The phenomenon of absolutist, prescriptive correctness is persistent and pervasive in the linguistic through of educated and intelligent citizens of the United States. This volume is not only and attempt to gain some understanding of the source, nature, and operation of the prescriptive attitude, but also to examine it in the light of what Einar Haugen (1972) has called the 'ecology of language', that is, the relationship between language attitudes and other social and cultural behavior.
In English with an Accent Rosina Lippi-Green examines American attitudes towards language, exposing the way in which language is used to maintain and perpetuate social structures.
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/
A comprehensive account of essential periods and areas of research in the history of American Linguistics which addresses contemporary debates and issues within linguistics.
This study examines the effect of race-consciousness upon the pronunciation of American English and upon the ideology of standardization in the twentieth century. It shows how the discourses of prescriptivist pronunciation, the xenophobic reaction against immigration to the eastern metropolises- especially New York - and the closing of the western frontier together constructed an image of the American West and Midwest as the locus of proper speech and ethnicity. This study is of interest to scholars and students in linguistics, American studies, cultural studies, Jewish studies, and studies in race, class, and gender.
Throughout this analytical book the idea is developed that theories of language do not transcend the language in which they are written, and ways are uncovered that are peculiar to the American-language linguistic tradition.
The first edition of ELL (1993, Ron Asher, Editor) was hailed as "the field's standard reference work for a generation". Now the all-new second edition matches ELL's comprehensiveness and high quality, expanded for a new generation, while being the first encyclopedia to really exploit the multimedia potential of linguistics. * The most authoritative, up-to-date, comprehensive, and international reference source in its field * An entirely new work, with new editors, new authors, new topics and newly commissioned articles with a handful of classic articles * The first Encyclopedia to exploit the multimedia potential of linguistics through the online edition * Ground-breaking and International in scope and approach * Alphabetically arranged with extensive cross-referencing * Available in print and online, priced separately. The online version will include updates as subjects develop ELL2 includes: * c. 7,500,000 words * c. 11,000 pages * c. 3,000 articles * c. 1,500 figures: 130 halftones and 150 colour * Supplementary audio, video and text files online * c. 3,500 glossary definitions * c. 39,000 references * Extensive list of commonly used abbreviations * List of languages of the world (including information on no. of speakers, language family, etc.) * Approximately 700 biographical entries (now includes contemporary linguists) * 200 language maps in print and online Also available online via ScienceDirect – featuring extensive browsing, searching, and internal cross-referencing between articles in the work, plus dynamic linking to journal articles and abstract databases, making navigation flexible and easy. For more information, pricing options and availability visit www.info.sciencedirect.com. The first Encyclopedia to exploit the multimedia potential of linguistics Ground-breaking in scope - wider than any predecessor An invaluable resource for researchers, academics, students and professionals in the fields of: linguistics, anthropology, education, psychology, language acquisition, language pathology, cognitive science, sociology, the law, the media, medicine & computer science. The most authoritative, up-to-date, comprehensive, and international reference source in its field
The volume presents an innovative approach to studies in Late Modern English by giving attention to variation and change in varieties of English on both sides of the Atlantic. As new corpora become available, scholarly interests broaden their horizons to encompass varieties, the history of which has only just begun to be investigated, and which are likely to yield significant findings. The contributors, whose long experience in the field of English historical linguistics ensures in-depth investigations, employ state-of-the-art tools for the analysis of specific phenomena and to set these in the light of a more encompassing framework concerning different text types and sociolinguistic considerations. While usage guides and dictionaries prove remarkable in their contribution to the definition of what is (not) acceptable in specific social circles, the language of ordinary users also takes centre stage in studies of correspondence, journals and travelogues. The volume is expected to appeal to scholars and students interested in the linguistic history of English as seen in contexts on which – until now – relatively little light has been shed.
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.
