another book by Eco, as so
far I have read only one) this one looked thin and
non-intimidating. If you have not read his "The Search for the
Perfect Language", this little book of essays may seem as though it
is coming from left field, since all the essays deal with the
search for the original language and the degenerate manifestations
of the so-called original language. You may also want to avoid
drinking wine while reading these essays, even after one glass,
nothing will make much sense and you may feel sad & stupid, as
I did. Personally, I would have preferred a little more lunacy and
a little less language.flag 2 likes Simon McleishSep 15, 2012 Simon
Mcleish rated it 4 of 5 starsOriginally published on my blog here
in October 2000.Some of Eco's essays in semiotics (those in Travels
in Hyperreality, for example), are to me fairly impenetrable. The
five in this collection are not like that. Concentrating on aspects
of the history of linguistic thought, they show a wide ranging and
brilliant mind, but are written in a lass academic style. (It was
the vast array of references to writers that I had never read that
was daunting.) They read more like they are notes related to...more
Originally published on my blog here in October 2000.Some of Eco's
essays in semiotics (those in Travels in Hyperreality, for
example), are to me fairly impenetrable. The five in this
collection are not like that. Concentrating on aspects of the
history of linguistic thought, they show a wide ranging and
brilliant mind, but are written in a lass academic style. (It was
the vast array of references to writers that I had never read that
was daunting.) They read more like they are notes related to one of
Eco's novels, and are particularly close in style to the
digressions in Foucault's Pendulum.The reason for this is that all
the essays except the first deal with a subject similar in many
ways to the pursuit of the ultimate conspiracy which is the theme
of that novel - the quest for the original language of mankind, or,
more specifically, for that used by Adam to name the beasts of the
earth in Genesis and that used by God to speak to him. This may
seem to be an obscure subject, but it says something about the way
that those who discussed it felt about the relationship between
language and the physical world, and that is an issue of some
importance in philosophy as well as being of interest in
itself.These essays are not particularly closely connected; each
concentrates on a particular small part of the theme (Dante's
views, for example, or the supposedly fundamental languages devised
by eighteenth century philosophers) with little reference to the
others. Each is interesting in itself, and a book which contained
them all as chapters would probably be fascinating, though I found
Serendipities rather on the bitty side.The first essay, based on a
lecture given to open the academic year at Bologna University, is
rather different in nature. Entitled The Force of Falsity, its
subject is influential lies of the past. Forgeries have had a
surprisingly big effect on history, from the Donation of
Constantine, used to bolster the claims of the Papacy to dominion
over the secular rulers of medieval Europe, to the Protocols of the
Elders of Zion, which inspired Hitler. Both these forgeries led to
wars, but others had a positive effect; eastward and westward
exploration by Europeans in the fifteenth century were inspired by
erroneous beliefs - eastward by Prester John, westward by an
incorrect estimate of the circumference of the globe. The latter,
which was Columbus' inspiration, has itself been the victim of
misrepresentation, as Eco points out - anti-clerical campaigners in
the nineteenth century claimed that the reason Columbus travelled
was to prove that the earth was round in defiance of established
church doctrine; few educated people in 1492 would have believed in
a flat earth.None of the essays are about anything of earth
shattering importance; all are interesting and determinedly
erudite.flag 1 like DfordoomMay 01, 2008 Dfordoom rated it 4 of 5
starsShelves: non-fictionThe main theme running through the essays
in Umberto Ecos Serendipities is that false or deluded or distorted
(or even just plain crazy) ideas can change the world just as
significantly as ideas that are true. And like ideas that are true,
these ideas can change the world in positive or negative ways. The
medieval belief in a vast Christian kingdom in the east, ruled by
Prester John, was completely false but it was a major stimulus to
European exploration and expansion. He also has some stimula...more
The main theme running through the essays in Umberto Ecos
Serendipities is that false or deluded or distorted (or even just
plain crazy) ideas can change the world just as significantly as
