Share

Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue

2009-10-27 Language Arts & Disciplines
Download Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue PDF Online Free

Author :
Release : 2009-10-27
Genre : Language Arts & Disciplines
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 944/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK


Book Synopsis Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue by : John McWhorter

Download or read book Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue written by John McWhorter. This book was released on 2009-10-27. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A survey of the quirks and quandaries of the English language, focusing on our strange and wonderful grammar Why do we say “I am reading a catalog” instead of “I read a catalog”? Why do we say “do” at all? Is the way we speak a reflection of our cultural values? Delving into these provocative topics and more, Our Magnificent Bastard Language distills hundreds of years of fascinating lore into one lively history. Covering such turning points as the little-known Celtic and Welsh influences on English, the impact of the Viking raids and the Norman Conquest, and the Germanic invasions that started it all during the fifth century ad, John McWhorter narrates this colorful evolution with vigor. Drawing on revolutionary genetic and linguistic research as well as a cache of remarkable trivia about the origins of English words and syntax patterns, Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue ultimately demonstrates the arbitrary, maddening nature of English— and its ironic simplicity due to its role as a streamlined lingua franca during the early formation of Britain. This is the book that language aficionados worldwide have been waiting for (and no, it’s not a sin to end a sentence with a preposition).

Words on the Move

2016-09-06 Language Arts & Disciplines
Download Words on the Move PDF Online Free

Author :
Release : 2016-09-06
Genre : Language Arts & Disciplines
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 735/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK


Book Synopsis Words on the Move by : John McWhorter

Download or read book Words on the Move written by John McWhorter. This book was released on 2016-09-06. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A bestselling linguist takes us on a lively tour of how the English language is evolving before our eyes -- and why we should embrace this transformation and not fight it Language is always changing -- but we tend not to like it. We understand that new words must be created for new things, but the way English is spoken today rubs many of us the wrong way. Whether it’s the use of literally to mean “figuratively” rather than “by the letter,” or the way young people use LOL and like, or business jargon like What’s the ask? -- it often seems as if the language is deteriorating before our eyes. But the truth is different and a lot less scary, as John McWhorter shows in this delightful and eye-opening exploration of how English has always been in motion and continues to evolve today. Drawing examples from everyday life and employing a generous helping of humor, he shows that these shifts are a natural process common to all languages, and that we should embrace and appreciate these changes, not condemn them. Words on the Move opens our eyes to the surprising backstories to the words and expressions we use every day. Did you know that silly once meant “blessed”? Or that ought was the original past tense of owe? Or that the suffix -ly in adverbs is actually a remnant of the word like? And have you ever wondered why some people from New Orleans sound as if they come from Brooklyn? McWhorter encourages us to marvel at the dynamism and resilience of the English language, and his book offers a lively journey through which we discover that words are ever on the move and our lives are all the richer for it.

What Language Is

2013-02-12 Language Arts & Disciplines
Download What Language Is PDF Online Free

Author :
Release : 2013-02-12
Genre : Language Arts & Disciplines
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 451/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK


Book Synopsis What Language Is by : John McWhorter

Download or read book What Language Is written by John McWhorter. This book was released on 2013-02-12. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: New York Times bestselling author and renowned linguist, John McWhorter, explores the complicated and fascinating world of languages. From Standard English to Black English; obscure tongues only spoken by a few thousand people in the world to the big ones like Mandarin - What Language Is celebrates the history and curiosities of languages around the world and smashes our assumptions about "correct" grammar. An eye-opening tour for all language lovers, What Language Is offers a fascinating new perspective on the way humans communicate. From vanishing languages spoken by a few hundred people to major tongues like Chinese, with copious revelations about the hodgepodge nature of English, John McWhorter shows readers how to see and hear languages as a linguist does. Packed with Big Ideas about language alongside wonderful trivia, What Language Is explains how languages across the globe (the Queen's English and Surinam creoles alike) originate, evolve, multiply, and divide. Raising provocative questions about what qualifies as a language (so-called slang does have structured grammar), McWhorter also takes readers on a marvelous journey through time and place-from Persian to the languages of Sri Lanka- to deliver a feast of facts about the wonders of human linguistic expression.

Losing the Race

2000 African Americans
Download Losing the Race PDF Online Free

Author :
Release : 2000
Genre : African Americans
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 696/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK


Book Synopsis Losing the Race by : John H. McWhorter

Download or read book Losing the Race written by John H. McWhorter. This book was released on 2000. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explains why "victimhood" is exaggerated and enshrined in African-American families and discusses why these attitudes are destructive to future generations.

The Power of Babel

2003-01-07 Language Arts & Disciplines
Download The Power of Babel PDF Online Free

Author :
Release : 2003-01-07
Genre : Language Arts & Disciplines
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 85X/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK


Book Synopsis The Power of Babel by : John McWhorter

Download or read book The Power of Babel written by John McWhorter. This book was released on 2003-01-07. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There are approximately six thousand languages on Earth today, each a descendant of the tongue first spoken by Homo sapiens some 150,000 years ago. While laying out how languages mix and mutate over time, linguistics professor John McWhorter reminds us of the variety within the species that speaks them, and argues that, contrary to popular perception, language is not immutable and hidebound, but a living, dynamic entity that adapts itself to an ever-changing human environment. Full of humor and imaginative insight, The Power of Babel draws its illustrative examples from languages around the world, including pidgins, Creoles, and nonstandard dialects.

You may also like...