Abstract

A human utterance may be graphic, kinesic, or aural, or a combination of these, it may be done with or without bodily extensions, it may use presentational or discursive semiotics, alone or in combinations. Preliminary reflections on this view of human utterance from an evolutionary point of view will be offered.

About the speaker

Professor Adam Kendon is a leading expert in the field of nonverbal communication. Over the course of his academic career he has published numerous articles and books on gesture, language evolution and social coordination that have been foundational to contemporary work on human communication. Prof Kendon completed his PhD at Oxford, and has taught at several universities including Cornell, the University of Pennsylvania, and University College London. He is currently affiliated to the Department of Archeology and Anthropology at the University of Cambridge.