Language as Hope

Reviews / Votes

'Consider the variety of language-games we play: forming and testing hypotheses; making up stories; offending; humiliating ... hoping. This volume argues compellingly for the centrality of language in the study of hope. By focusing on those who dare to hope amidst all forms of contemporary violence, it will certainly provide deep sources of inspiration to imagine new paths forward.' Branca Falabella Fabricio, Associate Professor, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro 'With rare theoretical and ethnographic finesse, Silva and Lee show that hope isn't merely expressed through language. Language is itself a reason for hope - a form of practical reasoning with which speakers regenerate shattered worlds. Hope, thus, must be a prime focus of sociolinguists' attention if we want to understand how lives are lived against the vicious forces of capital and neoliberalism. This book enlivens sociolinguistics and makes one feel hopeful about its future.' Rodrigo Borba, Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro 'Language as Hope creatively fuses new literatures in sociolinguistics with insights forged by 'citizen sociolinguistics' in Brazilian favelas. Its careful argumentation and bold confrontation of the politics of oppression and despair challenge scholars to join their interlocutors in creating more just, hopeful worlds.' Charles L. Briggs, author of Unlearning: Rethinking Poetics, Pandemics, and the Politics of Knowledge 'Through this account, Silva & Lee demonstrate how language provides a unique perspective to understand hope as both the reason and resource for social change. Their work teaches us about hoping in hopelessness and how researchers can trace this process through individuals' most intricate and high-stakes social pursuits.' Yunpeng Du, Language in Society