27.451, Books: Spellbound: Burling

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LINGUIST List: Vol-27-451. Fri Jan 22 2016. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 27.451, Books: Spellbound: Burling

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Date: Fri, 22 Jan 2016 15:46:14
From: Janet Joyce [jjoyce at equinoxpub.com]
Subject: Spellbound: Burling

 


Title: Spellbound 
Subtitle: Untangling English Spelling 
Publication Year: 2016 
Publisher: Equinox Publishing Ltd
	   http://www.equinoxpub.com/
	

Book URL: https://www.equinoxpub.com/home/english-spelling-dont-just-fix-robbins-burling/ 


Author: Robbins Burling

Hardback: ISBN:  9781781791301 Pages: 186 Price: U.S. $ 100 Comment: £60
Paperback: ISBN:  9781781791318 Pages: 186 Price: U.S. $ 29.95 Comment: £19.99


Abstract:

Spellbound considers the history of English spelling and provides suggestions
for modern day reform of its irregularities.

The first half of the book reviews the history of English spelling and the
reasons for the many irregularities of our modern language. The author argues
that the irregular spelling of English contributes seriously to the high rate
of illiteracy in the English speaking world. He then reviews some of the many
attempts to reform the spelling of other languages, some of which were
successful and others not. During the first half of the 20th century there was
a flurry of interest in reforms for English but since then reform has been
little more than the object of humor. Spellbound considers the reasons for
this opposition to reform.

The book then turns to current proposals for the reform of English. It
describes the criteria that should govern the choice among alternative reforms
and considers in detail the relatively easily reformed consonants and the much
more difficult vowels. Special attention is given to ways of designing a
spelling that is equally suitable for the many and diverse dialects of spoken
English. While the author recognises that a unified spelling could not be
perfect for any single dialect, he argues that it could be very much better
than our present spelling for all dialects. Spellbound concludes by looking at
possible ways by which reforms might be brought about today.
 



Linguistic Field(s): Applied Linguistics
                     General Linguistics
                     Historical Linguistics

Subject Language(s): English (eng)


Written In: English  (eng)

See this book announcement on our website: 
http://linguistlist.org/pubs/books/get-book.cfm?BookID=97333

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