ideas that are true. And like ideas that are true, these ideas can
change the world in positive or negative ways. The medieval belief
in a vast Christian kingdom in the east, ruled by Prester John, was
completely false but it was a major stimulus to European
exploration and expansion. He also has some stimulating things to
say about the way we deal with the new, and the way our existing
baggage of beliefs (what Eco calls our background books) can lead
us to interpret new things in mistaken ways because the things we
find in the new are the things we expect to find. The chapter on
the spectacular misinterpretations of the nature and meaning of
Egyptian hieroglyphics, and of other unfamiliar language systems,
is particularly interesting. Eco is, as always, entertaining and
provocative. An excellent little book.flag 1 like Yesterday's Muse
BookstoreJun 04, 2010 Yesterday's Muse Bookstore rated it 3 of 5
starsShelves: languageAnother solid performance by Eco, though I
don't think this book delivers what it advertises. What is supposed
to tie together the five essays is a theme of mistakes that led to
success, or ill-founded projects that facilitated great progress. I
would say the first three essays are more successful than the final
two in this regard, and also more enjoyable to read. They seem to
have more of Eco's trademark flare for humor, and they seem to say
what they intend to say more effectively.I understand...more
Another solid performance by Eco, though I don't think this book
delivers what it advertises. What is supposed to tie together the
five essays is a theme of mistakes that led to success, or
ill-founded projects that facilitated great progress. I would say
the first three essays are more successful than the final two in
this regard, and also more enjoyable to read. They seem to have
more of Eco's trademark flare for humor, and they seem to say what
they intend to say more effectively.I understand that this is one
of Eco's more academic works, but I couldn't help but expect
something more like his How to Travel with a Salmon, which I
devoured eagerly and still recommend. If you are deeply interested
in linguistics, this book will certainly find a place on your shelf
eventually, but for those who enjoy his unique writing style and
themes, there are several of his that you should add to your
library before this one.flag 1 like JonfaithDec 28, 2011 Jonfaith
rated it 4 of 5 starsSomewhere in an earlier Alomodovar film, maybe
Flower of the Secret, a character describes a scenario for a film,
one which actually A would eventually create as Volver. I really
like that, the inclusion. Eco anticipates his Cemetery of Prague
with a devilish delight in this one, little surprise as nearly all
of PC, outside of the protagonist, is grounded in historical
evidence. I liked this dizzying book, though the final section did
leave me grasping, if not gasping.flag 1 like DottieOct 19, 2007
Dottie rated it 4 of 5 starsShelves: ownEco is fast becoming a
favorite. This small gem was right up my alley/s -- and is happily
ensconced in my core library.flag 1 like ShinnJul 02, 2011 Shinn
rated it 2 of 5 stars review of another editionShelves: 2011,
translation, philosophy, non-fiction, linguistics, europeI think
Umberto Eco is writing for an audience more erudite than I here.
This book does not try to cater to lay people and you really do
need to have some interest in linguistics to even begin to enjoy
it. That said, it is less dry and dreary than I expected.The five
short essays, while decidedly academic, are interesting with a
touch of humour (I liked Eco's contemplation on the language that
would be spoken were Dante, Abulafia and Adam to convene in heaven)
and cover the various aspects of l...more I think Umberto Eco is
writing for an audience more erudite than I here. This book does
not try to cater to lay people and you really do need to have some
interest in linguistics to even begin to enjoy it. That said, it is
less dry and dreary than I expected.The five short essays, while
decidedly academic, are interesting with a touch of humour (I liked
Eco's contemplation on the language that would be spoken were
Dante, Abulafia and Adam to convene in heaven) and cover the
various aspects of language - religious, political, historical and
social. I liked the first chapter, which talks of the way in which
lies have shaped the world and the second, describing the quest to
find the original language of paradise by people over time, among
them Dante Alighieri and the effect this search had on the Divine
Comedy.My grouse is that the title (and the back cover, I might
add) is rather misleading. Almost all of the discussion on
serendipity is limited to the first chapter. The fourth and fifth
chapters were unable to hold my attention as well as the first two.
