Abstract
Anyone who makes assertions about the nature and significance of human communication will wittingly or unwittingly make commitments to fundamental assumptions about what it is to be a human being. If we do not pay attention to what these assumptions and commitments are, we are apt to wander into fantasy or self-contradiction or both. Dr. Hugh Blair, the Scottish man of letters, is a handy example. In the eighteenth century Blair promulgated the already popular theory that "taste" is a primary feature of all discourse. Whatever is said will reflect good, poor, or indifferent "taste." "Good taste" is the product of education and learned respect for "good" models and "right" rules of linguistic expression. In short, "taste" was for Blair the fruit of elitist socialization.
Journal Title
Iowa Journal of Speech Communication
Volume
12
Issue
1
First Page
1
Last Page
10
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Arnold, Carrol C.
(1980)
"Philosophical Perspectives on Human Communication,"
Iowa Journal of Communication: Vol. 12:
No.
1, Article 4.
Available at:
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/ijc/vol12/iss1/4
Copyright
©1980 Iowa Communication Association
