26/09/2011 - Coursework:

Language intervention. 

1) You have to intervene in a language debate,

2) You have to make it accessible to a non-specialist audience.

This coursework is 1200 words and is expected to be of 'publishable quality'. It counts for 20% of your grade.

The language investigation is 2500 words and is based on analysis of spoken language, again 20%.

Revision test:

Name the 4 types of nouns:
Abstract - e.g., love.
Concrete - e.g., table.
Proper - e.g., England.
Collective - e.g., herd.

Use 'blue' as an attributive & predicative noun.
1) The blue sky. (attributive)
2) The sky is blue. (predicative.)

Add 2 adverbs of manner to the sentence: she ran the race.
She deliberately ran the race quickly.
 

Write these adjectives in their comparative forms:
Bright = brighter.
Fast = faster.
Expensive = more expensive.
Slowly = more slowly.

The present participle of the verb 'to shop'.

shopping.

The past participle of 'to freeze'.

Frozen.

Why are participles so versatile?

Because they can be used as verbs, adjectives and nouns.

What is the difference between the 'simple past tense' and the 'perfect present' tense?

The simple past tense shows a completed action, when using the perfect present tense, there's an implication that the action may not be completed. 

Epistemic and Deontic modal auxiliaries:

Epistemic auxiliaries show a level of certainty, e.g., may, might, could.

Deontic auxiliaries show permission or obligation, e.g., should, can. 

What I found most interesting about the different sorts of dictionaries

The thing that I found most interesting is the development of dictionaries over time and the influence they have had on the use of the English language, I dread to think about how people would communicate now if it wasn't for the development of the language and sophistication of dictionaries. 

I think without dictionaries, language use would probably resemble the origins of English, the old English, the uncomprehensible English - it wouldn't be as rich as it is now, that's for sure.

I need to learn more about the history of dictionaries as I don't think I've researched enough but language change is definitely an interesting thing to study. 

For the prescriptivism vs descriptivism homework post, look below. :)

Descriptivists v Prescriptivists.

A prescriptivist (a person who creates or encourages following language rules that try to control how people write and talk).

A descriptivist is someone who uses language to describe how it is.


-Language is constantly changing and becoming more informal.
-If American English continues to flout the rules of syntax and grammar, it'll sow the seeds of it's own destruction.
-Language could disintigrate further.
-Language is described as unhealthy, poor, sad, depressing and fairly hopeless.
-American English has always been influential.
-The OED is based on American English.
-Language is influenced all the time, mainly by the media.

'Descriptivists (like dictionary makers) are content to describe language as it changes.'

'Prescriptivists like 'Simon' (The boss of OED in NY) believe you need prescribed rules to preserve language.'

'Discriptive linguists are a curse against their race' -says that they're uneducated.

Descriptivists describe their language use as 'non-standard'

'Language change happens and there's nothing you can do about it'

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My view on descriptivists v prescriptivists: I think that it's right for language to be preserved to some extent, but you must allow for language change, especially as technology develops, there needs to be introductions of new words in order to label new inventions, language change is vital for socio-economic change, all the changes which occur in the world need to be described somehow. As for the quote 'Discriptive linguists are a curse against their race' - I think it's unethical to say something like that, everyone is entitled to believe in what they want to. Personally I believe that descriptivistism is the way forward although there needs to be some sort of preservation in order to keep the language pure and not lose it's latin roots which have made the English language so beautiful.

Dictionaries creative writing task:

What you selected and why?

• The first ever dictionary - it was an important event in the history of dictionaries.
• Use of language prior to the introduction of dictionaries- to show the impact that dictionaries had in society.
• Introduction of respect of the English language - accuracy became important.
• The 2nd dictionary - The Table Alphabeticall - to show advancements in dictionaries.
• The influence of Samuel Johnson - He outlined the layout of dictionaries that we all know today, all subsequent dictionaries have been made the same way as the one produced by Samuel Johnson.
• Oxford English Dictionary - It is the most respected English dictionary in existance, first produced in 1879 - since then, incredible advancements have been made, it's now available online and it's more accessible.

How you made it an article - style / techniques to engage the reader:

• Rhetorical question.
• 2nd person pronouns.
• Variation of sentence structure.
• Eye catching heading.
• Image of dictionaries to reinforce subject.
• Repetition of  'English'.
• Clearly defined paragraphs.
• Full of facts.

What you found most interesting.

Personally, I found the development of  dictionaries interesting because they have come so far since the beginning of production -ranging from just a compilation of words, which wasn't really accessible to anyone - to the likes of The Oxford English Dictionary which is easy to navigate through, is full of information and above all, it's easy to use.

Techniques to grab the reader's attention.

• Abstract nouns.
• 2nd person pronouns.
• Infinities.
• Emotive language.
• Rhetorical questions.
• Eye catching headlines.
• Varied sentence structures.
• Interrogatives.
• Exclamatories.
• Imperatives.
• Declaratives.
• Figurative language.
• Metaphors.
• Onomatopiea.
• Personification.

Dictionaries creative writing.

Have dictionaries always played a vital part in your life? Little do you know, they have actually been around for hundreds of years. Dictionaries were first introduced in 1582 – it was written by Richard Mulcaster who aimed to make the English language more accessible and respected in society.

Prior to the first dictionary, the use of the English language and spelling of words had no importance; it was simply a means of communication within an area and often wasn't used accurately. The compilation of words from the English language in one place was something of great significance at the time of production which lead to many advancements in the English language.

Inhabitants of England started to respect their language, the language developed over time, new words were introduced, meanings changed and language has become more sophisticated over time. Dictionaries meant that people started to value coherent expression and correct spellings, the changes in the values in society concerning language use were revolutionary.


Since the introduction of the first dictionary in 1582, Robert Cawdery compiled the first alphabetical dictionary which came about in 1604 and was titled 'Table Alphabeticall' - it contained about 3000 words and was something of amazement at the time of publication.


Dictionaries started becoming more prominent in society and increasingly influential in 1755, when Samuel Johnson created a dictionary which contained 40,000 words - his style influenced all subsequent dictionaries - In his dictionary, he listed the history of each word that was listed, showing all previous meanings and the origins of words; despite this dictionary being of great importance in society at the time, it was heavily criticized because it contained a lot of big words that people found hard to understand - at this time the intelligence of the English speaking population wasn't as advanced as it is in the modern day. 


In the history of dictionaries, the one which was (and still is) the greatest respected of all time is the Oxford English Dictionary which was an initial idea in the 1850's - and finally manufactured in 1879. The aim of the OED was to create a vast and extensive collection of English words ranging from Middle English (1150) onwards. The Oxford English dictionary has examined the history and meaning of every English word in existence to show how it has changed over time.


English language dictionaries have always been a part of all of our lives since the first ever publication, and as times have gone on, technology has advanced and dictionaries are now more accessible as the Oxford English dictionary is now available online, making using dictionaries more accessible to specifically the younger generation, who were the least inclined to use them beforehand. The OED was put online in 2000, and has proved to have many advantages - including: it's simplicity, ease of use, it's updated frequently and we can search for words, quotations and history of words easily. 

Since the first dictionary was produced in 1582, the English language has changed beyond belief; the earlier uses of English are unrecognisable to each and every one of us. Language change has recently caused some controversy when ‘older’ words were being taken out of the latest dictionary that is due to be published.