The Silent Language (Anchor Books)

Arrived in perfect condition and exactly what I ordered! Thanks!

Mr. Hall expounds a couple of key thesis. First, culture is not just the medium of communication. It is a method of communication all on its own. Second, if one "maps" cultural characteristics in ten "primary messaging systems", one can gain insight into the formal, informal, and technical aspects of that culture. Those ten primary messaging systems are: (1) Interaction, (2) association, (3) subsistence, (4) bisexuality, (5) territoriality, (6) temporality, (7) learning, (8) play, (9) defense, and (10) exploitation.This book is indeed somewhat dated, but one can certainly see that the use of this monograph is that it provides a systematic way of analyzing culture. This can be useful when traveling or working abroad. Likewise, one could use these templates to improve ones understanding of his own culture. It is this latter purpose that makes this book relevant today.The Silent Language is short enough to be easily read. However, for the sake of brevity, it sacrifices a more systemic or detailed analysis. As such, the author resorts to a limited amount of anecdotal information to support his framework. Anecdotal information is useful, but some more statistical analysis might be worthwhile. Indeed, one could argue that defining each primary messaging system as a collection of "sets", it would be possible to apply set theory from mathematics to anthropology.While I have trouble believing that culture is a form of communication vice a medium of communication, I will probably use Mr. Hall's framework to analyze the "culture" each job and workplace that I deal with in the future. Likewise, I think anyone who works in management or leadership jobs would find this book useful.

This is a great book for executives

This book may have been important in the 1950's, but it's rather quaint and dated now. It contains many interesting anecdotes about the differences between cultures, but very little of it is systematic or scientific. The idea that other cultures are not like us and that their communication systems are different as a result is not very revolutionary at a time when one can read the blogs of Iranian students on a daily basis.The book lacks rigor. In the third chapter, for example, the author introduces us to a formal concept of "Primary Message Systems" (such as "learning", "play", "territorality", etc), but the concepts aren't carried forward into the rest of the book and the reader is left hanging. Besides, one has to be pretty suspicious of such concepts when it turns out that there are exactly ten - not nine or eleven - of these primary message systems.Many of the anecdotes are interesting and illustrative, but they're mostly limited to the cultures that Hall has experience with; which turns out to be Americans, the Hopis, middle eastern Arabs, the Japanese and one or two others. It would be more interesting to see examples drawn from all over the world. Better would be a systematic comparison of, say, the concept of being on time for a meeting covering a dozen or more cultures. Instead we get only anecdotes about the fact that Arabs and Latin Americans don't find it rude to be an hour late for a meeting while being an hour late infuriates Americans. What about Russians? What about Japanese?The book is dated and this shows one of its biggest flaws. It's hard to read about the American male greeting ritual of pounding each other on the back and exchanging cigars or the American female desire for dominance within her kitchen with a straight face these days. The very fact that culture is transient and changes over time is hardly addressed in the book, but it's one of the most obvious points the 21st century reader takes away from the book.Lastly, Hall tries to keep value judgements out of his comparisons, but fails at the task. Over and again he slips and lets us see his disregard for American culture. Americans are too conscious of time compared to more laid-back cultures. Americans are too strict in their concept of personal space. And so on. Whenever he slips and lets his opinions show, he invariably finds American culture lacking, no matter what it is being compared to.This book is an interesting trip into the mind of a 1950's academic, but it's not very informative on modern culture or modern thought about culture.

The book was delivered quickly and was exactly as described.

Some cultural references are becoming a tiny bit outdated, but still a good and enlightening read.

So far the best book about non-verbal communication that I have ever read. I have bought it several times and given to relatives.

WOW!!! THIS BOOK IS SO AWESOME!!!! HALL WAS TRULY ONE-OF-A-KIND!!! HIS WORK IS EXTRAORDINARY!!! I HAV QUOTED HIS WORK SEVERAL TIMES IN CLASS!!! I CANNOT WAIT TO GET ALL OF HIS WORKS!!!! THANKS AMAZON FOR HAVING HIS COLLECTION IN STOCK!!!

The author breaks down the logic behind non-linguistic communication and different attitudes towards different ideas/concepts.Fine. And interesting from this point of view.But from the practical ... if someone has some cultural experience around the world this book is about the obvious. A lengthy repetition, in multiple ways, about the obvious. And it becomes boring and repetitive.

I first read this for a Poly project as a youngster. Its brilliance is built on what you know, or think you know, but perhaps don't fully appreciate until you are told or have it explained to you. ET Hall is a level above. Have a read, it'll highlight so much, you'll be surprised, and very impressed.

Exactly as described and in the time frame

In spite of its quite old but it's fruitful

The book was obviously old and perhaps had not been stored very well. However it provided the information I needed