French grammarian, Dominique Bonhours, proved on his deathbed that a
grammarians work is never done when he gazed at those around his
deathbed and whispered, "I am about to- or I am going to- die; either
expression is used." Language is in a constant state of flux and there
is always controversy to changes in and attitudes towards language.
This is not something new, as it was the Romans that said the Vikings
speech sounded like the 'cawing of crows' because of their harsh
guttural sounds. The English language has evolved remarkably. The
Great Vowel Shift between 1400 and 1700 shows a great discontinuity in
pronunciation alone. Different attitudes towards language reached a
height during the 17th and 18th Centuries with Prescriptivists such as
Defoe, Swift and Louth. Prescriptivists believe that there is an
approach which sets out rules for what is regarded as correct in
language. Some prescriptivist rules for English include not splitting
infinitives, resulting in sentences such as 'to go boldly where no man
has gone before', rather than 'to boldly go'. The rationale behind
this was because the Latin infinitive is a single word, and so the
equivalent English construction should also be treated as if it were a
single unit. Prescriptivists rules include such things as 'bad'
language as ending a sentence with a preposition, multiple negation,
as two negatives destroy each other and make a positive, and using who
in place of whom.
One famous example of how the result can be if you are forced to
follow a prescriptivist rule is Winston Churchill's quote, "This is
the sort of bloody nonsense up with which I will not put."
Descriptivi...
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...es in language may in the end prove
futile, it at least tests changes in the language and, in a sense,
makes them prove their worth.
Language is in a constant state of flux and change. Different
attitudes to language will always continue and be around, whether it
is towards grammar usage, lexis or pronunciation. By creating a
language academy, we would set rules and examples that may not be
followed by the vast majority of people. There is a middle way to
language change, such as dictionaries, which set out a formal system
of spelling that is followed throughout the country. The main problem
with a language academy is the fact that rules to language may be set
up that the vast majority of people do not understand or do not know
about. This is why a language academy would be of little use if placed
in our society.
The society will be less divided and will function better under a common language. Although English-only movement has close connections to restrictionist, anti-immigration organizations, which suggests that the English-only movement has a wider, more far-reaching, and more negative agenda than simply advocating an official English language policy, English should be the official language of United States for two main reasons: first, In 1990 US census reported that 97.1 % of the US population speak English; second and most importantly, making English the official language of the United States refers solely to the language of the government, not of the people, private business, classrooms, or more. In addition, declare English the official language of the United States would make easier business and negotiations, more people will be able to participate in democracy system, the population will have a better understanding of laws, and the diversity of languages spoken in the US will not be affect, indeed, it would have an
Being made of diverse peoples, and being able to continue to use your own language may seem preferable as we encourage individuality and do not want anyone to disappear into the soup. This stand, however, also means that more people are needed as interpreters and that more programs and information needs to be readily available to ensure understanding. More people would have jobs associated with interpretation, whether on paper or face-to-face, in order to deal with the transition. If English was the official language, instead of just having interpreters in public places, there would be opportunities to learn the language with classes, etc. Presently, immigrants expect to have to learn some of English to get by, while the children have to learn it on their own to survive in school. With English as an official language, we would feel compelled to offer help to those we expect to learn the language. In part of Canada, where there are two languages, children are taught both languages. If we had an official language we would be responsible for insuring that everyone gets a chance to learn the language. As seen in the statutes of Section 3-3-31 of the Mississippi code, “…the purpose (of the st...
Children are better learners than adults except in the area of the pronunciation of words. That is why the second language program will be accepting children who are in elementary, they will be taught how to read signs, and learn how to speak in the desired second language. The objective goal of the second language program is to get students ready to speak another language as if it were their primary language. The second language program will not be as any other school program because it will require dedication, responsibility, and focus. Kids now are lazy and also don’t communicate well with other people, which is important because they will need to know how to communicate when they graduate high school, but because they were not taught how to they are lacking that skill. Students because they are being taught out the book they don’t get to learn different skills that will be useful when they leave high school. In the program students won’t be learning straight off the book they will be assigned a pen pal who they will be writing to not in English but in their chosen second language, and every so often they will talk on Skype this will show if they are understanding the language; with the interaction that the students will be doing they will develop communicative skills that will be helpful when they are out of high
The world is filled with diverse people that have many different cultures. Throughout the years, culture along with many other factors changed the way linguistics evolved. This created evolved versions of how we understand language today. English changed to Englishes, literacy changed to multiliteracies and variation in languages is major. It’s important to note that the evolution of language was important for teachers to understand and connect with their students. Creating pedagogies that suit specific children and show students the importance of learning Australian standard English to be able to function well in Australia but also to keep any cultural English they may have and make sure they feel comfortable with their culture.
