Lexicon Valley show

Lexicon Valley

Summary: Lexicon Valley is a podcast about language, from pet peeves, syntax, and etymology to neurolinguistics and the death of languages. Hosted by linguist John McWhorter.

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Podcasts:

 The Art of the Spiel | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2582

A brief history of oratory from the Gilded Age to the Era of Trump.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 Lend Me Your Ears: Julius Caesar | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 32

Lend Me Your Ears is a six-part podcast miniseries exploring how Shakespeare’s works have shaped our modern views on politics. Each month, host Isaac Butler will dig into a different Shakespeare play to explore how Shakespeare was responding to his current events, and how they map onto our own.In this first episode, Lend Me Your Ears is looking at one of Shakespeare’s most accessible works: Julius Caesar. Why was the Bard so fascinated with the fall of the Roman Republic? Why do we tend to turn to this play when we worry about society’s future? How have contemporary theater makers reinvented Shakespeare’s version of the story for their audiences, especially in troubled political times?Learn more about Lend Me Your Ears at slate.com/shakespeare

 Getting to Yes | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2169

Yes! John McWhorter on our compact, workaday affirmative.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 The Story of P | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2336

John McWhorter on why the 16th letter of our alphabet is a fancy little thing.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 English Spelling Is a Beautiful Mess | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2194

John McWhorter on why English spelling is so frustratingly idiosyncratic.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 Did the Founding Fathers Have a British Accent? | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2244

John McWhorter on what Washington, Franklin and Hamilton may have sounded like.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 No-Uh! | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2116

John McWhorter on the rise of an exclamatory syllable in English.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 The Inner Workings of Out | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2083

John McWhorter on the rich complexities of a humble preposition.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 Words, For Her | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2129

John McWhorter on the origin of woman, girl and other lady terms.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 What's the Deal with Eleven? | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2704

John McWhorter on the etymology and pronunciation of English numbers.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 There Are Two N-Words | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2123

Like gangster and gangsta, nigger and nigga have become two distinct words.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 The Thing Is Is | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2062

The problem is, is that we sometimes say is twice. Why?Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 An Accidental Sanctity | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2070

Biblical scholar Mark Ward discusses his forthcoming book, Authorized: The Use and Misuse of the King James Bible.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 Thanksgiving Misnomers | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 2183

Turkey? Pumpkin? Squash? They're all mistakes.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

 Sometimes Just Because | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 1941

Language is often at the mercy of pure chance.Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at www.slate.com/podcastsplus. Twitter: @lexiconvalleyFacebook: facebook.com/LexiconValleyEmail: lexiconvalley@slate.com

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