Then again, I suppose this is best appreciated by
academics.ElliotOct 11, 2010 Elliot rated it 4 of 5 starsShelves:
philosophy, literary-studiesAh, what a great collection of essays
by my literary boyfriend!In these five related explorations of
language (both the history thereof and, well, the history of the
history thereof...), Eco again proves his astounding knowledge
of... everything, and his wonderful ability to write both
captivating and intellectually challenging essays.Eco has used a
handful of the sources discussed here in his works of fiction
(something which he admits), but that seems to help rather than
hinder: it is fascinat...more Ah, what a great collection of essays
by my literary boyfriend!In these five related explorations of
language (both the history thereof and, well, the history of the
history thereof...), Eco again proves his astounding knowledge
of... everything, and his wonderful ability to write both
captivating and intellectually challenging essays.Eco has used a
handful of the sources discussed here in his works of fiction
(something which he admits), but that seems to help rather than
hinder: it is fascinating to see how he treats similar ideas in
both fiction and non-fiction.The essays in this collection deal
with the important (or at least interesting) developments in human
history which have spawned from tremendous errors, often with
regards to the quest for a perfect, primogenial language. Having
apparently read every book ever written (and having remembered them
all!), Eco weaves interesting historical anecdotes with literary
criticism and semiotic theory, crafting powerful, entertaining, and
occasionally difficult (in a good way) insight.MaggieNov 12, 2007
Maggie rated it 5 of 5 starsShelves: non-fictionsecond reading:
january 2010. omgosh! U. Eco is such a fine writer. the purpose of
this particular book is to show how soooo much advancement in human
culture BEGINS with wrong thinking. we have to start "somewhere" so
the wrong starting point doesn't have to mean the wrong
path/conclusion but this method does have to acknowledge necessary
corrections along the way ... and in this post-modern world where
"anything goes" this book reminds us -- with excellent examples and
clear thinking/good writ...more second reading: january 2010.
omgosh! U. Eco is such a fine writer. the purpose of this
particular book is to show how soooo much advancement in human
culture BEGINS with wrong thinking. we have to start "somewhere" so
the wrong starting point doesn't have to mean the wrong
path/conclusion but this method does have to acknowledge necessary
corrections along the way ... and in this post-modern world where
"anything goes" this book reminds us -- with excellent examples and
clear thinking/good writing -- that reality does have something
firm to offer.subjects covered: 1) language and the tower of babel,
2) explorers, flat earth visionaries, and false histories
promulgated by renaissance myth-makers, and 3) history of esoteric
ideas (e.g. egyptian and chinese wisdom/secrets). sections 4) and
5) are the most difficult to comprehend but basically Eco is
examining the ideas related to the a priori of language(s).what can
i say?! the man's a brilliant thinker; his writing is succinct as
well as amazingly clear. if you appreciate accuracy and deep
thinking, you probably will want to read Serendipity by Umberto
Eco. if you only do light reading, this book is NOT for you.first
reading: january 2004WGJun 12, 2013 WG rated it 3 of 5
starsShelves: languageIn this collection of essays, Italian
semiotician and novelist Eco undertakes a wide-ranging exploration
of such themes as the manner in which false ideas and paradigms
nevertheless yield real consequences through the acts of those who
hold and adhere to them, the impact of language on the nature of
European interaction with other cultures, and the value of studying
fictional languages for analytical comparison with languages that,
though also artificial, are intended for actual use. To do so,
h...more In this collection of essays, Italian semiotician and
novelist Eco undertakes a wide-ranging exploration of such themes
as the manner in which false ideas and paradigms nevertheless yield
real consequences through the acts of those who hold and adhere to
them, the impact of language on the nature of European interaction
with other cultures, and the value of studying fictional languages
for analytical comparison with languages that, though also
artificial, are intended for actual use. To do so, he draws on
examples as diverse as Marco Polos zoological concepts, the legend
of Prester John, false geographic paradigms, the fiction of Borges,
and the thought of the unfairly underrepresented ultra-reactionary
Savoyard Joseph de Maistre. While his close readings of texts and
his heavy use of linguistics terminology threatens occasionally to
plunge the essays into abstruseness, they are mostly accessible and
always enjoyable for anyone interested in the potential (and
frequent failure) of language to correspond with reality.
