The Fight for English: How Language Pundits Ate, Shot, and Left - Hardcover

Crystal, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 019920764X ISBN 13: 9780199207640

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2007

Synopsis

The story of battles--both past and present--surrounding English language usage, The Fight for English explores why millions of people feel linguistically inferior. Unhappy with the "zero tolerance" approach to punctuation offered by Lynn Truss's Eats, Shoots, and Leaves, David Crystal offers a view of the subject that is much more balanced. Instead of answering the claims made by other manuals of English usage, Crystal provides an explanation and analysis of the genre as a whole.

Crystal weaves an intricate and engaging account that traces the history of the English language and its development over time. From Anglo-Saxon to Modern English, Crystal addresses why the same language issues that were bothering people 250 years ago are still bothering people today. This is the story of the fight for English usage--the story of the people who tried to shape the language in their own image, but failed generation after generation. In short, they ate, shot, and left.

The Fight for English brings language to life on the page with a witty and engaging writing style. Broadening the perspective on the English language, this compellingly informative book has something for everyone interested in the topic. Move over Harry Potter. Here comes punctuation.

About this title

About the Author

David Crystal is the foremost writer and lecturer on the English language, with a world-wide reputation and over 100 books to his name. He is Honorary Professor of Linguistics at the University of Wales, Bangor, and has been awarded an OBE for services to the English Language.

Review

"Manages to be genial and irascible at the same time...Crystal is fascinating and insightful, often funny."--Patricia T. O'Conner, New York Times Book Review

"This volume is an excellent introductory essay on the development of the English language through the ages and on the rise of the prescriptivist movement, which is still very much alive. For both readers who consider themselves prescriptivists and those who consider themselves permissivists, this book will provide a quick lesson on why neither extreme makes sense, either historically or functionally. Crystal looks ahead to a more balanced view of English as an evolving and rich tool for communication."--Technical Communication

"This engaging book encourages one to make appropriateness rather than correctness the cornerstone of usage--and along the way offers fascinating bits of linguistic history. It belongs on the shelf next to [Lynne] Truss's book....Essential. All readers; all levels."--CHOICE

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 019920764X
• ISBN 13: 9780199207640
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 239