Each time after a public examination, there are always complaints lashed out at the examining body by parents, teachers and other educators either about question papers being too easy or questions set that were not in accordance with the syllabus.
This has happened over the past two years. It wasn’t the case many years ago when everybody from the top down was serious about the whole examination process from the time the questions were prepared to the time they were administered and marked to the announcement of results. Even changes to the format were given due thought and announced a year or two ahead.
These days, changes are abrupt and sometimes the announcement of a change is made only a few months before the examination. When this happens, the questions set have to be made easy in order to hide our own planning inefficacy.
Examinations determine a person’s choice of study and career later in life. As such, the examining body should carry out its duty properly. It is time we seriously looked not only into the setting of questions but also into the administering and marking of the scripts and the release of the results.
After 40 years of teaching English and having held portfolios as Master English Teacher, examiner and question designer, I fully agree with the complaints that parents, teachers and union representatives recently expressed about their apprehension and disappointment over the recent PMR English Language paper.
It is even more disappointing to note that in response to this, the Malaysian Examinations Syndicate (MES) got all defensive. I was flabbergasted when the MES claimed that the paper this year was of the same difficulty level as last year.
Out of curiosity, I administered this year’s PMR paper to 22 students comprising four Standard 6 students (two from SRJK and two from SRK), eight Form 1 students and eight Form 2 students, some of whom had scored B or C in the UPSR.
To my surprise, the students obtained more than 34 correct answers. In fact, a student from an SK school (UPSR student) managed to get 37 correct answers.
How would you vouch for such a good performance? The answer is simple – the paper is EASY.
That was also the general opinion of these students. To add oil to fire, these students also completed Paper 1 in 30 minutes. If someone in Sarawak claimed that his or her students did not find the paper easy, then I would only blame the teaching and the preparation that went along in anticipation of the PMR Examination.
Without prejudice, I would like to express my personal views on this year’s English paper:
In Paper 1, some of the questions should have been given more thought in order to exact a certain level of thinking and application skills. I would just like to highlight a few.
Question 1:
a. The question could have been effective without the picture.
b. However, if the evaluators think that the picture is important, then distractors A and D should have been reworded to relate them to “book” because “went to the library” and “came to the library late” do not match the act in the picture (librarian pointing to the book). This being the case, students could easily eliminate these two distractors right away.
Question 2:
The word “memo” can be misleading because in a standard memo pad, the word MEMO is printed. Moreover, it is wrong for a student to send a memo to a teacher in the hierarchy of communication. Instead of “memo”, the word “note” would have been appropriate.
Compare this question with Question 6 in which the word “message” is appropriately used.
Question 9 (Vocabulary question):
The word “collided” used in the report is a verb. I suppose option A is the correct answer but it does not convey the exact meaning. The word “crashed” by itself would mean something different but with the preposition “to”, the answer would have been very accurate.
Section D
I see the stimulus given for Questions 25–28 containing a few basic mistakes.
a. Let’s have a lively Day!!!
Why is the letter ‘D’ in “Day” in upper case? Can someone clarify this?
b. Since “spelling bee”, “drawing competition” and “lucky draw” are in noun forms, likewise “sing along” should have been hyphenated as “sing-along” or “sing-a-long” and “story telling” should have been “storytelling” to maintain consistency of usage.
Paper 2
Section B
I was not happy with the rubric given for the summary question. “Rewrite” could mean “write it again ?” This actually confused a number of PMR students who I met after the English paper.
The evaluators/testers should have maintained the same rubric as was given in the sample format sent to schools at the beginning of the year.
The rubric could have been improved to read as follows:
“Rewrite by summarising the advantages of television to children ?”
I know the MES has an unprecedented task in preparing question papers, administering them and marking them but there is one important thing that would keep our public examinations recognised globally – that is, QUALITY.
In terms of administering a test, I would say kudos to the MES, but with regard to the setting of questions and the marking of examination scripts, I think the MES should seriously review the whole process, especially in appointing item/question designers and examiners. Only people specialised in the respective subjects and who have undergone exhaustive training and been appraised from time to time should be appointed.
From my own observation as an ex-English teacher, I know there are many appointees in relation to public examinations, especially English, who do not even have a basic degree in English/TESL/TEFL. I would not know the criteria used by the MES in their selection of designers of questions or examiners. My request to the MES is to update the profile of the people involved in the setting and marking of question papers. That should be treated as a priority.
