The Language Wars
A History of Proper English
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
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 values-morality, 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.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Hitchings (The Secret Life of Words), theater critic for London's Evening Standard, explores "the history of arguments about English," from Chaucer to Lenny Bruce. There are endless debates over proper usage, but what is proper? The self-appointed guardians of good usage can be irate: "Just ask the language professors who have received hate mail for refusing to take a stand against split infinitives." (Hitchings himself defends the familiar Star Trek opening: "The assonance of to boldly go' is more striking not only because of its rhythm, but also because it's less compressed than that of to go boldly'.") Hitchings examines such topics as dialects, diction, double negatives, word purists, grammatical rules, regional accents, obscenity laws, text messaging, and prescriptive books such as The Elements of Style: "A great deal of what it has to say looks quaint now.... Its continued success owes much to a refusal to be modern." This insightful look at the evolution of English overflows with entertaining historical anecdotes. It also serves as a fine contemporary usage guidebook.
