Re: Lunatic Lovers of Language

Well, to my surprise, I found it in my private library
(in French). I had completely forgotten it (but not
the name of the author). Have to read it again, since
I didn't know this list when I bought it. I see she
mentions the famous Jean-Pierre Brisset, who was just
as crazy as one can be; and an "hybrid monster", the
"anglo-franca" language, which looks very sexy:

"Me pren the liberté to ecriv you in Anglo-franca...
Me have the honneur to soumett to you's inspection the
prospectus of me's objets manufactured, which to you
envoy here inclued."

(We did better since with Europanto).

I also would mention the "Dizionario delle Lingue
Immaginarie", from Paolo Albani & Berlinghero
Buanarroti, Zanichelli Ed.1994. It was translated into
French and published by Les Belles Lettres (2001). Of
course, it is also incomplete (how couldn't it be ?)
but could surely be to some use to conlangers,
although the authors seem more concerned about
auxlangs and fantasy languages in literature
(including SF).

Projects of creating languages certainly have much to
do with poetry, literature, and madness.

--- Jim Grossmann <jimg4732@...> wrote:
> Hello!
>
> I own a copy of "Lunatic Lovers of Language" and
> have read it.  Its
> assessment of language creation is unflaggingly
> jaundiced;  its assessment
> of language creators is spelled out in its title.
>
> Yaguello, the author, is certainly a good scholar;
> her treatment of
> philosophical languages is erudite, though not as
> complete as the treatment
> in Umberto Eco's "Search for the Perfect Language."
>  Auxlangs are briefly
> described in one of the appendices, and mentioned in
> the text.
> A much better presentation on Esperanto and Volapuk
> can be found in Andrew
> Large's "The Artificial Language Movement."
>
> I read nothing in LLOL about the secret vice;  any
> knowledge she might have
> had about conlanging as a hobby wasn't presented in
> her book.
>
> I think that Yaguello's book is worth reading,
> despite her supercilious and
> incomplete treatment of her subject matter.  But I
> don't know why she would
> put her book on Langmaker.  Maybe she was trying to
> insult all us
> conlangers.  Or maybe she was hoping that her book
> would prevent some of us
> from repeating the conceptual mistakes embodied in
> attempts at
> "philosophical languages."  Or maybe she would like
> more people to buy her
> book, and figured, perhaps correctly, that she could
> find more customers
> among the conlang crowd?  The last seems most likely
> to me, but who knows?
>
> Jim G.
>

=====
Philippe Caquant

"High thoughts must have high language." (Aristophanes, Frogs)


	
		
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