You can’t get a Chemistry, Maths or a Physical Education teacher to set English Language question papers or mark the candidates’ scripts just because they can speak and understand English. The person involved must have a genuine diploma or degree in the subject concerned and must have gone through the various methods of testing and marking enhanced by years of committed teaching in the subject of their specialisation.
I know there are a handful of question designers and examiners who are given one class (probably a weak one) merely to comply with the MES’s criteria that they should be teaching the subject. If someone is in the good books of the headmaster or principal, he or she gets appointed and the MES would not question the integrity of the headmaster or principal. The MES should therefore update their examiners’ profiles.
If the MES is unable to get the adequate number of people, it is only right for them to recall retired people who are willing to contribute. I am sure there are many out there. In Britain, retired people are roped in to help handle examinations.
If we do this, I do not think that in future the issue of examination papers being easy, errors appearing in question papers and dubious standards of marking would become the core of annual complaints.
Let us uphold the integrity of our examination system. – Mindful
Isnin, 19 Julai 2010
Jumaat, 16 Julai 2010
why irish people call potato people?
Answer
During the 17th through the 19th centuries every square inch of Ireland was owned by some great landlord, either and Englishman or a wealthy Irish Protestant. The vast majority of productive agricultural land was given over to sheep farming or raising crops for export to England. The poor Catholic Irish had to make do with trying to raise food on marginally arable land. There was very little that would grow on the acres they had available to them. Potatoes are a hardy crop that will grow almost anywhere and produce abundantly. As a result potatoes became not merely a staple of the Irish diet but were often the only thing they had to eat. Thus they became known as potato eaters or potato people. Michael Montagne
Answer
Potato people?!? Since when are we called potato people? That's even worse than lepreachains!
Answer
First answer is part correct, main reason is simply because, well, they grew them so much that the people in ireland were over-run by potatoes, now the "people" in Ireland are potatoes, look at all the similarities, one being, they're as dumb as potatoes, they think that "Irish" is a language XD it's called "Gaelic" and the scottish speak it too. They also will hire anyone to teach english, poor potatoes.
Answer
During the 17th through the 19th centuries every square inch of Ireland was owned by some great landlord, either and Englishman or a wealthy Irish Protestant. The vast majority of productive agricultural land was given over to sheep farming or raising crops for export to England. The poor Catholic Irish had to make do with trying to raise food on marginally arable land. There was very little that would grow on the acres they had available to them. Potatoes are a hardy crop that will grow almost anywhere and produce abundantly. As a result potatoes became not merely a staple of the Irish diet but were often the only thing they had to eat. Thus they became known as potato eaters or potato people. Michael Montagne
Answer
Potato people?!? Since when are we called potato people? That's even worse than lepreachains!
Answer
First answer is part correct, main reason is simply because, well, they grew them so much that the people in ireland were over-run by potatoes, now the "people" in Ireland are potatoes, look at all the similarities, one being, they're as dumb as potatoes, they think that "Irish" is a language XD it's called "Gaelic" and the scottish speak it too. They also will hire anyone to teach english, poor potatoes.
lesson
Novel – Potato People (Form 2 ) Based on the novel , comment on thele sson it has for its readers . I have learnt an important lesson from ‘Potato People’ . It is the
determination of working towards a better future . During their early years in
America , Patrick and Marie had to struggle . They had to accept the worst jobs
for the lowest pay .Their perseverance paid off for life became much better many
years later . Finally , they settled down in California and became cattle ranchers . I
learn that if one is determined to struggle , one can achieve one’s hope of a better
future .
Based on the novel , write about the character you find most interesting . Give examples from the novel . I find Marie in ‘Potato People’ most interesting . She is knowledgeable ,
cheerful and intelligent . She had been to many cities . So she knew how to protect
herself . Patrick learnt the survival games from her and later to steal food from
rich people’s homes . However difficult times were , she was cheerful and lively . In
America , she struggled with Patrick during the early years . Life became better
when she married Patrick and they settled down in California .
Based on the novel , comment on whether you enjoyed reading the novel.Yes , I have enjoyed reading the novel , ‘Potato People’ .The story is interesting , and message for readers is good .The story tells about the food
famines during the Irish potato blight in 1840s .Many Irish rushed to emigrate to
the New World hoping to start a new life . Its message is we control our destiny
and how our lives become depends on us . In the end , Patrick and Marie settled
determination of working towards a better future . During their early years in
America , Patrick and Marie had to struggle . They had to accept the worst jobs
for the lowest pay .Their perseverance paid off for life became much better many
years later . Finally , they settled down in California and became cattle ranchers . I
learn that if one is determined to struggle , one can achieve one’s hope of a better
future .
Based on the novel , write about the character you find most interesting . Give examples from the novel . I find Marie in ‘Potato People’ most interesting . She is knowledgeable ,
cheerful and intelligent . She had been to many cities . So she knew how to protect
herself . Patrick learnt the survival games from her and later to steal food from
rich people’s homes . However difficult times were , she was cheerful and lively . In
America , she struggled with Patrick during the early years . Life became better
when she married Patrick and they settled down in California .
Based on the novel , comment on whether you enjoyed reading the novel.Yes , I have enjoyed reading the novel , ‘Potato People’ .The story is interesting , and message for readers is good .The story tells about the food
famines during the Irish potato blight in 1840s .Many Irish rushed to emigrate to
the New World hoping to start a new life . Its message is we control our destiny
and how our lives become depends on us . In the end , Patrick and Marie settled
Khamis, 15 Julai 2010
use of english
Modern Usage of English
English in the World | Varieties and Dialects | Jargon | Slang | Neologisms
English is the second or third most popular world language, as measured by the number of native speakers, which was around 402 million in 2002. It is also the most popular second and learning language in the world, as the cultural, economic, military, political and scientific importance of the United States of America and the United Kingdom for the last two centuries has given English pre-eminent status as a language of international communication. With such a wide geographical distribution and because of its use in academia and other specialized contexts, numerous distinct varieties and special jargons have emerged.
English as a World Language [Top]
English is the first language of a large majority of the population in the United States of America, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (including England, Scotland and Wales), Ireland (Eire), Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Guyana, Jamaica, Antigua, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Trinidad and Tobago. There are also significant numbers of native speakers in South Africa, India, Singapore, and Hong Kong.
English is also one of the primary languages of Belize (with Spanish), Cameroon (with French and African languages), Dominica, St. Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (with French Creole), the Federated States of Micronesia, and Liberia (with African languages).
It is an official language, but not native to large segments of the population, in Fiji, Ghana, Gambia, Kiribati, Lesotho, Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria, Malta, the Marshall Islands, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, the Solomon Islands, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. It is the most commonly used unofficial language of Israel and an increasing number of other countries such as Switzerland, the Netherlands, Norway and Germany.
English is also the language most often studied as a foreign language in Europe (32.6%) and Japan, followed by French, German and Spanish.
Varieties and Dialects [Top]
Because of the history and sheer number of people who use English, there are many different varieties of English. A variety can be thought of as a distinctive kind of English, or more technically, a specific linguistic system shared by a particular pool of users. There are no sharp dividing lines between varieties, since people typically master more than one variety. Nevertheless, varieties can be described in terms of the group who most uses a particular variety and the linguistic properties of that variety. Varieties can be identified in this way by geographical groups, social groups, or particular stylistic or usage types.
A dialect is a variety of a language spoken in a certain geographical area. Because of the wide distribution of English speakers, a number of distinct dialects have emerged over the course of history. These include American English, Australian English, British English, Canadian English, South African English, Caribbean English, Indian English, Jamaican English, Liberian English, New Zealand English, Pakistani English, and Singapore English among others
English in the World | Varieties and Dialects | Jargon | Slang | Neologisms
English is the second or third most popular world language, as measured by the number of native speakers, which was around 402 million in 2002. It is also the most popular second and learning language in the world, as the cultural, economic, military, political and scientific importance of the United States of America and the United Kingdom for the last two centuries has given English pre-eminent status as a language of international communication. With such a wide geographical distribution and because of its use in academia and other specialized contexts, numerous distinct varieties and special jargons have emerged.
English as a World Language [Top]
English is the first language of a large majority of the population in the United States of America, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (including England, Scotland and Wales), Ireland (Eire), Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Guyana, Jamaica, Antigua, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Trinidad and Tobago. There are also significant numbers of native speakers in South Africa, India, Singapore, and Hong Kong.
English is also one of the primary languages of Belize (with Spanish), Cameroon (with French and African languages), Dominica, St. Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (with French Creole), the Federated States of Micronesia, and Liberia (with African languages).
It is an official language, but not native to large segments of the population, in Fiji, Ghana, Gambia, Kiribati, Lesotho, Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria, Malta, the Marshall Islands, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, the Solomon Islands, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. It is the most commonly used unofficial language of Israel and an increasing number of other countries such as Switzerland, the Netherlands, Norway and Germany.
English is also the language most often studied as a foreign language in Europe (32.6%) and Japan, followed by French, German and Spanish.
Varieties and Dialects [Top]
Because of the history and sheer number of people who use English, there are many different varieties of English. A variety can be thought of as a distinctive kind of English, or more technically, a specific linguistic system shared by a particular pool of users. There are no sharp dividing lines between varieties, since people typically master more than one variety. Nevertheless, varieties can be described in terms of the group who most uses a particular variety and the linguistic properties of that variety. Varieties can be identified in this way by geographical groups, social groups, or particular stylistic or usage types.
A dialect is a variety of a language spoken in a certain geographical area. Because of the wide distribution of English speakers, a number of distinct dialects have emerged over the course of history. These include American English, Australian English, British English, Canadian English, South African English, Caribbean English, Indian English, Jamaican English, Liberian English, New Zealand English, Pakistani English, and Singapore English among others
history of english
The language we call English was first brought to the north sea coasts of England in the 5th and 6th centuries A.D., by seafaring people from Denmark and the northwestern coasts of present-day Germany and the Netherlands. These immigrants spoke a cluster of related dialects falling within the Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family. Their language began to develop its own distinctive features in isolation from the continental Germanic languages, and by 600 A.D. had developed into what we call Old English or Anglo-Saxon, covering the territory of most of modern England.
New waves of Germanic invaders and settlers came from Norway and Denmark starting in the late 8th century. The more violent of these were known as Vikings, sea-faring plunderers who retained their ancient pagan gods and attacked settlements and churches for gold and silver. They spoke a northern Germanic dialect similar to, yet different in grammar from Anglo-Saxon. In the 11th century, the attacks became organized, state-sponsored military invasions and England was even ruled for a time by the kings of Denmark and Norway. The Scandinavian influence on the language was strongest in the north and lasted for a full 600 years, although English seems to have been adopted by the settlers fairly early on.
The Norman Invasion and Conquest of 1066 was a cataclysmic event that brought new rulers and new cultural, social and linguistic influences to the British Isles. The Norman French ruling minority dominated the church, government, legal, and educational systems for three centuries. The Norman establishment used French and Latin, leaving English as the language of the illiterate and powerless majority. During this period English adopted thousands of words from Norman French and from Latin, and its grammar changed rather radically. By the end of that time, however, the aristocracy had adopted English as their language and the use and importance of French gradually faded. The period from the Conquest to the reemergence of English as a full-fledged literary language is called Middle English. Geoffrey Chaucer wrote his masterpiece, The Canterbury Tales, in Middle English in the late 1300s.
William Caxton set up the first printing press in Britain at the end of the 15th century. The arrival of printing marks the point at which the language began to take the first steps toward standardization and its eventual role as a national language. The period from 1500 to about 1650 is called Early Modern English, a period during which notable sound changes, syntactic changes and lexical enrichment took place. The Great English Vowel Shift, which systematically shifted the phonetic values of all the long vowels in English, occurred during this period. Word order became more fixed in a subject-verb-object pattern, and English developed a complex auxiliary verb system. A rush of new vocabulary from the classical languages, the modern European languages, and more distant trading partners such as the countries of Asian minor and the Middle East entered the language as the renaissance influences of culture and trade and the emerging scientific community of Europe took root in England.
Shakespeare wrote prolifically during the late 1500s and early 1600s and, like Chaucer, took the language into new and creative literary territory. His influence on English drama and poetry continued to grow after his death in 1616 and he has never been surpassed as the best known and most read poet/playwright of modern English.
The King James Bible was published in 1611, the culmination of at least a century of efforts to bring a Bible written in the native language of the people into the Church establishment and into people's homes. Among the common people, whose contact with literature often did not go far past the Bible, the language of the scriptures as presented in this version commissioned by King James I was deeply influential, due in part to its religious significance, but also to its literary quality. Its simple style and use of native vocabulary had a surpassing beauty that still resonates today.
