Things That Are (Said) and Things That Are Not: A brief look at the ideological context of the Basque language

Naroa Anabitarte

Things that are (said), and things that are not: A look at the ideological context of Basque language offers an original revision of the social diachrony of Basque as based on the work of reputed scholar Michael Billig and his groundbreaking perspective: Rhetorical Psychology. The manuscript reflects on the ideological context of the Basque language from a social psychology and rhetorical approach.

Michael Billig’s work has made a significant impact on the social sciences in general— and social psychology in particular— by emphasizing human argumentative thinking and placing “inner thinking” within public debate. It is in this application of Billig’s theories into the Basque language (and identity) that Anabitarte’s work becomes relevant. In that line, the book offers a creative and fresh analysis of the current social position of Basque framed in the rhetorical argumentative context. The new perspective Anabitarte has opted for allows her to shift traditional approaches to quantitative data interpretation while underscoring the importance of rhetoric as an approach to the analysis of identity and language.