Language Change Flashcards

Question

Pejoration (semantics)

Answer 1

A word's meaning becomes more negative over time (e.g. mistress)

Answer 2

A word's meaning becomes more broad over time (e.g. holiday)

Answer 3

A word's meaning becomes more narrow over time (e.g. lily)

Answer 4

The meaning of a word shifts, depending on circumstances/technology (e.g. dashboard)

Answer 5

A word's meaning loses power over time (e.g. awful)

Answer 6

A polite way of talking about a taboo topic (e.g. use the ladies room)

Answer 7

An expression with connotations that are offensive/crude (e.g. we shagged)

Answer 8

1476 Caxton Key catalyst for standardisation

Answer 9

Language is a reflection of our thoughts, it is shaped by the way we think (e.g. censoring a racist's language would not stop them from being racist)

Answer 10

Process used to fill gaps in language where words don't currently exist

Answer 11

Language changes according to our needs, e.g. technological language

Answer 12

Schmidt, 1872 Language change moves across geographical areas from a source of influence (e.g. MLE moving from London to Surrey)

Answer 13

Fairclough 20th Century phenomenon, written texts in media, advertisements, speeches etc. are become more like speech

Answer 14

Jonathon Swift (1712) Samuel Johnson (1755) Dictionary Robert Lowth (1762) Grammar book All trying to prescribe a form of English, thinking it is superior

Answer 15

1966 1) Selection - a standard is selected 2) Codification - A standard is laid down in print, dictionaries, documents etc. 3) Elaboration - The standard is expanded, e.g. other dialects 4) Implementation - The standard is implemented in society (e.g. teachers, schools, media etc.)

Answer 16

1999 Suggests that standardisation is 'an idea is in the mind rather than a reality' We can still understand each other well enough without someone's use of grammar being the same

Answer 17

It is thought to have been happening from 1476 (Thomas Caxton's printing press) -> 1800s

Answer 18

- Was used until 1800s, where it was replaced by the short 's' we use today - It was deemed unnecessary due to there being no phonological function

Answer 19

Look at the type of text, e.g. 'etiquette guides', 'rules of society' etc. we no longer have these, marks era of prescriptivism that expanded to society, not just language Often hyperbolic, over the top to make a point

Answer 20

- Consonants were doubled where we would use single, and vice versa - 'y' was commonly used for 'i' - 'u' and 'v' were interchangeable, 'v' was commonly seen at the beginning of words - Silent 'e' found on the end of words to show long vowel sound, e.g. 'crosse', 'laste' - 'j' and 'i' were inerchangeable

Answer 21

Phonological - as our sounds change, our language must change to accomodate this Technological - When printing presses were used, some printers would be paid per letter meaning they would add letters to gain money - some would shorten words to allow more to fit on pages etc. Standardisation - language was undergoing standardisation from 1476-1800s, constantly changing - spelling was further standardised during modern period (1750-1950), before, spelling would've been individual choice

Answer 22

Making something sound more animalistic - Used in older texts to make them sound more literary - Often hyperbolic, over the top to make a point

Answer 23

Non standard English, can be linked to standardisation and prescriptivism Reversing the typical order of words Seen often in older texts 'I know not' 'Some there are' 'A cake Jan ate' Makes text more complex, older texts may have been seen as more literary and prestigious, as only educated people would be able to understand

Answer 24

Omission of medial or final 'e' Use of 'ck' where we would use 'c' (Germanic) Use of 'ee' where we would use 'ea' Use of 'oo' where we would use 'oa' Use of 'aw' where we would use 'au' (e.g. sawces instead of sauces)

Answer 25

Lots of mentions of 'wives' and 'husbands', they were expected to be married at this time period Can be linked to prescriptivism and class divide

Answer 26

Look at shifts between declaratives and imperatives in the two different texts, especially in guides or instruction texts

Answer 27

- Can distance the writer from the writing - Makes the text less personal - Creates uniformity in writing

Answer 28

Older texts used to string together multiclausal sentences extended by conjunctions and more clauses, far beyond what we would call 'standard' Language has become more efficient, our sentences are shorter and key information is placed at the beginning to reduce number of clauses and conjunctions Adverbial information (when, where, who etc) is moved to beginning to avoid unnecessary clauses and conjunctions, we are less concerned with formality and extension of information, as well as not needing to make texts sound more literary

Answer 29

Begin with brief GAP analysis, not too detailed just outlining the points 3 points of comparison, must contain something about lexis, grammar, semantics, discourse, orthography etc

Answer 30

18th century (1700-1800)

Answer 31

Is it narrative? Is it chronological? Has it got anecdotes? Is it logical?

Answer 32

Language did not need to be accessible in older texts, e.g. 1800s as not as many people were educated and fewer had the ability to read Writers would overcomplicate texts to exhibit their own education and knowledge, using complex sentence structure, syntax, passive voice etc. to make it harder for those less educated to understand Language today is written to be more accessible to the wider public, without prestige or class/status being a factor

Answer 33

Suggests that language has become more informal and colloquial over time and must appeal to readers personally

Answer 34

Used to signify a pause, like a comma - came from Ancient Greek - For the Greeks, the comma was the shortest pause; the colon was twice as long.

Language Change Flashcards

(58 cards)