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Communicating: The Multiple Modes of Human Communication 3rd Edition

Communicating: The Multiple Modes of Human Communication 3rd Edition by Ruth Finnegan presents a thorough and insightful examination of human communication, transcending the conventional focus on verbal language. Finnegan adeptly delves into the multifaceted aspects of communication, encompassing not only spoken words but also the nuanced realms of gestures, body language, material objects, and the contexts in which these interactions occur. Her approach highlights the intricate and layered nature of human interactions, with a particular emphasis on the significance of non-verbal elements such as facial expressions and sensory experiences. This perspective offers readers a comprehensive and dynamic understanding of communication.

Finnegan’s writing style is both clear and inviting, effectively demystifying complex concepts for a broad audience. Her narrative is enriched by anecdotes and vivid descriptions, making the book as engaging as it is informative. From beginning to end, the text is infused with a depth of material and a keen analytical perspective, showcasing Finnegan’s scholarly acumen and intellectual diligence. Her reflective and inquisitive tone invites readers into a deep exploration of communication’s diverse dimensions. The book’s use of diverse examples, ranging from 20th-century England to 1960s Sierra Leone, underscores Finnegan’s commitment to examining communication across various cultural contexts. This approach, coupled with references to semiotic and structuralist theories, adds theoretical depth to her exploration.

Rather than diving into complex definitions from the outset, Finnegan opts for an experiential approach to communication. This strategy enhances the book’s accessibility and appeal, making it a compelling read for a wide audience. Communicating serves as a foundational text for those deeply interested in the expansive study of human communication. It caters to readers seeking a nuanced and reflective understanding of the term ‘communication’ and its multifaceted nature, especially in relation to broader social and cultural contexts.

Ruth Finnegan’s Communicating stands out as a comprehensive guide to understanding the diverse and complex facets of human communication. Her skillful blending of high-quality writing with in-depth discussion captures the functional value of communication in society, stimulating intellectual curiosity and providing valuable insights into the intricate interactions that define our social fabric.

Pages: 338 | ASIN : B0CKFNP7S1

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Communicating: The Multiple Modes of Human Communication

Treatments of human communication mostly draw on cognitive and word-centred models to present it as predominantly a matter of words. This, Finnegan argues, seriously underestimates the far-reaching multi-modal qualities of human interconnecting and the senses of touch, olfaction, and, above all, audition and vision that we draw on.

In an authoritative and readable account, Ruth Finnegan brings together research from linguistic and sensory anthropology, material culture, non-verbal communication, computer-mediated communication, and, strikingly, research on animal communication, such as the remarkable gesture systems of great apes. She draws on her background in classical studies and her long anthropological experience to present illuminating examples from throughout the world, past and present.

The result is to uncover an amazing array of sounds, sights, smells, gestures, looks, movements, touches, and material objects used by humans and other animals to interconnect both nearby and across space and time.

She goes on to first explore the extra-sensory modes of communication now being revealed in the extraordinary “new science” research and then, in an incendiary conclusion, to deny the long-prevailing story of human history by questioning whether orality really came before literacy; whether it was really through “the acquisition of language” that our prehistoric cave painting ancestors made a sudden leap into being “true humans”; and finally, astonishingly, to ask whether human communicating had its first roots not, after all, in verbal language but something else.

Not to be missed, this highly original book brings a fresh perspective on, among other things, that central topic of interest today – the dawn of human history – and on what being homo sapiens really means. This revised and updated edition has additional illustrations, updated chapters, and a new concluding chapter.

A provocative and controversial account that will stir worldwide debate, this book is an essential transdisciplinary overview for researchers and advanced students in language and communication, anthropology, and cultural studies.

Black Ink Pearl (screenplay)

An epic romance about the naive Irish girl Kate and her mysterious lover, whom she rejects in panic and then spends her life seeking. After the opening rejection, Kate recalls her Irish upbringing, her convent education, and her coolly-controlled professional success, before her tsunami-like realisation beside an African river of the emotions she had concealed from herself and that she passionately and consumingly loved the man she had rejected.

Searching for him she visits the kingdom of beasts, a London restaurant, an old people’s home, back to the misty Donegal Sea, the heavenly archives, Eden, and hell, where at agonising cost she saves her dying love. They walk together toward heaven, but at the gates he walks past leaving her behind in the dust. The gates close behind him. He in turn searches for her and at last finds her in the dust, but to his fury (and renewed hurt) he is not ecstatically recognised and thanked. And the gates are still shut.

On a secret back way to heaven guided by a little beetle, Kate repeatedly saves her still scornful love, but at the very last, despite Kate’s fatal inability with numbers and through an ultimate sacrifice, he saves her from the precipice and they reach heaven. Kate finally realises that although her quest for her love was not vain, in the end she had to find herself – the unexpected pearl.

