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The Essential Chomsky

by Noam Chomsky, Anthony Arnove (Editor)

4.13 of 5 stars 4.13 · rating details · 327 ratings · 21 reviews

In a single volume, the seminal writings of the world's leading philosopher, linguist, and critic, published to coincide with his eightieth birthday.
For the past forty years Noam Chomsky's writings on politics and language have established him as a preeminent public intellectual and as one of the most original and wide-ranging political and social critics of our time. Amo...more

Paperback, 515 pages

Published February 12th 2008 by New Press, The (first published March 1st 2000)

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Dec 02, 2010 Clif rated it 4 of 5 stars

Noam Chomsky is known for two things - his studies in linguistics and his stand on the workings of political power, specifically that of the United States in world affairs, but also in domestic affairs.

This book is a collection of his writings in both capacities over the years, starting in 1959 and ending in 2006.

Whatever the topic, he writes well. I was pleasantly surprised to find I could follow all but one of the articles on language. He proposes that humans have a mental organ for language....more Noam Chomsky is known for two things - his studies in linguistics and his stand on the workings of political power, specifically that of the United States in world affairs, but also in domestic affairs.

This book is a collection of his writings in both capacities over the years, starting in 1959 and ending in 2006.

Whatever the topic, he writes well. I was pleasantly surprised to find I could follow all but one of the articles on language. He proposes that humans have a mental organ for language. Though it doesn't stand out physically as organs such as the liver or the stomach do, it nonetheless is a specialized aspect of the brain that allows us as small children to pick up rapidly whatever particular language we hear spoken. He is the first to admit that knowledge of this function of the brain is not far along yet but the little that can be said about it is remarkable. He mentions the fact that a small child can become fluent in a language long before it can even begin to understand mathematics because of the possession of a universal grammar that will immediately adapt to any specific language.

Questions related to this are - how could such an inbuilt capacity for language evolve? Is spoken language like a virus which, though it has no physical form like a true virus, infects us? He also discusses the "mind-body" problem, that is, are the mind and body two distinct things with one physical and the other spiritual as was once thought, or different manifestations of the body? This gets into Newton's discoveries that ended the purely physical world of material contact (because it introduced the gravitational force). These fascinating thoughts prompted me to look for more of his thoughts on language. In other words, this book is a teaser.

On politics, Chomsky is a relentless critic of what I would call nationalistic nonsense - comforting lies that we are told and that our leaders tell themselves about our benevolence that disguise the real motivation for dominating the world. Chomsky asserts that the United States is no exception to the rule of empire that has long been established - that we as a nation are as careless and dismissive of the values we hold when it comes to our relations with other countries and the treatment of foreign peoples as any other world power in history.

What makes his argument so powerful is his careful recitation of facts. Far from expecting the reader to take him at his word, he provides the quotes, the documented incidents and the history of events that substantiate what he has to say. It's hard to disagree with him when he provides a quote from a president or politician that directly supports his thesis. I was continually amazed at his detail knowledge, not only of obscure publications but of moments in history that many of us would never go back to, as he does, for discovery of the origin of an idea.

In this book you will get a good idea of what drove disastrous American adventures from Vietnam to Iraq with some meaty material (news to me) on U.S. involvement in the slaughter conducted in East Timor by Indonesia. Along the way is quite a bit of material about the U.S. throwing its weight around in Central America. Chomsky makes a good case that we live in a world of platitudes, self-righteousness and hypocrisy that sacrifices countless lives abroad and the lives of our own soldiers in moves to secure the obedience and participation of the nations of the world in our own grand scheme. We have absolutely no reason for self satisfaction. It was foolish to believe that the elimination of the USSR would bring a more peaceful world. Power will have its way.

To Chomsky, the role of the intellectual is to do as he is doing - be vigilant and exacting in presenting the reality of what the nation does, in spite of the opprobrium it must bring. Intellectuals are the guardians of the truth, contradicting the inevitable spin given to us by our leaders. As he is the first to point out, intellectuals are more commonly fawning servants of the state if not forceful advocates of force, wielding power and justifying the exercise of it rather than respecting laws or rights. Think of the neo-cons in the Bush administration and you get the picture.

