Describing Prescriptivism
Usage Guides and Usage Problems in British and American English
1st Edition
Published on 8. October 2019
288 pages
978-0-429-55814-6 (ISBN)
Description
Describing Prescriptivism provides a topical and thought-provoking analysis of linguistic prescriptivism in British and American English, from a historical as well as present-day perspective. Focusing on usage guides and usage problems, the book takes a three-fold approach to present an in-depth analysis of the topic, featuring:
a detailed study of the advice provided in usage guides over the years;
an authoritative comparison of this advice with actual usage as recorded in British and American corpora, including the HUGE (Hyper Usage Guide of English) database - developed specifically to enable this line of study - as well as more mainstream corpora such as COCA, COHA and the BNC;
a close analysis of the attitudes to particular usage problems among the general public, based on surveys distributed online through the "Bridging the Unbridgeable" research project's blog.*
With extensive case studies to illustrate and support claims throughout, this comprehensive study is key reading for students and researchers of prescriptivism, the history of English and sociolinguistics.
*Found at https://bridgingtheunbridgeable.com/
a detailed study of the advice provided in usage guides over the years;
an authoritative comparison of this advice with actual usage as recorded in British and American corpora, including the HUGE (Hyper Usage Guide of English) database - developed specifically to enable this line of study - as well as more mainstream corpora such as COCA, COHA and the BNC;
a close analysis of the attitudes to particular usage problems among the general public, based on surveys distributed online through the "Bridging the Unbridgeable" research project's blog.*
With extensive case studies to illustrate and support claims throughout, this comprehensive study is key reading for students and researchers of prescriptivism, the history of English and sociolinguistics.
*Found at https://bridgingtheunbridgeable.com/
Reviews / Votes
"A welcome volume on an ever-topical matter - how to avoid the censure of self-appointed guardians of style - by a world authority on the subject. This book can be recommended to everyone interested in the background to widespread ideas about correctness in language."Raymond Hickey, University of Duisburg and Essen, Germany
"Describing prescriptivism offers a thought-provoking analysis of prescriptivism from a sociolinguistic perspective. Employing a descriptive approach, this book draws upon a wide range of datasets that address the issue of usage guides and usage problems in British and American English from around 1750 to the present day, examining the functions, popularity, and the assumed influence of usage guides on the language."
Meishu Wang, School of International Studies, Zhejiang University
More details
Edition
1. Auflage
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
Reflowable
Illustrations
5 Line drawings, black and white; 3 Halftones, black and white; 8 Illustrations, black and white
ISBN-13
978-0-429-55814-6 (9780429558146)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Ingrid Tieken-Boon van Ostade
Describing Prescriptivism
Usage Guides and Usage Problems in British and American English
Book
06/2022
1st Edition
Routledge
€67.70
Shipment within 10-20 days
Ingrid Tieken-Boon van Ostade
Describing Prescriptivism
Usage Guides and Usage Problems in British and American English
Book
10/2019
1st Edition
Routledge
€206.70
Shipment within 15-20 days
Person
Ingrid Tieken-Boon van Ostade is Chair in English Sociohistorical Linguistics, University of Leiden, The Netherlands, and has published extensively on the latter end of the English standardisation process.
Content
Preface
Abbreviations
Chapter 1. Introduction
Chapter 2. The origin of the usage guide
Chapter 3. The usage guide - and the HUGE database
Chapter 4. The writers and the publishers
Chapter 5. Usage problems: pet linguistic peeves
Chapter 6. The language of prescriptivism
Chapter 7. Public awareness of prescriptivism
Chapter 8. The end of prescriptivism?
Appendix 1. Feedback on a blogpost (January 2015)
Appendix 2. Usage problems in the HUGE database
Appendix 3. Usage guide writers interviewed
Appendix 4. Usage guide writers' credentials
Appendix 5. The metalinguistic categories from Sundby et al. (1991)
References
Index
Abbreviations
Chapter 1. Introduction
Chapter 2. The origin of the usage guide
Chapter 3. The usage guide - and the HUGE database
Chapter 4. The writers and the publishers
Chapter 5. Usage problems: pet linguistic peeves
Chapter 6. The language of prescriptivism
Chapter 7. Public awareness of prescriptivism
Chapter 8. The end of prescriptivism?
Appendix 1. Feedback on a blogpost (January 2015)
Appendix 2. Usage problems in the HUGE database
Appendix 3. Usage guide writers interviewed
Appendix 4. Usage guide writers' credentials
Appendix 5. The metalinguistic categories from Sundby et al. (1991)
References
Index
