Who knew that the tale of an ex-Christian missionary’s 30-year relationship with an indigenous Amazonian tribe of hunter-gatherers would result in an extensive dustup with the most famous linguist in the English language? That is the enthralling story told in filmmaker Michael O’Neill’s documentary The Grammar of Happiness, which centers on Daniel Everett, a red-bearded American who initially brought his wife and kids annually to preach to the Pirahã people, a tribe notorious for eschewing outside visitors and influences. Surviving some scary encounters with hostile elders, Everett was eventually accepted by the Pirahã, whose questions about and challenges to his faith ultimately led him to become an atheist. That resulted in Everett’s estrangement from his devout family, and a decision to complete academic work to defend his extraordinary claim that the Pirahã language does not rely on "recursion," i.e., the ability to build sentences within sentences. Everett’s publishing on the subject was immediately dismissed by Noam Chomsky, whose contention that recursion is the basis of language has long been the gold standard in linguistics. Chomsky appears here to refute Everett, although the latter finds defenders at other prestigious universities. Wrapped around this drama is another in which Everett is suddenly denied permission to visit the Pirahã again, perhaps forever. A fascinating documentary that takes viewers from the river bank of a reclusive insular community in South America to the halls of MIT, this is highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (T. Keogh)
The Grammar of Happiness
(2015) 52 min. DVD: $49: public libraries; $99: high schools; $225: colleges & universities. DRA. Green Planet Films. PPR. SDH captioned. Volume 33, Issue 3
The Grammar of Happiness
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
Order From Your Favorite Distributor Today: