The English language has undergone many changes over the course of history. In the Middle Ages some of the major changes to the spoken and written language of the time were influenced by many cultural and industrial events. The biggest cultural event of the time was the Renaissance, the English language came to the forefront at this time finally becoming a widely accepted and used language in the world. In earlier times Latin and French were considered to be the languages of the educated masses, this was the first time that English began to be recognized as a language used by scholars. Another major cultural event was what is commonly referred to as the Golden Age in English Literature. Such famous authors as Edmund Spenser, William Shakespeare,
Explains the lesson, gives examples, vocabulary, great interaction with students, one on one help, they all participate to answer the book pages, motivates students to speak English, corrects students as they speak, clear and sure of the topic, enjoys class.
David Crystal 's news article, “2b or Not 2b”, address issues in direct contradiction to John Humphrys article “ I h8t txt msgs: How texting is wrecking our language”, which sought to bring to focus the havoc that texting has brought upon the modern English language. Pointing out that, while texting has been a change largely impactful on the English language it poses no threat and should not be considered as such. Using examples throughout history to prove that abbreviations in word and language is something that has been used for centuries. Furthermore, Crystal explains that such play on words provides a mental challenge, something that people must be adequately equipped with the proper literary knowledge in order to regurgitate. This can
The subject of how technology is changing written English is a touchy subject; many people believe that our current technology is allowing us to become lazy. Text messaging being the ultimate reason we are taking so many short cuts when it comes to writing proper English. There are so many abbreviated words and meanings in text messaging, I sometimes find myself confused when I receive messages from people that I have to google what they are trying to say. I don’t want to respond and assume I know what they are trying say.
Since the 1600's the english language has changed drastically from a more sophisticated poetic style to a more casual style associated with lower class characters in Shakespeare's works. By utilizing many forms of figurative language and poetic devices in his play Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare skillfully created a play that remains just as entertaining and applicable to human life today as it did hundreds of years
The Medieval Period was a time in history that lasted from the 5th Century to the 16th Century. Medieval literature has been hugely influential in modern popular culture. During the middle Ages, a great emphasis was placed on the combination of fantasy and reality. Though characters were given human characteristics, their personalities transcended to those of fabricated figures as of God, Saints, and brave leaders. The Middle English period features a host of firsts in English literature, such as the first romance, drama, autobiography, fiction, and the first woman writer in English history.
Renaissance’s Influence in Literature As the world emerges from the Dark Ages, the Renaissance movement marks the rebirth of culture, scientific discoveries and literature. As Europeans are rapidly discovering new lands and cultures, the framework is now set for the emergence of a new literary period focusing on humanism, individualism and secular values: three concepts seldom accepted prior to the fifteenth century. However, English dramatist, William Shakespeare, incorporates these ideas into his writing by creating complex characters with vivid and authentic emotions. He not only acknowledges the Age of Exploration, but actually melds these ideas into his works.
Turn on any one of the country’s major news channels, and you may hear newscasters saying “My bad” when admitting to having made a mistake, or making reference to Ben Affleck’s and Matt Damon’s “bromance.” Then there are the grammatical changes taking place: Helping verbs like “shall” and “ought” are disappearing, while “can” and “will” are as stable as ever. There is also the great influence social media is having on the English language, introducing acronyms such as “LOL” and “BTW” and shortening our thoughts to 140 character tweets. But do all these changes indicate that the English language is deteriorating? Not at all. On the contrary, our language is simply spinning off into different dialects, each one dependent on a given group of users. The English language is in flux, not in decline.
English is the official language of many countries all over the world and is spoken more and more every day("How English Evolved Into a Modern Language."). Modern English is the product of the invasions of England over a long period of time("Where Did the English Language Come From?"). Throughout history English has influenced and been influenced by many different languages("A Brief History of the English Language."). Historically, English is divided into three periods: Old English or Anglo-Saxon, Middle English, and Modern English("What Are the Origins of the English Language").