RebeccaFeb 24, 2011 Rebecca rated it 1 of 5 starsThis book is so
terrible that I don't even feel remotely bad for abandoning it
about 30 pages in. Frankly, those 30 pages were a waste of my time,
and I'm only glad to have read them because I can now write this
review. This book represented my first foray into the smoky and
confusing world of Umberto Eco (not counting a few failed attempts
to get past page 1 of The Name of the Rose over the years), and I
hope never to return.The first problem is that no one knows what
this book is about, not ev...more This book is so terrible that I
don't even feel remotely bad for abandoning it about 30 pages in.
Frankly, those 30 pages were a waste of my time, and I'm only glad
to have read them because I can now write this review. This book
represented my first foray into the smoky and confusing world of
Umberto Eco (not counting a few failed attempts to get past page 1
of The Name of the Rose over the years), and I hope never to
return.The first problem is that no one knows what this book is
about, not even Eco himself. The title is Serendipities: Language
and Lunacy. "Serendipities" refers to the accidental discoveries
made when someone is looking for something else, such as Columbus
accidentally discovering America on his way to the Indies. The
first chapter, in a nutshell, is about how various errors and false
beliefs (such as the mistaken belief that the sun orbits the earth)
have influenced the course of history.What's so noteworthy about
this chapter is how distinctly un-noteworthy it is. Eco's thesis
is: People have believed some crazy stuff that we now know to be
untrue! And that's, like, had an effect on stuff. And stuff. Wow,
deep. But a lack of originality, while disappointing, isn't
sufficient to fill me with the kind of rage that this book inspired
in me.For that, it takes truly cringe-worthy writing.Eco's writing
makes me embarrassed to have ever been a participant in academia.
His writing isn't just dry and deeply, profoundly boring -- which,
after all, is par for the course among these types of intellectual
windbags -- no, his writing descends to even deeper levels of
ugliness than this. Nothing he says is clear. Consider the
following paragraph:"Why reject the story of the Rosicrucians, when
it satisfied an expectation of religious harmony? And why reject
the story of the Protocols, if they could explain so many historic
events by the myth of the conspiracy? Karl Popper has reminded us
that the social theory of conspiracy is like the one we find in
Homer. Homer conceived the power of the gods in such a way that
everything taking place on the plain before Troy represented only a
reflection of the countless conspiracies devised on Olympus. The
social theory of conspiracy, Popper says, is a consequence of the
end of God as a reference point and of the consequent question, Who
is there in his place? This place is now occupied by various men
and powerful, sinister groups that can be blamed for having
organized the Great Depression and all the evils we suffer. Why
consider absurd the belief in plots and conspiracies when today
they are still used to explain the failure of our own actions or
the reason that events have taken a different turn from that
desired?"Aside from the fact that Eco seems to be justifying an
unfounded belief in conspiracies simply because people can use
those unfounded beliefs to provide false explanations about the
world (which makes no sense at all), this paragraph is horrible
from the point of view of clarity and readability. He writes like
he's desperately trying to earn a PhD in literary criticism.But,
more to the point, what does any of that have to do with language
or lunacy? Also, why exactly should I care about any of this? I
open every book with a gesture of goodwill towards the author,
giving them the benefit of the doubt that they will try their best
to explain things helpfully and have something interesting to say.
But you can't just make passing references to other authors, ask
rhetorical questions that never lead to a coherent thesis,
paraphrase other people's ideas, or string random thoughts together
and still expect me to maintain that goodwill.I'm guessing that at
some point Eco read a lot of Dante, and maybe even earned a degree
or two from all that Dante reading. Good for him. But unless Dante
is self-evidently relevant to what you're talking about, there's no
place for it. And yet every couple of pages, it would be, "In
Dante, blah blah blah." You can't just throw together a list of
things you've noticed during your reading, give the whole thing a
vague title, and slap a picture of the Tower of Babel on the cover.