This book is a good read. There are no really long articles, but you have to pay attention to details because they come thick and fast. No dozing or multi-tasking allowed if you want to get anything from Professor Noam Chomsky.(less)

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Aug 17, 2012 Sasha rated it 3 of 5 stars

I always have a high regard for his position on sensitive subject matters like religion and socio-political issues but when I started tackling on this upset man's published collection of thoughts although without fail, he hits the nail on the head on highlighting the malfunctions of the society and the material was very articulate and well-thought, there was a struggle in his engaged command of writing with the reader. I found it a bore of a read and the material was not approachable. I vehement...more

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Oct 15, 2010 Dave rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, history, politics

“The Essential Chomsky” is a collection of 25 pieces of writing from Noam Chomsky from the first piece, a critical review of “Verbal Behavior” by B. F. Skinner published in 1959 in the journal “Language” to Chomsky’s afterword from “Failed States: The Abuse of Power and the Assault on Democracy” from 2006. Chomsky is best known in two areas, one being his career as a linguist, and the other for his outspoken liberal views in which he holds the United States and the West to the same standard whic...more “The Essential Chomsky” is a collection of 25 pieces of writing from Noam Chomsky from the first piece, a critical review of “Verbal Behavior” by B. F. Skinner published in 1959 in the journal “Language” to Chomsky’s afterword from “Failed States: The Abuse of Power and the Assault on Democracy” from 2006. Chomsky is best known in two areas, one being his career as a linguist, and the other for his outspoken liberal views in which he holds the United States and the West to the same standard which others hold the rest of the world, and there are examples of both contained in this collection edited by Anthony Arnove, who has also written on current affairs.

Arnove makes a good choice in starting with Chomsky’s review of “Verbal Behavior”; because Chomsky’s skillful dissecting of Skinner’s work clearly demonstrates the way Chomsky’s mind works as well as the thoroughness with which he examines every subject. It also is a good choice because one avoids any political bias when reading it. With his political pieces, of course such emotional attachments to one’s position exist, and so it would be much more difficult to set a baseline with one of those pieces.

When looking at the political pieces, Chomsky uses the same logic and thorough examination tactics that he used in his review, and that he also brings to the other writings on linguistics, with varying levels of effectiveness. For example, his brief look at the war crimes committed by the Allies in World War II fails to work for me in some of key areas: he seems to ignore the fact that there are issues with almost all tactics used in war, and the inherent immorality of war; he fails to deal with the reality that
Germany and Japan were both trying to develop nuclear weapons and so there was a need to end the war before they were successful; he fails to deal with the reality that Japan was teaching their “civilians” to fight against the invaders, which then calls into question whether or not they would be considered “civilians” or “enemy combatants”.

That being said, I believe he is right to discuss these issues, because tactics like firebombing, and using nuclear weapons should never go unquestioned, and while one may be able to justify some events, other events may be questionable. Dresden in particular is one event which has caused great debate over the years, and undoubtedly still will for some time to come.

Chomsky’s more thorough look at Vietnam and events since then is far more devastating to the perception of the U.S. and the West than the discussion of World War II. Chomsky meticulously looks at the statements made by our leaders as to why we were involved in these conflicts, and systematically eliminates those which can be shown to be false, leaving behind a rather unappealing reality of what has motivated the U.S. government over the years. Of course, one has to read these sections carefully as well, but here Chomsky offers alternative behaviors which may have had a significant impact on the situation in the world today.

The linguistic sections are also quite good, but many of them are fairly advanced and in some cases require re-reading to fully comprehend the discussion. “Language and the Brain”, for example, is a wonderful look at what is perhaps the most amazing function of the brain, i.e. the capacity to take a grammar and to utilize it unlimited ways to communicate with others. Even if you don’t like Chomsky’s very liberal views on politics, it is articles like this that make reading this book worthwhile.

Whether you are interested in his works on Linguistics, or those of a political nature, Chomsky is fairly consistent in providing a dispassionate discussion of the subject. Of course, his political views might irritate or even infuriate the reader at times, but he never relies on personal attacks or other cheap tactics and instead he stays focused on the subject under discussion. I have always enjoyed reading Chomsky, because he often challenges my views, and forces me to rethink my positions to make sure they have a solid rational foundation and are not built on emotion or personal biases.

This is a very good book, but of course as it provides a little bit on a large variety of subjects, it doesn’t have the depth on any particular subject. Still, it does give the reader an indication of where to go for more with regards to the pieces provided, and then also includes a good bibliography of Chomsky’s works.
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Jun 11, 2012 Steve Gripp rated it 4 of 5 stars

I'm a liberal, so I felt compelled to read him, since I've watched docs on him, as well as speeches, and I know he represents the "high-end intellectual left." Indeed, he is brilliant, but I can see why some people call him a radical, if not being so hastily judgmental, an anarchist. Some of his earlier works were provocations to radical thinking, but his later stuff really set the tone for geopolitics, albeit recalcitrant in some aspects. I wonder how he lives, though, in a capitalist society,...more

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Sep 06, 2011 Matty rated it 5 of 5 stars

Very interesting to read this immediately after The Pale King and its elevator conversation (section 19 perhaps?). Chomsky's vitriol at the government for our Vietnam involvement was almost surely appropriate, but did criticism like Chomsky's mark our society's abandonment of the greater good, as DFW's character suggests while trapped in the elevator? Did the disgust triggered by Vietnam lead us to concern ourselves only with the self? Was it the first step towards our behavioral takeover by cor...more

