Figures of Speech: Six Histories of Language and Identity in the Age of Revolutions (Impressions) - Softcover

Cassedy, Tim

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1609386124 ISBN 13: 9781609386122

Publisher: University Of Iowa Press, 2019

Synopsis

Tim Cassedy’s fascinating study examines the role that language played at the turn of the nineteenth century as a marker of one’s identity. During this time of revolution (U.S., French, and Haitian) and globalization, language served as a way to categorize people within a world that appeared more diverse than ever. Linguistic differences, especially among English-speakers, seemed to validate the emerging national, racial, local, and regional identity categories that took shape in this new world order. 

Focusing on six eccentric characters of the time—from the woman known as “Princess Caraboo” to wordsmith Noah Webster—Cassedy shows how each put language at the center of their identities and lived out the possibilities of their era’s linguistic ideas. The result is a highly entertaining and equally informative look at how perceptions about who spoke what language—and how they spoke it—determined the shape of communities in the British American colonies and beyond. 

This engagingly written story is sure to appeal to historians of literature, culture, and communication; to linguists and book historians; and to general readers interested in how ideas about English developed in the early United States and throughout the English-speaking world. 

About this title

About the Author:

Tim Cassedy is assistant professor of English at Southern Methodist University. He lives in Dallas, Texas. 

Review:

"A hugely enjoyable read.... Highly recommended." --CHOICE Magazine

About this edition

• Publisher: University Of Iowa Press
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 1609386124
• ISBN 13: 9781609386122
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 296