Or I guess you can if you're Umberto Eco.I think I stopped reading
right around the point where he began discussing whether, in
Genesis, Adam named the fish (because it only says that he named
the beasts of the field and the fowl of the air!!). After all, it
is difficult to imagine God dragging all the fish up from the ocean
and parading them through the Garden of Eden, as Eco points out
(but gathering together all the beasts and fowl and parading them
through the garden? That's easy to believe). Before you ask
yourself what this has to do with anything and why you are spending
your time reading about it, just wait for a second and let me
explain why this is a truly earth-shatteringly important question
that warrants inclusion in a scholarly book. Oh wait -- that's what
I was hoping Eco was going to say, but didn't.Here is my conclusion
about Umberto Eco: either he is a charlatan who knows he's an awful
writer, but he's smug and devious enough to continue churning out
books because he can, or he genuinely doesn't know he's a bad
writer and believes that he is actually doing someone a favor by
writing down the fevered disconnections of his pompous,
overeducated mind. He may have a bigger vocabulary and be
better-read than your average undergraduate student, but his
writing has the same meandering, name-dropping, list-like quality
to it, with page after page of "Look what I know!"Honestly, I
sometimes believe that elderly scholars like Eco believe that if
they speak or write too clearly, younger souls will be able to gain
the knowledge that they have hoarded like dragons over the decades
and which they had hoped to take with them to the grave. I can find
no other explanation for the pernicious obscurantism and ugliness
of Eco's writing.Chat_bubbles view 1 commentNaomiJul 18, 2013 Naomi
rated it 2 of 5 stars review of another editionShelves:
religion-and-philosophySerendipities felt like little bits left
over from the writing of The Search for the Perfect Language ,
which in a sense is what it is (in the introduction to
Serendipities Eco writes 'In the introduction to my Search for a
Perfect Language (1995), I informed the reader that, bearing in
mind the physical limits of a book, I had been forced to omit many
curious episodes, and I concluded: "I console myself that I have
the material for future excursions in erudition"').This work,
although on one le...more Serendipities felt like little bits left
over from the writing of The Search for the Perfect Language ,
which in a sense is what it is (in the introduction to
Serendipities Eco writes 'In the introduction to my Search for a
Perfect Language (1995), I informed the reader that, bearing in
mind the physical limits of a book, I had been forced to omit many
curious episodes, and I concluded: "I console myself that I have
the material for future excursions in erudition"').This work,
although on one level well-written, has a disjointed feel overall,
such that one isn't quite sure of the direction or purpose.
Nevertheless, the information it does contain is interesting.Jafer
MartinJul 09, 2011 Jafer Martin rated it 5 of 5 stars review of
another editionWarning: this book is heavy on linguistic theory. He
starts with the premise that serendipitious discoveries can happen
from false ideas, then jumps straight into the debate of sacred
"given" languages vs. everyday imperfect working dialects and the
nature of linguistic change. I think the reason he sticks with the
linguistic angle is just because so much of cognitive thought is
contained by the internal grammar it's produced in. This leads
towards the end of the book to "lexical borrowing", or...more
Warning: this book is heavy on linguistic theory. He starts with
the premise that serendipitious discoveries can happen from false
ideas, then jumps straight into the debate of sacred "given"
languages vs. everyday imperfect working dialects and the nature of
linguistic change. I think the reason he sticks with the linguistic
angle is just because so much of cognitive thought is contained by
the internal grammar it's produced in. This leads towards the end
of the book to "lexical borrowing", or really - serendipty
itself.Recommended for anyone interested in Chomsky's Universal
Grammar, or interested in theories of preIndo-European language.