The novel, born in dreams, is interlaced with the ambiguity between this world and another, and increasingly becomes more poetic, riddling and dreamlike as the story unfolds. The epilogue alludes to the key themes of the novel – the eternity of love and the ambiguity between dream and reality.

Rocker From Heaven – Book Trailer

A story of love as the little angel does everything to save his guitar-playing little sister from the ultimate sin, as she insists on taking her wild music and even wilder love to hell.

Heaven’s Rocker is the most recent volume in the Ruthfinn little angel romances and the prequel to the stunning The Lady and the Dragon.

An intensely moving tale of love and sacrifice, which will surprise you.

©2021- Ruth Finnegan (P)2021 Ruth Finnegan

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Emily and the Monster – Book Trailer

The moving true story, caught by the author from a shining star, of a little girl who died too young. Then, of her bravery as, all alone but for her parents’ love and the kind eyes of a dog, she at last found her way through the thickets in the valley of the shadow of death to heaven. And who do you think was there to welcome her?

©2019 Ruth Finnegan (P)2021 Ruth Finnegan

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BIRDS AND HUMANS: WHO ARE WE?

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Birds and Humans: Who are we? The Miracles of Earth by David Campbell Callender is actually written in the memory and honor of the gentle Irish Naturalist by his granddaughter Ruth Finnigan. She has used the affectionate account and the same photographs as he might’ve used.  Since Ruth is an anthropologist and thus has no expert knowledge of birds, the book deliberately strays away from the use of specialist terminologies and Latin names. The book is a refreshingly different take on the usual encyclopedias about birds; rather, it talks about birds with a child-like fascination.

The book talks about the parallels and contrasts between the world of humans and birds. It draws out the idea that even though we’ve had very different ancestries, with birds being the last living species of dinosaurs and humans sharing ancestry with the apes, there is more in common between the two than one would expect.

While I enjoyed the book and found the information in it to be enlightening, I thought the book could have benefited from formatting, but otherwise the information readers will find within will more than satisfy your curiosity on the subject.

Birds and Humans: Who are we? provides a plethora of facts about birds and does it with an air of enchantment on the subject that I find rare in nonfiction books. The author’s deep connection with the birds is clear and awe-inspiring. I would recommend this book to anyone curious about birds and to readers who are looking for a light but informative book.

Pages: 271

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BIRDS, WHO ARE THEY?: A FIRST LOOK – Book Trailer

Are birds like humans? What are they really like and where did they come from? Are we really so different, or, as parallel species, can both birds and humans join equally in the care of our beautiful world? A preview and reflection on the latest findings about what birds – and we – ultimately are. Prepare to be surprised, illuminated, and delighted.

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Black Inked Pearl: A Girl’s Quest

Black Inked Pearl: A Girl's Quest by [Ruth Finnegan]

The Black Inked Pearl: A Journey of the Soul by Ruth Finnegan takes you on a dream-like adventure, wrapped with a bittersweet, spiritual romance story. The plot of the novel revolves around Kate, who had rejected her lover out of whim, but later undertakes an arduous journey to find him. Her passionate love takes her to unknown lands within and beyond the boundaries of the world. She journeys through heaven and hell to seek her lost lover and encounters some strange characters that assist her in the quest.

In one section of the novel, the author implies a parallel between Kate’s journey and that of Eve’s, rendering a universal appeal to her pursuit. In the end, Kate’s journey gets a greater meaning, as she discovers the pearl of wisdom, metaphorically implying the discovery of her true self.

The storyline is nonlinear but still engaging. There are multiple literary allusions and digressions that aptly blend into the fervor of the romance. The author compels us to dive into a dream-like trance, where we lose track of time, location, and reality.

The author’s use of dream and nightmare as literary tropes leads to a wide variety of settings. Sometimes you are at the wild Atlantic shore, sometimes you are at the dungeon of hell, and then you are standing at the gate of heaven. The settings become picturesque with poetic descriptions and vivid imagery.

The nuances of language make this work stand out from any other contemporary novels you might have read. Written in the vein of Milton or Shakespeare’s poetic art, this novel fuses verse and narrative. The heavy allusions seem to take up larger space in the novel, which I think could have been a smaller portion.

The Black Inked Pearl: A Journey of the Soul would be an enjoyable read for readers who enjoys classic literature, fairytales and mythologies. The story challenges you to break out of the norm of pedestrian fantasy stories and dive deep into the colorful world author Ruth Finnegan has created. I think a grasp of Shakespeare’s sonnets will help readers comprehend the meaning that the author is aiming to convey, but the adventure awaits anyone willing to follow.

The beautiful flow of language, the well-wrought story, the intriguing literary references, and the magical setting leave behind a deep impact in the readers’ mind.

Pages: 286 | ASIN: B0158VRF26

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