[lg policy] Grammar diatribe on Radio 4 Today programme

[Ann Anderson Evans]

I hope you have been able to listen to the ever-verbose Stephen Frye at
http://www.upworthy.com/stephen-fry-takes-a-firm-stance-on-grammar-he-doesnt-go-the-way-youd-think-2?g=2&c=ufb1.
 It is a good example of what Abraham Lincoln once remarked, "He can
compress the most words into the smallest ideas of any man I ever met." He
graciously steps into the modern era -- that era having started about a
hundred years ago.


On Thu, Jul 4, 2013 at 9:00 AM, Dave Sayers <D.Sayers at swansea.ac.uk> wrote:

> Here we go again...
>
> Author and professional nitpicker Neville Gwynne claims that 50 years ago
> "everybody effortlessly knew their grammar", and it's all been downhill
> since, etc. etc.
>
> http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/**episode/b0368knt/?t=2h20m<http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0368knt/?t=2h20m>
>
> (If that link doesn't take you to the right point in the programme, just
> scroll to 2h20m.)
>
> The backdrop to this discussion is a 'reading list' sent round by
> Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove to his minions, to make them
> speak proper.
>
> Let me take this opportunity to share a favourite passage of mine:
>
> "The regard formerly paid to pronunciation has been generally declining;
> so that now the greatest improprieties in that point are to be found among
> people of fashion; many pronunciations which thirty or forty years ago were
> confined to the vulgar, are now gaining ground; and if something be not
> done to stop this growing evil, and fix a general standard at present, the
> English is likely to become a mere jargon, which every one may pronounce as
> he pleases."
>
> This was from the introduction to Michael Sheridan's 'A General Dictionary
> of the English Language', written in 1780. So, maybe the language is being
> ravaged and corrupted, but then, it always has been...
>
> And then there's a nice little retort of sorts, from the indefatigable
> A.J. Ellis (p.254, On early English pronunciation, Part V):
>
> "It is an opinion held by many that “received speech is pure, and
> dialectal speech impure”, forgetting that received speech has been highly
> “doctored” in the course of ages from some form of dialectal hereditary,
> and hence is really the impurest possible form of speech."
>
> Where was I? Ah yes, this type of language purism is the sort of thing up
> with which I will no longer put. And since I'm emailing, let me wish all
> you (y'all?) US correspondents a happy Independence Day. (I would point out
> that independence was actually declared on the 2nd of July 1776, not the
> 4th, but I think this email has enough nitpicking already.)
>
> Dave
>
> --
> Dr. Dave Sayers
> Honorary Research Fellow, Arts & Humanities, Swansea University, UK
> Visiting Lecturer (2013-14), Dept English, University of Turku, Finland
> dave.sayers at cantab.net
> http://swansea.academia.edu/**DaveSayers<http://swansea.academia.edu/DaveSayers>
> ______________________________**_________________
> This message came to you by way of the lgpolicy-list mailing list
> lgpolicy-list at groups.sas.**upenn.edu <lgpolicy-list at groups.sas.upenn.edu>
> To manage your subscription unsubscribe, or arrange digest format:
> https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/**mailman/listinfo/lgpolicy-list<https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/listinfo/lgpolicy-list>
>



-- 
*Ann Anderson Evans*
*Writer and Adjunct Professor, Montclair State University*
*(201) 792-6892 or (973) 495-0338
*
www.linguisticsintheclassroom.com
www.annandersonevans.com
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://listserv.linguistlist.org/pipermail/lgpolicy-list/attachments/20130704/1d738475/attachment.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
_______________________________________________
This message came to you by way of the lgpolicy-list mailing list
lgpolicy-list at groups.sas.upenn.edu
To manage your subscription unsubscribe, or arrange digest format: https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/listinfo/lgpolicy-list