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Change in Contemporary English: A Grammatical Study [Minkštas viršelis]

(Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Germany), (Universität Zürich), (University of Salford), (Lancaster University)
  • Formatas: Paperback / softback, 370 pages, aukštis x plotis x storis: 229x152x21 mm, weight: 540 g
  • Serija: Studies in English Language
  • Išleidimo metai: 04-Oct-2012
  • Leidėjas: Cambridge University Press
  • ISBN-10: 1107410460
  • ISBN-13: 9781107410466
Kitos knygos pagal šią temą:
  • Formatas: Paperback / softback, 370 pages, aukštis x plotis x storis: 229x152x21 mm, weight: 540 g
  • Serija: Studies in English Language
  • Išleidimo metai: 04-Oct-2012
  • Leidėjas: Cambridge University Press
  • ISBN-10: 1107410460
  • ISBN-13: 9781107410466
Kitos knygos pagal šią temą:
Based on the systematic analysis of large amounts of computer-readable text, this book shows how the English language has been changing in the recent past, often in unexpected and previously undocumented ways. The study is based on a group of matching corpora, known as the 'Brown family' of corpora, supplemented by a range of other corpus materials, both written and spoken, drawn mainly from the later twentieth century. Among the matters receiving particular attention are the influence of American English on British English, the role of the press, the 'colloquialization' of written English, and a wide range of grammatical topics, including the modal auxiliaries, progressive, subjunctive, passive, genitive and relative clauses. These subjects build an overall picture of how English grammar is changing, and the linguistic and social factors that are contributing to this process.

Based on the systematic analysis of large amounts of computer-readable text, this book shows how the English language has been changing in the recent past, and discusses the linguistic and social factors that are contributing to this process.

Recenzijos

Review of the hardback: 'CCE suggests a number of issues that will no doubt inspire much research in the future, not only in English, but in any language for which electronic corpora are available over a fifty- to hundred-year period. Regardless of any limitations of the corpora, the authors have developed a rigorous methodology for tagging, quantifying and analyzing electronic corpus materials, and revealing the multifactorial nature of change in use.' Elizabeth Closs Traugott, English Language and Linguistics ' the studies collected in this volume are very valuable for the analysis of ongoing language change. The observations of these very detailed descriptions of language use and variation in the second half of the twentieth century across the two major written varieties of English will - together with, for example, the quantitative data and qualitative analyses of the Longman Grammar certainly be a highly welcome basis for further investigations into ongoing grammar change in English.' Ursula Lenker, Anglia ' this is a masterly book, no doubt the standard treatment of its subject for years to come. In an exemplary fashion it combines a meticulous attention to detail and empirically sound documentation with a fundamental interest in the nature and causes of syntactic change, and it provides far-reaching insights on both levels.' Edgar W. Schneider, English World-Wide

