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Language Intelligence summary

Name: Language Intelligence
Rating: 4.3 (124 reviews)
Author: Joseph J Romm

Joseph J Romm

Lessons on Persuasion from Jesus, Shakespeare, Lincoln, and Lady Gaga

4.3 (124 ratings)

19 mins

Brief summary

Language Intelligence by Joseph J Romm helps readers understand the importance of language in communicating ideas and shaping public opinion. It provides practical advice on how to use language effectively in different situations.

Topics

Persuasion Language

Table of Contents

Language Intelligence
Summary of 8 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 8

What’s in it for me? Learn the art of rhetoric.

In classical education, one subject reigned supreme: the art of rhetoric. Cicero was a gifted speaker, and so were Aristotle and Socrates. Rhetoric long retained its status, and can be found in the poetic language of Shakespeare and Goethe.

But today the high art of rhetoric has fallen by the wayside. And this is dangerous. Not only do we neglect the beauty of language; we lose our ability to listen, making us susceptible to all sorts of chicanery and doublespeak.

Rhetoric is both beauty and beast. It contains colorful figures of speech, such as descriptive language, metaphors and irony. Yet rhetoric is also a form of persuasion, and can be used to manipulate.

These blinks walk you through the beauty of language and reveal the tools and tricks that are used in persuasion. You will learn to appreciate the language arts and to see past their seductive techniques.

You’ll also learn

why you need to master rhetoric if you want to sell something;
why George W. Bush is a gifted speaker; and
why Lady Gaga is the queen of pop rhetoric.

Even a cursory knowledge of rhetoric will make you less manipulable.

Modern society is awash with reason and empirical evidence; information abounds – and can be easily shared or double-checked online. In this flood of fact, it’s all too easy to forget the art of rhetoric and the power of language. Today, there’s hardly any place for rhetoric in the school curriculum, and academia is hardly more accommodating.

For instance, 2011 marked the four hundredth anniversary of the King James Bible. Scholars, of course, had plenty to say. What’s amazing is that although this translation ranks among the finest compositions in English literature, not one of these scholars deigned to discuss figures of speech.

In fact, the historical theologian Alister McGrath even insinuated that the translation’s expressiveness was mere accident.

Such willful disregard of rhetoric’s centrality in the Bible is more than a mere academic quibble. It's representative of a cultural trend – a trend that should be resisted. After all, when we understand rhetoric, we can begin to resist its charms.

Rhetoric hasn’t vanished, after all. Just think about how politicians and advertisers speak. An understanding of how rhetoric works makes it easier to recognize both a speaker’s motivation and his manipulative techniques.

Advertising wouldn’t be the same without rhetoric.

In 1992, Edward McQuarrie and David Glen Mick researched advertising spending among corporations. They found that billions were spent on language studies and that figures of speech were at the center of advertising strategies. Rhetoric played a central role in making ads as memorable as possible.

If an ad uses a pun or a metaphor, the target audience is more like to remember the ad in question. For instance, Deere & Company, which, among other products, manufacturers diesel engines, uses the tagline, “Nothing runs like a Deere.” Not the cleverest pun – but it certainly sticks!

Once you see through advertising tricks and recognize the crafty art of rhetoric, you’ll be able to make more rational purchasing decisions.

Short words are an effective rhetorical tool, especially in politics.

It’s tempting to think that people who use ornate, florid phrases and pepper their sentences with recherché locutions are smarter than those who use short and simple words to communicate.

But that’s not necessarily true. In fact, short words usually get the point across much more effectively than long ones. Winston Churchill, orator extraordinaire, firmly held this belief. What’s more, the finest and most memorable sentences in our culture are far from complex. Just consider Hamlet’s “to be or not to be” soliloquy or Martin Luther King, Jr’s “I have a dream” speech.

Repetition is a good way of getting your point across – as the Bible illustrates.

If you’ve ever had to deal with a grumpy toddler, you’ll know that one no is never enough. You’ve got to say it again and again and again, until the negation finally sinks in.

It’s exactly the same with adults. Just like children, we learn and remember through repetition.

Irony can be used to deflect the truth or to inconspicuously communicate a point.

You’ve probably seen this classic defense strategy in action. Someone’s losing an argument, and so, instead of pushing logically forward, he takes a different tack and starts making fun of his opponent. First, he sarcastically praises his opponent’s intelligence and then mockingly agrees with his opponent’s arguments.

Climate change deniers often use irony in this way to attack scientists.

Foreshadowing is a great rhetorical trick perfect for political speeches.

There’s a dramatic principle known as Chekhov’s gun. If a play begins with a pistol on stage you can be certain that it'll be fired before the final act. It’s not a spoiler – in fact, it heightens the suspense.

The same rule holds just as true in speeches: foreshadowing serves to strengthen the main message.

Metaphors are powerful figures of speech that mirror structures in the human brain.

Metaphors aren’t part of our everyday speech. We’re unlikely to use them when asking someone to pass the salt, for example. We tend only to use metaphors in elevated or emotional situations. When we tell someone she’s our sunshine, it’s not literal – but it’s more powerful than merely saying they’re nice.

To be sure, metaphors trump similes.

Extended metaphors create such strong messages that political campaigns often revolve around them.

If a simple metaphor can create one vivid picture, an extended metaphor can generate a cascade of images.

Once again, the Bible provides a good example of this rhetorical technique.

Rhetoric can be used for malicious purposes, to influence and manipulate.

The art of rhetoric, fine as it is, can also be used for evil.

Indeed, the dark side of rhetoric was already well known in classical Athens. The Sophists were a group who prided themselves on their ability to make weak arguments seem strong by using rhetorical techniques.

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What is Language Intelligence about?

Language Intelligence (2012) focuses on an aspect of language that is often overlooked or dismissed: the art of rhetoric. From the King James Bible to Shakespeare, from modern-day political campaigns to the lyrics of pop songs, rhetoric is a widely used tool – one that we all should learn to use and understand. After all, in words there is power and strength.

This is a Blinkist staff pick

“These blinks take you through history and around the world in search of answers to the age-old question of how the languages we speak affect the way we think and act. Really fascinating stuff!”

– Erik, Editorial Production Manager at Blinkist

Language Intelligence Review

Language Intelligence (2012) by Joseph J Romm explores the power of effective communication and why it is essential in our personal and professional lives. Here's why this book is a must-read:

The book provides a wealth of research and insights into how language shapes our thoughts, beliefs, and relationships.
With practical tips and examples, it offers strategies for improving our language skills to become more persuasive, influential communicators.
Through its engaging anecdotes and real-life examples, the book unveils the captivating world of language, making it a fascinating exploration of human communication.

Who should read Language Intelligence?

Linguists and grammarians
Politicians and marketing experts
Poets and singers

About the Author

Joseph J. Romm is a communication expert who works on raising awareness for climate-change issues in the United States. He runs a blog called Climate Progress and is the author of several books on ecological concerns, including Hell and High Water.

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