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The alphabet versus the goddess : the conflict between word and image
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The alphabet versus the goddess : the conflict between word and image

by Leonard Shlain

This study analyses how literacy fostered left-brain dominance, contributing to the rise of patriarchy and the decline of feminine values. It tracks the historical impact of the alphabet and the modern resurgence of visual media in restoring cognitive and social balance.

Accession 5172 ISBN 9780670878833 Publisher Viking
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TAGS
Curated Derived
Communication Culture Education Family and Society Linguistics Social Sciences Writing
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2026-06-01 16:44
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LOCATION HISTORY
M:N3:30 6 Current vertical
2 weeks ago
Book Location
Updated 1 week, 1 day ago
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Identity

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The alphabet versus the goddess : the conflict between word and image
vernon_id
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5172
vernon_slug
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Drives Pulse state

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isbn_issn→ isbn (when valid)
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Descriptive

production_date
1998
object_type
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object_status
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brief_description
"Literacy has promoted the subjugation of women by men throughout all but the very recent history of the West," writes Leonard Shlain. "Misogyny and patriarchy rise and fall with the fortunes of the alphabetic written word." That's a pretty audacious claim, one that The Alphabet Versus the Goddess provides extensive historical and cultural correlations to support. Shlain's thesis takes readers from the evolutionary steps that distinguish the human brain from that of the primates to the development of the Internet. The very act of learning written language, he argues, exercises the human brain's left hemisphere--the half that handles linear, abstract thought--and enforces its dominance over the right hemisphere, which thinks holistically and visually. If you accept the idea that linear abstraction is a masculine trait, and that holistic visualization is feminine, the rest of the theory falls into place. The flip side is that as visual orientation returns to prominence within society through film, television, and cyberspace, the status of women increases, soon to return to the equilibrium of the earliest human cultures. Shlain wisely presents this view of history as plausible rather than definite, but whether you agree with his wide-ranging speculations or not, he provides readers eager to "understand it all" with much to consider. --Ron Hogan

Subjects & people

authors→ author (initial fill only)
Leonard Shlain
tags→ tags
Psychology, Social sciences, Civilisation, Sociology, Emotions, Writing, Language and languages, Communication, Power (Social sciences), Education, Alphabet, Writing systems, Male domination (Social structure), Aversion, Misogyny, Misanthropy, Hate, Literacy
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Topics and Themes