Daugiau informacijos

An assessment of how English grammar is changing, and the linguistic and social factors that are contributing to this process.
List of figures
x
List of tables
xiv
Preface xix
Abbreviations and symbolic conventions xxv
1 Introduction: `grammar blindness' in the recent history of English?
1(23)
1.1 Grammar is more than an arbitrary list of shibboleths
1(6)
1.2 Grammatical changes: proceeding slowly and invisible at close range?
7(9)
1.3 A frame of orientation: previous research on recent and ongoing grammatical changes in English
16(6)
1.4 Conclusion
22(2)
2 Comparative corpus linguistics: the methodological basis of this book
24(27)
2.1 (Computer) corpus linguistics: the Brown Corpus and after
24(3)
2.2 Comparable corpora and comparative corpus linguistics
27(4)
2.3 The methodological basis of comparative corpus linguistics
31(2)
2.4 Stages of investigation
33(4)
(A) Rationalize the mark-up of the corpora
33(1)
(B) Undertake annotation of the corpora
33(1)
(C) Use search and retrieval software to identify and extract recurrent formal features in the corpus
34(1)
(D) Refine the comparative analysis
34(1)
(D1) Derive difference-of-frequency tables
35(1)
(D2) Derive difference-of-frequency tables from inter-corpus comparisons
36(1)
(D3) Undertake further categorization of instances of features found in the corpora
36(1)
(E) Further qualitative analysis, examining individual instances, or clusters of instances, in both corpora
37(1)
(F) Functional interpretation of findings
37(1)
2.5 Further details and explanations of the stages of investigation
37(13)
2.5.1 (B) Annotation
37(1)
2.5.2 (C) Search expressions in CQP
38(2)
2.5.3 (D1) Frequency across genres and subcorpora
40(3)
2.5.4 (D2) External comparisons
43(2)
2.5.5 (D3) Further categorization of instances found in the corpora
45(2)
2.5.6 (E) Further qualitative analysis
47(2)
2.5.7 (F) Functional interpretation of findings on all levels
49(1)
2.6 Conclusion
50(1)
3 The subjunctive mood
51(20)
3.1 Introduction
51(1)
3.2 The revival of the mandative subjunctive
52(9)
3.2.1 Overall developments of the mandative subjunctive
53(4)
3.2.2 Is the mandative subjunctive losing its formal connotations?
57(4)
3.3 The were-subjunctive
61(6)
3.3.1 The were-subjunctive: diachronic development
64(2)
3.3.2 The were-subjunctive: a recessive formal option?
66(1)
3.4 Revival and demise of the subjunctive? An attempt at reconciling apparently contradictory developments
67(2)
3.5 Summary and conclusion
69(2)
4 The modal auxiliaries
71(20)
4.1 The declining use of the modal auxiliaries in written standard English 1961--1991/2
71(2)
4.2 The changing use of the modals in different genres and subcorpora
73(3)
4.3 The changing use of the modals in spoken vs written corpora
76(2)
4.4 The core modals and competing expressions of modality
78(1)
4.5 Shrinking usage of particular modals: a more detailed examination
79(10)
4.5.1 The modals at the bottom of the frequency list: shall, ought to and need (n't)
80(3)
4.5.2 The semantics of modal decline: may, must and should
83(6)
4.6 Conclusion
89(2)
5 The so-called semi-modals
91(27)
5.1 Auxiliary--lexical verb gradience
92(6)
5.2 Overall changes in frequency of semi-modals
98(7)
5.3 Further evidence for grammaticalization? Phonetics and semantics
105(9)
5.3.1 Phonetic reduction and coalescence: gonna, gotta and wanna
105(2)
5.3.2 Signs of abstraction and generalization (semantic weakening)
107(7)
5.4 The ecology of obligation/necessity
114(2)
5.5 Conclusion
116(2)
6 The progressive
118(26)
6.1 Introduction
118(1)
6.2 Basic and special uses of the progressive
119(1)
6.3 Historical background
120(2)
6.4 Overview of recent distribution patterns
122(5)
6.4.1 Distribution in written BrE and AmE
122(2)
6.4.2 Distribution in contemporaneous BrE speech and other registers
124(3)
6.5 Present progressive active
127(9)
6.5.1 Quotations and contracted forms
128(1)
6.5.2 Stative verbs
129(1)
6.5.3 Subject type and reference
130(1)
6.5.4 Special uses
131(5)
6.6 The progressive passive
136(3)
6.7 The progressive in combination with modal auxiliaries
139(2)
6.7.1 Modal auxiliary + be -ing
139(1)
6.7.2 Will + be -ing
139(2)
6.8 Summary and conclusion
141(3)
7 The passive voice
144(22)
7.1 Introduction
144(4)
7.2 The be-passive
148(6)
7.3 The get-passive
154(4)
7.4 The mediopassive
158(6)
7.5 Summary and conclusion
164(2)
8 Take or have a look at a corpus? Expanded predicates in British and American English
166(15)
8.1 The state of the art
167(3)
8.2 Hypotheses
170(3)
8.3 Defining the variable
173(1)
8.4 Results
174(5)
8.4.1 Stylistic variation
174(1)
8.4.2 Diachronic variation
175(1)
8.4.3 Regional variation
175(4)
8.5 Summary
179(2)
9 Non-finite clauses
181(25)
9.1 Introduction: long-term trends in the evolution of English non-finite clauses
181(5)
9.2 Changes in non-finite clauses I: case studies of individual matrix verbs
186(15)
9.2.1 Help + infinitive
187(6)
9.2.2 Prevent/stop + NP + (from) + gerund
193(2)
9.2.3 Start and stop in catenative uses
195(4)
9.2.4 Want to
199(2)
9.2.5 Assessing the speed of changes
201(1)
9.3 Changes in non-finite clauses II: statistical trends in the tagged corpora
201(3)
9.4 Conclusion
204(2)
10 The noun phrase
206(30)
10.1 Parts of speech: an overall survey
207(4)
10.2 Nouns and noun sequences
211(3)
10.2.1 Common nouns
212(1)
10.2.2 Proper nouns, including proper nouns as acronyms
212(2)
10.3 Noun sequences and other juxtapositions
214(8)
10.3.1 Noun + common noun sequences
216(3)
10.3.2 Noun sequences with plural attributive nouns
219(2)
10.3.3 Sequences of proper nouns
221(1)
10.4 The s-genitive and the of-genitive
222(4)
10.4.1 The s-genitive
223(1)
10.4.2 The of-genitive
224(2)
10.5 Relative clauses
226(7)
10.5.1 Wh- relative clauses
228(1)
10.5.2 That relative clauses
229(2)
10.5.3 Zero relative clauses
231(1)
10.5.4 Pied-piping vs preposition stranding
231(2)
10.6 Summary and conclusion
233(3)
11 Linguistic and other determinants of change
236(37)
11.1 The functional and social processes of change
236(1)
11.2 Grammaticalization
237(2)
11.3 Colloquialization
239(10)
11.3.1 Contracted negatives and verb forms
240(1)
11.3.2 Not-negation vs no-negation
241(1)
11.3.3 Questions
242(1)
11.3.4 Other plausible grammatical signs of colloquialization
243(1)
11.3.5 Punctuation
244(1)
11.3.6 Problems and issues concerning colloquialization
245(4)
11.4 Densification of content
249(3)
11.5 Americanization?
252(7)
11.5.1 `Americanization' in relation to other trends
256(2)
11.5.2 `Americanization' and sociolinguistic globalization
258(1)
11.6 Other trends
259(8)
11.6.1 Democratization: ironing out differences
259(4)
11.6.2 Language prescriptions
263(1)
11.6.3 Analyticization?
264(3)
11.7 Conclusion
267(6)
Appendix I The composition of the Brown Corpus 273(3)
Appendix II The C8 tagset used for part-of-speech tagging of the four corpora 276(5)
Appendix III Additional statistical tables and charts 281(33)
References 314(21)
Index 335