In Johnson’s preface to A Dictionary of the English Language, Johnson argues the importance of preserving language. Other dialects had a produced their own dictionaries, such as the French and Italians. Various writers of the eighteenth century were alarmed at the fact that there was no standard for the English language, since there was no standard it could easily become extinct. Johnson explored many points, such as how and why languages change as well as how many words are formed.
As you can see, you can greatly enhance your life in a lot of ways by learning a second language, such as communicating with people from other countries, expanding your vocabulary, and it will help open more doors to greater jobs in the future. And it's not just benificial for students to learn another language, it can be beneficial for every one. It will open up more doors for people in the future. Whether it's here in the US or other parts of the world, learning a second language can be very beneficial for you to learn. So, we should get more language classes here in Valley Center schools to help benefit the students.
The speech wording was very strong. The wording hit the hearts of many that day. The best was the word play like similes she used I think it’s always better make people laugh. She used the 3 Ps as a reference on life. The imagery she used was great and the bad words helped. She used them strongly and I think it worked.
Most people think that power is yelling, forcing people to do things , being harsh, or causing fear; but to me the power is knowing how to use language and when. It’s knowing the right time to show love, or fear. If all the leaders knew how to use the power of language to lead the people we wouldn’t have so many revolutions throughout history. Language is all we need to communicate with people. it can be the most powerful weapon, it can bring war or peace. It can break or build a country, it can make you the strongest leader ever born or a nobody neglected by the rest. Language is the most powerful tool created, and it 's fascinating how everyone of us uses it to their advantage. We can manipulate people so easily
According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, the discussion of definite and indefinite descriptions has been at the center of heated debates of analytic philosophy for over a century. There have been many compelling arguments and interesting views by many philosophers on this topic and it is hard to yet conclude whose argument is more correct. In this essay, I will first briefly explain Russell’s analysis of definite descriptions, then present both Strawson’s and Donnellan’s views of descriptions in opposition to Russell’s, then I will conclude the essay by showing why I find the analysis of definite descriptions by Donnellan more persuasive than the others’.
One thing that is very important in all forms of writing – not just poetry – is the description. When writing, an author should describe the setting and the characters thoroughly, in a way that resounds in the reader. All descriptions are written in hopes of putting an image into your head, and especially as sophomores, I believe that we are still learning how to write descriptions. Descriptions are not as easy as everyone thinks of them as – not a good description, anyway. I’ve read many descriptive sentences from peer grading essays and my trudge through numerous novels and short stories, and rarely do I find that descriptions really put an image into my head. Not to discourage the way teachers teach descriptive writing as I understand that if it’s difficult to so much as write a description, it should be very difficult to teach it.
...006). Current issues in the teaching of grammar: An SLA perspective. TESOL Quarterly, 40(1), 83-107.
Although some people believe the entire world should speak English, the reality is that all Americans should have some degree of formal education in a foreign language. Foreign language skills could have a positive impact on race relations in America. The number of minorities in America is rapidly increasing. In fact, "minority" groups will soon form a collective "majority" of the citizens of America. Considering the fact that many minority groups speak English as a second language and America has no official language, compulsory foreign language classes are viable options.
As the name suggests, linguistic learners most easily acquire information through words. They love to read, write, and tell stories. Memorizing names, places, dates, and trivia come naturally to these learners (Mantle, 2002). People with a linguistic preference have an awareness of the sounds, rhythms, and meaning of words. These students learn best by saying, hearing, and seeing words.
Being able to communicate in English is not only shown by the ability to ask and answer using English words. This fact should be understood by people that they have to understand what utterance they should produce in any certain condition so that the utterances are proper for the situation and suitable for the hearer. Alternatively, this is what so called as pragmatic competence by linguists. As such, pragmatic competence is essential for successful communication and is a fundamental part of general communicative competence, which is the goal towards which much language learning and teaching strives (Neary & Sundquist, 2013: 151). Therefore, for people whose occupation is as a teacher, they should also learn pragmatics so that they can be able
Language was created by humans and it has been around for more than one hundred thousand years. Language is a complex system of communication. Because language is greatly adaptive and flexible, it would constantly evolve and changing through time. Despite the fact that Language has multiple functions, they all serve one purpose. To make the expression of one’s idea, thought and feeling.