Is only time constant? Thousands of years ago, when the Roman empire was in control of the vast majority of Europe, Latin was the language that was spoken by everybody. Today, thousands of years later, Latin is a dead language. No society on the Earth today speaks Latin, but Latin words can still be found in certain texts. The poems, “Languages,” by Carl Sandburg and Don Juan by Lord Byron, use imagery to explain how languages do and do not change over time.
After the Norman conquest of England, the French language dominated the social spheres of the English population. As English civilization continued to evolve, however, a growing sense of English identity paved the way for increasing hostility and rivalry between the French and English populations. While French had been the primary dominant language for over a century after the Norman Conquest, “in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries its maintenance became increasingly artificial” (Baugh 150). By the sixteenth century, the use of English had become widespread and dominant throughout all social classes, and the use of French was negligible at best. Several signs can be seen pointing to the growing dominance of the English language, and these signs can be found in through various cultural, political, and governmental events and documents dated from the 14th to the 16th century.
The English language drew fascination from an early age. I began speaking full sentences before fourteen months. I finished the Lord of the Rings trilogy before public school. Soon after, my reading progressed to Poe and Lovecraft in primary school; in secondary I read Hemmingway, Dickenson, and much of what the Norton Anthology series covered. After graduation, I spent my professional career in the information technology industry due to the high rate of pay. However, the computer field was not a fulfilling career. Being led back to education, I considered becoming a History professor the first semester; though, the summer before the second year became a revelation. English combines history, philosophy, and the language itself. Therefore, fulfilling the main desire of having a job that is doing things I enjoy for a third of employed hours or more. Education has always been a pre-requisite. I get bored easy with employment that does have a reoccurring intellectual stimulation. I enjoy a job that constantly requires one to expand their knowledge and do independent research. The project and prerequisite research will be invaluable in preparing for a competitive job field.
Travelling back in time to the period that is traditionally known as the dark ages; the time of war and battles against the Vikings which was new invaders back then; the Anglo-Saxon period has many different aspects that are somehow unique to us. Such as how they have a different language - the Old English or how they greatly value the values of heroism, generosity and blood vengeance which cannot be almost seen in the present time. There are many aspects that they have before, but we will not focus on that. Instead, we will closely analyze the fact that by comparing it to the present day, we can observe tremendous differences like how the power of woman was elevated somehow today, the differences in our language, the Modern English to their language, Old English, how the leader or the king should act before and even the dissimilarity in the social hierarchy. But is the change in these aspects towards positivity? Or is it towards negativity? Are we really "improving" as they say?
English went on a long and vigorous adventure to have become the vast language that we know, speak and read today. In this essay, the differences and similarities between Old English and Modern English will be discussed by referring to an extract of Matthew 2: 4-10 from The Gospel of Saint Matthew in West Saxon: edited from the manuscripts by James Wilson Bright (1910:5-6). In the discussion there will be referred to the differences and similarities in orthography, spelling, vocabulary and syntax. Conclusions will also be made about the nature of these chances as they occurred in the adventure from Old English to Modern English.
The Renaissance Era can roughly be characterized as the time between 1400 AD and the 18th century, beginning with Henry VIII and reaching its highest point during Queen Elizabeth’s reign. It was a time in which English culture and society was facing many changes, as more and more information was being brought into the country by immigrants, as well as the citizens that travelled outside of England and returned. These new ideas concerning time and eternity and even astronomy began to alter the way people thought about themselves. Many began leaving behind the group ideology, and focusing more on the individual. Most of this change was fueled by the introduction of classical literature and art. This time in history is commonly referred to as a “rebirth” of classical Greek, Roman and Latin ideologies, (constituted mainly of pre-religious, pagan values that taught there were multiple Gods), as opposed to the common religion of the Renaissance era, in which there was only one God. Also fueling these changes were feuds between King Henry VIII and the established church, as well as the plague which devastated England’s population. People began questioning their personal existence, identity and started considering new notions about God, religion, politics and shifting back and forth between Catholicism and Protestantism. Two famous authors, Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare wrote plays introducing some of the new ideas, and by doing as such, not only documented
As India is a developing country and the status of English is second language the teaching of English has become a real challenge right from the beginning of the history of English language teaching till date and the teachers have been introducing new methodologies and the trends kept changing.