institute of General Semantics 86 85th Street Brooklyn, NY 11209-4208 USA General Semantics Seminar 1937 Transcription of Notes From Lectures in General Semantics Given at Olivet College By Alfred Korzybski Third Edition Edited by Homer J. Moore, Jr. Institute of General Semantics Brooklyn, New YorkGeneral Semantics Seminar 1937, Third Edition by Alfred Korzybski Copyright © 2002 by Institute of General Semantics First Edition 1937 Second Edition 1964, Edited by Edward L. Gates All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmit ted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanial including photo- copying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system without prior permission from the publisher, except for bricf quotations in an arti- cle or review, Publisher’s Catalogue in Publication Data Korzybski, Alfred General semantics seminar 1937 transcription of notes from lectures in general semantics given at Olivet College / Alfred Korzybski - Third ed. Institute of General Semantics © 2002 xi, 237 p. ISBN 0-910780-15-3 (paperback: acid free paper) LC Card Number: 2002105268 1. General semantics. 2. Applied Psychology. 3. Practical Philoso- phy. 4. Behavioral Science I. Title. II. Korzybski, Alfred LC Classification # B820 Dewey Decimal Classification 149.94 Cover Design by Edward Dawson If you would like more information on the Institute of General Semantics and its programs and publications, or would like to support its work with a contribution, please contact us: Institute of General Semantics Phone: 718-921-7093 86 85th Street Fax: 718-921-4276 Brooklyn, New York 11209-4208. Email: institute@general-scmantics.org USA Web: www.general-semantics.org, Leading a Revolution in Human Evaluating™FOREWORD TO THE THIRD EDITION Ifred Korzybski wrote Manhood of Humanity after his experiences in World War I. At that time, he posited that “the World War mark[ed] ... the end of Humanity’s Childhood and the beginning of Humanity’s Manhood”. However, when I look around at the world’s situation as we begin the Twenty- first Century, this scems too optimistic to me. Albanians, Croats, and Serbs are carrying on ethnic- based civil war in the Balkans. In the Middle East, the ‘peace process’ between the Palestinians and the Israelis seems to have totally broken down, with deaths on both sides occurring weekly. In Iraq, Kurdish and Shi’ite populations face military attacks, and Saddam Hussein continues to make threatening moves against Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the U.S. planes patrolling the “no-fly zone”. In Africa, Rebels from the southern portion of Sudan fight government troops from the north, while AIDS and famine affect most of the continent. In the United States, in the two years since the Columbine Shooting, over forty school shooting incidents have occurred. Etc., etc. It seems to me that we have entered the “Teen-hood of Humanity”, at best. It secms evident to me that the need for Korzybski’s insights has never been greater. In light of this, the Institute of General Semantics presents this [iii]