Review by Melchi Asuma -- Why Do We Quote? by Ruth Finnegan
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[Following is a volunteer review of "Why Do We Quote?" by Ruth Finnegan.]
Quoting, I have always believed is instinctual. I mean even children quote their parents and their instructions to their (the children's) friends. I do not think anyone teaches you how, when, or in what situation to quote. That is, however, only my opinion and thoughts on the matter.
Ruth Finnegan, on the other hand, went ahead to seek numerous other opinions in coming up with the book, Why Do We Quote? In this book, she seems to get behind how, when, why, and where people quote. To this end, she interviews many people and uses their opinions to formulate theories and formulas behind quotations in speech and text. She takes it upon herself to even give us a brief background on quoting and the different cultural settings and appropriations behind the culture of quoting. The book also assesses the impact of quoting and the impact of quoting from different sources (celebrities, scholars, an aunt, among many others) She does this by publishing the responses of the many people she interviewed on the subject and analyzing the main themes and patterns that emerge.
I was genuinely curious when I picked up this book. This is because even though quoting is all around and within us, I had never before stopped to ask myself why I quoted. I had never stopped to ask my teachers why they insisted and still insist no paper is complete without a quote or two. I had never stopped to question people I interact with why the quote the people they do. Essentially, I was taken aback by the fact that no one I know had ever even raised a question on the subject yet it seems fascinating and important enough.
Once I started reading it, I found out that the book was insightful and fun to read. It was well-written having followed all the rules of grammar and was without any glaring grammatical errors. I believe it was very professionally edited. I did have fun reading both the author's perspective on quoting and the perspectives of the many different people whose opinions made it to the book. However, I felt the book took a rather culture-based perspective on the topic. This is to be expected, however, since it is on the title but it made the book seem to answer the question, How do different people quote? Instead of, Why do different people quote?' This, for me, took away much of the sting from the read, especially since it featured more of different people in the UK than it featured different people all over the world.
However, I have to affirm this is a very wonderful read; one that should be read by all curious and inquisitive audiences. I have to rate it the full 4 out of 4 stars. It is a book that should be enjoyed by, as stated earlier, all inquisitive audiences, lovers of cultural and historical books and scholarly readers.
******
Why Do We Quote?
View: on Bookshelves |
Quoting, I have always believed is instinctual. I mean even children quote their parents and their instructions to their (the children's) friends. I do not think anyone teaches you how, when, or in what situation to quote. That is, however, only my opinion and thoughts on the matter.
Ruth Finnegan, on the other hand, went ahead to seek numerous other opinions in coming up with the book, Why Do We Quote? In this book, she seems to get behind how, when, why, and where people quote. To this end, she interviews many people and uses their opinions to formulate theories and formulas behind quotations in speech and text. She takes it upon herself to even give us a brief background on quoting and the different cultural settings and appropriations behind the culture of quoting. The book also assesses the impact of quoting and the impact of quoting from different sources (celebrities, scholars, an aunt, among many others) She does this by publishing the responses of the many people she interviewed on the subject and analyzing the main themes and patterns that emerge.
I was genuinely curious when I picked up this book. This is because even though quoting is all around and within us, I had never before stopped to ask myself why I quoted. I had never stopped to ask my teachers why they insisted and still insist no paper is complete without a quote or two. I had never stopped to question people I interact with why the quote the people they do. Essentially, I was taken aback by the fact that no one I know had ever even raised a question on the subject yet it seems fascinating and important enough.
Once I started reading it, I found out that the book was insightful and fun to read. It was well-written having followed all the rules of grammar and was without any glaring grammatical errors. I believe it was very professionally edited. I did have fun reading both the author's perspective on quoting and the perspectives of the many different people whose opinions made it to the book. However, I felt the book took a rather culture-based perspective on the topic. This is to be expected, however, since it is on the title but it made the book seem to answer the question, How do different people quote? Instead of, Why do different people quote?' This, for me, took away much of the sting from the read, especially since it featured more of different people in the UK than it featured different people all over the world.
However, I have to affirm this is a very wonderful read; one that should be read by all curious and inquisitive audiences. I have to rate it the full 4 out of 4 stars. It is a book that should be enjoyed by, as stated earlier, all inquisitive audiences, lovers of cultural and historical books and scholarly readers.
******
Why Do We Quote?
View: on Bookshelves |
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