The Language Wars: A History of Proper English Hardcover – 25 October 2011
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The English language is a battlefield. Since the age of Shakespeare, arguments over correct usage have been bitter, and have always really been about contesting valuesmorality, politics, and class. The Language Wars examines the present state of the conflict, its history, and its future. Above all, it uses the past as a way of illuminating the present. Moving chronologically, the book explores the most persistent issues to do with English and unpacks the history of proper usage. Where did these ideas spring from? Who has been on the front lines in the language wars?
The Language Wars examines grammar rules, regional accents, swearing, spelling, dictionaries, political correctness, and the role of electronic media in reshaping language. It also takes a look at such details as the split infinitive, elocution, and text messaging. Peopled with intriguing characters such as Jonathan Swift, Lewis Carroll, and Lenny Bruce, The Language Wars is an essential volume for anyone interested in the state of the English language today or its future.
- Print length408 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- Publication date25 October 2011
- ISBN-100374183295
- ISBN-13978-0374183295
Product description
About the Author
Henry Hitchings was born in 1974. He is the author of The Secret Life of Words, Whos Afraid of Jane Austen?, and Defining the World. He has contributed to many newspapers and magazines and is the theater critic for the London Evening Standard.
Product details
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 408 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0374183295
- ISBN-13 : 978-0374183295
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Merci
The English language now has a long and storied history stretching back several centuries. Hitchings traces that history, including some of the contributions of authors such as Chaucer and Shakespeare, in this superb volume. He discusses how the language changed across those long stretches of time and looks at the standardization process that took place. Also discussed are how English changed with social change and lists some of the values in the core English-speaking countries that helped shape the language.
We have all been in debates about spelling, pronunciation, and punctuation--Hitchings examines these usage topics and also touches on the topics of the split infinitive, slang, censorship, profanity, and more. The author also discusses dialects--an area of language that interests just about everyone and ends up sparking many friendly debates, as I learned when I moved from Michigan to Texas in the seventh grade.
Near the end of the volume Hitchings looks at the spread of English around the world, notes the effect that current technology has on language, and even offers a couple of predictions on what may happen in English in the future. Any English speaker with a keen interest in language would enjoy "The Language Wars."