Here's a good quote -"The real problem of critique of our own
culture models is to ask, when we see a unicorn, if by any chance
it is not a rhinoceros." AlbertJul 02, 2010 Albert rated it 3 of 5
starsUmberto Eco, like the inventors of "perfect languages" he
describes, takes language to be the ultimate metaphor for every
system (political, philosophical, religious) mankind can aspire to
cobble together. This allows him at the end for calling Joseph de
Maistre (who did indeed despise the French Revolution) a
"reactionary" for claiming that "The only certainty is that every
people people has spoken, and it has spoken precisely insofar as it
thought; in fact it would be absurd to believe that th...more
Umberto Eco, like the inventors of "perfect languages" he
describes, takes language to be the ultimate metaphor for every
system (political, philosophical, religious) mankind can aspire to
cobble together. This allows him at the end for calling Joseph de
Maistre (who did indeed despise the French Revolution) a
"reactionary" for claiming that "The only certainty is that every
people people has spoken, and it has spoken precisely insofar as it
thought; in fact it would be absurd to believe that there is a sign
for a nonexistent concept, as it would be absird to believe a
concept does not have a sign to make itself known." There are some
bizarre fabrications in the book, as Eco lovingly documents, but is
that quote a fabrication?LornaAug 09, 2011 Lorna added itWe know
about the power of true ideas to effect change. But what about the
power of false ideas? In this fascinating short work, Umberto Eco
(author of novels including The Name of the Rose, and in addition
Professor of Semiotics at the University of Bologna) examines some
of the great wrong-headed ideas of previous centuries and the
influence they have had. There's the vision of the Christian
kingdom of Prester John beyond the Arab world; the belief in the
original perfect language, or the atte...more We know about the
power of true ideas to effect change. But what about the power of
false ideas? In this fascinating short work, Umberto Eco (author of
novels including The Name of the Rose, and in addition Professor of
Semiotics at the University of Bologna) examines some of the great
wrong-headed ideas of previous centuries and the influence they
have had. There's the vision of the Christian kingdom of Prester
John beyond the Arab world; the belief in the original perfect
language, or the attempt to devise one; unicorns and more. I'm no
philosopher, and a lot of this very clever book was beyond me - but
that's no reason not to read and be dazzled by the erudition of a
very learned Italian who sets off ideas like fireworks.ColinSep 05,
2008 Colin rated it 3 of 5 starsThis book is a collection of essays
by scholar and all-around smart guy Umberto Eco. The first one is a
fascinating look at made-up European myths, such as secret
Christian / Masonic societies (Templars, the Illuminati, etc.) and
how these things which are clearly made up bullshit (Rosicrucians
are all invisible? come on) often have very real results. It's an
essay about the sociological conception of self-fulfilling
prophecies. More notably, it seems to be roughly the idea that was
turned into...more This book is a collection of essays by scholar
and all-around smart guy Umberto Eco. The first one is a
fascinating look at made-up European myths, such as secret
Christian / Masonic societies (Templars, the Illuminati, etc.) and
how these things which are clearly made up bullshit (Rosicrucians
are all invisible? come on) often have very real results. It's an
essay about the sociological conception of self-fulfilling
prophecies. More notably, it seems to be roughly the idea that was
turned into the novel Foucault's Pendulum. Unfortunately the other
essays were not so interesting to me, a non-linguist -- they were
mostly write-ups about theological language which I thought were
like reading about paint drying.JimNov 24, 2008 Jim rated it 4 of 5
starsA very interesting & intriguing series of essays (and
lecture notes) which will hopefully entertain & enlighten those
with a passion for the curious history of languages and ideas.Not
always easy on the lay reader (as those familiar with Eco's
previous works will doubtless attest) and my bi-ceps certainly
remember getting a good work-out lifting my faithful Dictionary on
a regular basis - although hopefully my vocabulary (and dinner
party conversation) is the better for it!In fact, many...more A
very interesting & intriguing series of essays (and lecture
notes) which will hopefully entertain & enlighten those with a
passion for the curious history of languages and ideas.Not always
easy on the lay reader (as those familiar with Eco's previous works
will doubtless attest) and my bi-ceps certainly remember getting a
good work-out lifting my faithful Dictionary on a regular basis -
although hopefully my vocabulary (and dinner party conversation) is
the better for it!In fact, many years ago, whilst reading Eco's
"Foucault's Pendulum" my father observed as he watched me refer to
the heavy dictionary time & time again that "perhaps you are
reading the wrong book first" . . . blessTom DaleAug 07, 2012 Tom
Dale rated it 4 of 5 stars review of another editionHaving
