[Lexicog] Re: Shakespeare's contributions

[Rudolph Troike]

Scott,

   In calling this a "myth", I had in mind the (in)famous case of the
Eskimo words for "snow", which started out being reported as a few, and
grew with each retelling by respected scholars, entering academic discourse
and being repeated as established fact. In the same way, people who have
carefully gone through the OED counting Shakespeare citations for words
have created a much-repeated account of how many words he was responsible
for introducing to the English language. This repeated account, stated as
fact, but unchecked, fits my sense (like Humpty Dumpty's) of the appropriate
use of "myth".

   Rudy Troike



 
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