Word On The Street: Debunking The Myth Of A Pure Standard EnglishThough there is a contingent of linguists who fight the fact, our language is always changing -- not only through slang, but sound, syntax, and words' meanings as well. Debunking the myth of "pure" standard English, tackling controversial positions, and eschewing politically correct arguments, linguist John McWhorter considers speech patterns and regional accents to demonstrate just how the changes do occur. Wielding reason and humor, McWhorter ultimately explains why we must embrace these changes, ultimately revealing our American English in all its variety, expressiveness, and power. |
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... writing in would not exist for several centuries. The reason we speak the English we speak today is due to nothing other than the ceaseless change that all languages undergo over time. Of course, the change is gradual. For example, here ...
... writing in would not exist for several centuries. The reason we speak the English we speak today is due to nothing other than the ceaseless change that all languages undergo over time. Of course, the change is gradual. For example, here ...
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... Writing, however, is an artificial, conscious activity, and thus it is easy to resist language change in writing. We are taught to do just this, and therefore most written language is an artificial representation, omitting the signs of ...
... Writing, however, is an artificial, conscious activity, and thus it is easy to resist language change in writing. We are taught to do just this, and therefore most written language is an artificial representation, omitting the signs of ...
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... writing his marvelous novels. In writing the libretto to Don Giovanni, Lorenzo da Ponte did not fill the characters' mouths with “Latin of the streets.” Few critics would take Baudelaire to task for the “lazy Latin” of his poetry. Yet ...
... writing his marvelous novels. In writing the libretto to Don Giovanni, Lorenzo da Ponte did not fill the characters' mouths with “Latin of the streets.” Few critics would take Baudelaire to task for the “lazy Latin” of his poetry. Yet ...
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... writing and government! But then, even Old English doesn't lend itself to being treated as “the real English,” because Old English itself was a cover term for a bundle of dialects spoken by the various rough Germanic tribes who sailed ...
... writing and government! But then, even Old English doesn't lend itself to being treated as “the real English,” because Old English itself was a cover term for a bundle of dialects spoken by the various rough Germanic tribes who sailed ...
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Word On The Street: Debunking The Myth Of A Pure Standard English John Mcwhorter Limited preview - 2000 |
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