This volume explores both historical and current issues in English usage guides or style manuals. Chapters look at how and why these guides are compiled, and by whom; what sort of advice they contain; how they differ from grammars and dictionaries; and how attitudes to usage have changed.
The Broadview Guide to Writing is a concise yet uncommonly thorough text with a fresh approach to the craft of essay writing. The first part of the book discusses the style and structure of essay writing, and includes a useful discussion of the intangibles involved in the writing process—such as confidence, perseverance, and a willingness to deal with criticism constructively. The second part of the book provides thorough coverage of grammar and usage in a comprehensive reference guide, ranging from the simplest mechanical issues (such as subject verb agreement) to subtle distinctions between words that have similar meanings. A wide range of examples is included throughout the book. The fourth edition has been extensively updated and now incorporates the 2008 changes to MLA Style guidelines for documentation. Particular attention is paid throughout to the needs of Canadian students.
The bestselling workbook and grammar guide, revised and updated! Hailed as one of the best books around for teaching grammar, The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation includes easy-to-understand rules, abundant examples, dozens of reproducible quizzes, and pre- and post-tests to help teach grammar to middle and high schoolers, college students, ESL students, homeschoolers, and more. This concise, entertaining workbook makes learning English grammar and usage simple and fun. This updated 12th edition reflects the latest updates to English usage and grammar, and includes answers to all reproducible quizzes to facilitate self-assessment and learning. Clear and concise, with easy-to-follow explanations, offering "just the facts" on English grammar, punctuation, and usage Fully updated to reflect the latest rules, along with even more quizzes and pre- and post-tests to help teach grammar Ideal for students from seventh grade through adulthood in the US and abroad For anyone who wants to understand the major rules and subtle guidelines of English grammar and usage, The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation offers comprehensive, straightforward instruction.
Describing Prescriptivism provides a topical and thought-provoking analysis of linguistic prescriptivism in British and American English, from a historical as well as present-day perspective. Focusing on usage guides and usage problems, the book takes a three-fold approach to present an in-depth analysis of the topic, featuring: a detailed study of the advice provided in usage guides over the years; an authoritative comparison of this advice with actual usage as recorded in British and American corpora, including the HUGE (Hyper Usage Guide of English) database – developed specifically to enable this line of study – as well as more mainstream corpora such as COCA, COHA and the BNC; a close analysis of the attitudes to particular usage problems among the general public, based on surveys distributed online through the "Bridging the Unbridgeable" research project’s blog.* With extensive case studies to illustrate and support claims throughout, this comprehensive study is key reading for students and researchers of prescriptivism, the history of English and sociolinguistics. *Found at https://bridgingtheunbridgeable.com/
The Broadview Guide to Writing is a concise yet uncommonly thorough text with a fresh approach to the craft of essay writing. The first part of the book discusses the style and structure of essay writing, and includes a useful discussion of the intangibles involved in the writing process—such as confidence, perseverance, and a willingness to deal with criticism constructively. The second part of the book provides thorough coverage of grammar and usage in a comprehensive reference guide, ranging from the simplest mechanical issues (such as subject verb agreement) to subtle distinctions between words that have similar meanings. A wide range of examples is included throughout the book. The fifth edition incorporates the 2008 changes to MLA Style guidelines for documentation and includes a number of other changes that make it far better suited than previous editions to the needs of American writers in the twenty-first century.
Increasingly, writing handbooks are seen as over-produced and overpriced. One stands out: The Broadview Guide to Writing is published in an elegant but simple format, and sells for roughly half the price of its fancier-looking competitors. For the sixth edition the coverage of MLA, APA, Chicago, and CSE styles of documentation has been substantially expanded as well as updated. Also expanded is coverage of academic argument; of writing and critical thinking; of writing about literature, of paragraphing; of how to integrate quoted material into one’s own work; of balance and parallelism; and of issues of gender, race, religion etc. in writing. The chapter “Seeing and Meaning: Reading (and Writing About) Visual Images” is entirely new. The online materials—including the selection of interactive exercises—have also been revised considerably.
For the seventh edition, The Broadview Guide to Writing has been reorganized into three broad sections (writing processes, writing mechanics, and writing contexts). The material on argument has been expanded and revised; two new sample essays in MLA style have been added; and the material on researching and writing academic essays has been fully rewritten. Coverage of informal and personal writing is included for the first time. Features • Extensive treatment of research methods, and of argument • In-depth coverage of MLA and other citation styles • Wide-ranging treatment of writing styles in different academic disciplines • Focused coverage of issues specific to those whose native language is not English • A full chapter on language issues relating to gender, race, class, religion, sexual orientation, disability, etc. • Companion website featuring a wide range of interactive exercises