struggled to get beyond the first section of this book for what is
alarmingly revealed to me by Goodreads as all but a year, and then
having completed it in the space of a day or two, my conclusion is
this:this is not a book to read last thing at night, first thing on
a sunday morning, when drunk, ill or exhausted, irritated by
children, employers or clients, or in any other way distractable
from what is without doubt a mental task of no small order.Eco is
rarely light reading and this...more Having struggled to get beyond
the first section of this book for what is alarmingly revealed to
me by Goodreads as all but a year, and then having completed it in
the space of a day or two, my conclusion is this:this is not a book
to read last thing at night, first thing on a sunday morning, when
drunk, ill or exhausted, irritated by children, employers or
clients, or in any other way distractable from what is without
doubt a mental task of no small order.Eco is rarely light reading
and this collection is less so than many of his others. In the
right space however and with sufficient resources at hand he is, as
always, delightful, hilarious, provocative, illuminating and
persuasive.UtsavSep 20, 2013 Utsav rated it 3 of 5 stars review of
another editionShelves: on-kindle, book-club-readsI'm not quite
sure how to rate this one. It had a bunch of very interesting
arguments that make for excellent discussions with a willing
sparring partner, and then at times it dipped into some exercises
in pointlessness that had me throwing it down in frustration. Eco
seems to believe in biblical inerrancy and Dante Inerrancy (or not,
I couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic), so there went a lot of
credibility for me.Nobody needs to read this, but if the subject
interests you and you can get p...more I'm not quite sure how to
rate this one. It had a bunch of very interesting arguments that
make for excellent discussions with a willing sparring partner, and
then at times it dipped into some exercises in pointlessness that
had me throwing it down in frustration. Eco seems to believe in
biblical inerrancy and Dante Inerrancy (or not, I couldn't tell if
he was being sarcastic), so there went a lot of credibility for
me.Nobody needs to read this, but if the subject interests you and
you can get past his Dante hard-on and all the intellectual wankery
that goes with it then I guess there are worse things you could do
with your time.A noncommittal 3 stars, I guess.David R.Dec 26, 2012
David R. rated it 3 of 5 starsShelves: unclassifiedEco's day job is
professor of Semiotics at Bologna University, and this book (a set
of five lectures) shows him to fine effect. However, it lies at a
significant level of academic prose and the subject can be
suprisingly difficult to fully grasp. I'm assuming I would need
three or four passes to do so, reminding me of my struggle with
Hofstedler's "Godel Escher Bach" many years ago. That said, I came
away with some perspective on both "falsity" (in its sense of how
culture progressed in the teet...more Eco's day job is professor of
Semiotics at Bologna University, and this book (a set of five
lectures) shows him to fine effect. However, it lies at a
significant level of academic prose and the subject can be
suprisingly difficult to fully grasp. I'm assuming I would need
three or four passes to do so, reminding me of my struggle with
Hofstedler's "Godel Escher Bach" many years ago. That said, I came
away with some perspective on both "falsity" (in its sense of how
culture progressed in the teeth of what turned out to be wrong
ideas) and language, especially the search for linguistic
perfection. CharlieMar 10, 2010 Charlie rated it 4 of 5 starsThis
book is a compilation of lectures presented by Eco over a few
years, so despite pretty quality editing, it doesn't quite flow
together as a book. On the other hand, Eco is absolutely brilliant,
so even a mildly disjointed series of his thoughts makes for
stupendous reading. My main complaint was that his editor
overestimated me as a reader. The text abounds with
foreign-language phrases (primarily Latin) with no translations or
footnotes to help me along. I don't think that I risked
believi...more This book is a compilation of lectures presented by
Eco over a few years, so despite pretty quality editing, it doesn't
quite flow together as a book. On the other hand, Eco is absolutely
brilliant, so even a mildly disjointed series of his thoughts makes
for stupendous reading. My main complaint was that his editor
overestimated me as a reader. The text abounds with
foreign-language phrases (primarily Latin) with no translations or
footnotes to help me along. I don't think that I risked believing
that I know it all, but the possibility has been moved further
across the metaphorical horizon now.ClaudiaApr 09, 2014 Claudia
rated it 3 of 5 starsI have no idea! Not really insightful.Heather
BrowningAug 12, 2013 Heather Browning rated it 2 of 5 starsShelves:
non-fictionI found this extremely difficult to get through,
particularly the first couple of chapters, and I almost gave up. If
it hadn't been such a short book, I may have. The writing style is
difficult to follow - crammed with detail to the point where it's
easy to forget or overlook the broader point he is trying to make.