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Sep 21, 2009 Aaron rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: politics

“The Essential Noam Chomsky” is a 413-page powerhouse of a book, a gripping, consciousness-raising tour of the landscape of the mind of Chomsky, Institute Professor of linguistics at MIT, whose most publicly well-known works expose the hegemonic thrust of United States foreign and domestic policy and all its attendant infrastructure of propaganda and unchallenged assumptions constructed by government and corporate officials, media personnel and so-called experts in academia.
To read this book is...more

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Dec 30, 2010 Zach Cohen rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a collection of some of Chomsky's most influential essays and articles, covering a wide range of topics from the role of intellectuals in the US, US foreign policy, Israel/Palestine, Anarchism, social movements, and a sampling of his linguistics work. Chomsky is one of the most profound and insightful social critics of our time, and this is a decent overview of his work.

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Feb 14, 2013 Spencer rated it 4 of 5 stars

For a noted linguist, the guy sure has some terrible sentences. But, to be fair, this is only true of his essays on language, which were probably written primarily for language scholars. The political essays are the some of the most amazing leftist critiques of US policy and big business ever committed to print.

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Jan 30, 2013 Callie rated it 5 of 5 stars

If you haven't read this, you're missing out.

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Jul 08, 2012 Fenyoaee rated it 5 of 5 stars

We need more "Noam Chomsky"s of the world!

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Apr 27, 2011 John Wojewoda rated it 5 of 5 stars

An excellent understanding of the modern world.

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Mar 22, 2013 Carl rated it 2 of 5 stars

At MRX, essays of Chomsky.

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Sep 04, 2010 Michael rated it 3 of 5 stars

Essay selection and presentation could've been improved by organizing by subject matter.

As for content, Chomsky has interesting ideas that are worth articulating; but, he could of used more academic rigor and simpler phrasing. (The latter point improves as he gets older.) However, in most cases, his writings could have been distilled to half their wording.

All this aside, hooray for intellectual snobbery!

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Jan 09, 2011 Dinochunks01 rated it 2 of 5 stars

I was wondering who, besides the late William F. Buckley, Jr.,would be able to hold my attention in well thought, nuanced, yet decisive essays. Taking the cue from Bill Hick's line "I'm like Noam Chomsky with dick jokes". Being a fan of the late Bill Hicks, I had to see if my local small town library in little redneck, reactionary Mchenry had Noam Chomsky books. Slow going, but meaty and well cited.

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Feb 15, 2013 Jess Tait rated it 4 of 5 stars

Am glad I read this as I feel I have developed real insight into world events that I didn't have before. It was hard at times, due to seething anger at US foreign policy with the turning of each page, but I'll definitely be reading more Chomsky.

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May 19, 2009 Jonathan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

At the very least, read "Imperial Grand Strategy" (excerpted here from Hegemony or Survival) if you haven't done so.

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Dec 24, 2012 Duncan O'neill rated it 2 of 5 stars

Pretty much unreadable. I gave up. His style is so ... convoluted, huge dense sentences with sub-clauses all over the place. He may have interesting things to say, but he's not a very good or clear writer. Compare this stuff with Orwell.

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Jan 29, 2008 Suze rated it 5 of 5 stars

it was a little dense for my pre-espresso morning tub reading. or maybe i was a little dense? after the espresso kicked in, though...

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Jul 14, 2008 Kathy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Brilliant thinker. He has become famous for his radical politics and his groundbreaking work in linguistics.

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Nov 28, 2012 Lola Beltrán Villamizar rated it 4 of 5 stars

Must read.

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Aug 13, 2012 Kyle Brennan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

An excellent compilation of some of Chomsky's best pieces.

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Jul 05, 2009 Brian added it

loved it at the time when I was young and stupid. what I learned was the Political Left hates America and wants us who love it, dead.

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May 20, 2013 Alex marked it as to-read

May 20, 2013 Juju is currently reading it · review of another edition

May 19, 2013 Skander Mabrouk rated it 4 of 5 stars

May 19, 2013 Iliana marked it as to-read

Shelves: own

May 18, 2013 Suraj Roy added it

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May 16, 2013 Denver Alderson marked it as to-read

Shelves: wish-list

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About Noam Chomsky

Avram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, political activist, author, and lecturer. He is an Institute Professor and professor emeritus of linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Chomsky is credited with the creation of the theory of generative grammar, considered to be one of the most significant contributions to the field of linguistics made in the 20th century. H...more

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“The only debatable issue, it seems to me, is whether it is more ridiculous to turn to experts in social theory for general well-confirmed propositions, or to the specialists in the great religions and philosophical systems for insights into fundamental human values.” — 6 people liked it

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