Rather than really exploring any of the ideas he presents, Eco
seems to prefer to survey the history of them. Perhaps it's just my
inclinations as a philosopher rather than a historia...more I found
this extremely difficult to get through, particularly the first
couple of chapters, and I almost gave up. If it hadn't been such a
short book, I may have. The writing style is difficult to follow -
crammed with detail to the point where it's easy to forget or
overlook the broader point he is trying to make. Rather than really
exploring any of the ideas he presents, Eco seems to prefer to
survey the history of them. Perhaps it's just my inclinations as a
philosopher rather than a historian, but I found this
dissatisfying.JessicaAug 15, 2007 Jessica rated it 3 of 5
starsRecommends it for: people interested in semioticsA history of
linguistics that is maybe not meant for the layman. Interesting and
dense, but sometimes difficult to follow, especially if you bought
it without paying much attention and while thinking that you were
getting (and hoped to get) Eco's Misreadings for a light in-flight
read. Eco makes a habit in all of his writing of using large chunks
of text in a variety of languages without offering
translations.Chapter 3 : From Marco Polo to Leibniz: Stories if
Intellectual Misunderstandings, was...more A history of linguistics
that is maybe not meant for the layman. Interesting and dense, but
sometimes difficult to follow, especially if you bought it without
paying much attention and while thinking that you were getting (and
hoped to get) Eco's Misreadings for a light in-flight read. Eco
makes a habit in all of his writing of using large chunks of text
in a variety of languages without offering translations.Chapter 3 :
From Marco Polo to Leibniz: Stories if Intellectual
Misunderstandings, was the most engaging. Eva NickelsonJul 27, 2011
Eva Nickelson rated it 4 of 5 starsShelves: non-fictionI freely
admit that most of this book was over my head. I have an interest
in languages in the sense that I use a limited language set to
convey ideas. There were a plethora of philosophers and writers
that were mentioned (Borges being one that I have actually read),
and while I may have missed quite a bit by not reading more of
them, Eco conveys the different theories about where our languages
originate and what purpose they both help and hinder in our beliefs
of the world. It was definitely a...more I freely admit that most
of this book was over my head. I have an interest in languages in
the sense that I use a limited language set to convey ideas. There
were a plethora of philosophers and writers that were mentioned
(Borges being one that I have actually read), and while I may have
missed quite a bit by not reading more of them, Eco conveys the
different theories about where our languages originate and what
purpose they both help and hinder in our beliefs of the world. It
was definitely a thought-provoking book.MillaMay 26, 2011 Milla
rated it 3 of 5 stars review of another editionShelves: essays,
literature, non-fiction, languageEvery time I pick up one of Eco's
books I'm surprised just how different they are from each other.
I've been disappointed so many times by authors who seem to have
something to say and then end up repeating the same things over and
over again book after book. I'm not an expert on history or
literature but at least to a regular reader simply the amount of
knowledge that Eco seems to have on the subjects he writes about,
down to the smallest details, is amazing.UllaMar 13, 2014 Ulla
rated it 3 of 5 starsSome of the chapters were really interesting,
but some is recycled and the translation is not always ok.Brent
LegaultJan 24, 2013 Brent Legault rated it 3 of 5 starsI liked the
language and loved the lunacy, but I wish it were a real, cohesive
book, rather than a bunch of pieced-together essays and speeches.
The incessant summarizing of information already addressed drove me
half as mad (though not nearly so brilliant) as some of the
babbling savants within.YuliaJun 01, 2007 Yulia rated it 5 of 5
stars review of another editionAs usually - Eco is at once
entertaining and intellectually engaging. This is a collection of
essays focused mostly on language, from the point of view of
philosophy and semiotics, with a Medieval touch (also check his
book titled "The Search for the Perfect Language")