By the 1700s almost all of the modern syntactic patterns of English were in place and the language is easily readable by modern speakers. Colonization of new territories by the newly united Kingdom of Great Britain spread English to the far corners of the globe and brought cargoes of still more loanwords from those far-flung places. At this point English began to develop its major world dialectal varieties, some of which would develop into national standards for newly independent colonies. By the 21st century, as the language of international business, science, and popular culture, English has become the most important language on the planet.
Comparison of the Lord's Prayer in different stages of English
Pre-English Period (before 600 AD) [Top]
ca. 3000 B.C.
(or 6000 B.C?) Proto-Indo-European spoken in Baltic area.
(or Anatolia?)
Excurses: Indo-European languages | Proto-Indo-European
ca. 1000 B.C. After many migrations, the various branches of Indo-European have become distinct. Celtic becomes most widespread branch of I.E. in Europe; Celtic peoples inhabit what is now Spain, France, Germany and England.
55 B.C. Beginning of Roman raids on British Isles.
43 A.D. Roman occupation of Britain. Roman colony of "Britannia" established. Eventually, many Celtic Britons become Romanized. (Others continually rebel).
Excursus: History of Latin
200 B.C.-200 A.D. Germanic peoples move down from Scandinavia and spread over Central Europe in successive waves. Supplant Celts. Come into contact (at times antagonistic, at times commercial) with northward-expanding empire of Romans.
Early 5th century. Roman Empire collapses. Romans pull out of Britain and other colonies, attempting to shore up defense on the home front; but it's useless. Rome sacked by Goths.
Germanic tribes on the continent continue migrations west and south; consolidate into ever larger units. Those taking over in Rome call themselves "Roman emperors", even though the imperial administration had relocated to Byzantium in the 300s. The new Germanic rulers soon adopt the Christianity of the late Roman state, and begin what later evolves into the not-very-Roman "Holy Roman Empire".
ca. 410 A.D. First Germanic tribes arrive in England.
410-600 Settlement of most of Britain by Germanic peoples (Angles, Saxons, Jutes, some Frisians) speaking West Germanic dialects descended from Proto-Germanic. These dialects are distantly related to Latin, but also have a sprinkling of Latin borrowings due to earlier cultural contact with the Romans on the continent.
Celtic peoples, most of whom are Christianized due to the late Roman adoption of Christianity, are pushed increasingly (despite occasional violent uprisings) into the marginal areas of Britain: Ireland, Scotland, Wales. Anglo-Saxons, originally sea-farers, settle down as farmers, exploiting rich English farmland.
By 600 A.D., the Germanic speech of England comprises dialects of a language distinct from the continental Germanic languages.
Old English Period (ca. 600-1100) [Top]
600-800 Rise of three great kingdoms politically unifying large areas: Northumbria, Mercia, Wessex. Supremacy passes from one kingdom to another in that order.
ca. 600 Christianity introduced among Anglo-Saxons by St. Augustine, missionary from Rome. At the same time, Irish missionaries bring the Celtic form of Christianity to mainland Britain from the northwest.
793 First serious Viking incursions. Lindisfarne monastery sacked.
Excursus: Map of Viking invasions
800 Charlemagne, king of the Franks, crowned Holy Roman Emperor; height of Frankish power in Europe. Wessex kings aspire to similar glory; want to unite all England, and if possible the rest of mainland Britain, under one crown (theirs).
840s-870s Viking incursions grow worse and worse. Large organized groups set up permanent encampments on English soil. Slay kings of Northumbria and East Anglia, subjugate king of Mercia. Storm York (Anglo-Saxon Eoforwic) and set up a Viking kingdom (Jorvik). Wessex stands alone as the last Anglo-Saxon kingdom in Britain.
871 Vikings move against Wessex. In six pitched battles, the English hold their own, but fail to repel attackers decisively. In the last battle, the English king is mortally wounded. His young brother, Alfred, who had distinguished himself during the battles, is crowned king.
871-876 Alfred builds a navy. The kings of Denmark and Norway have come to view England as ripe for the plucking and begin to prepare an attack.
876 Three Danish kings attack Wessex. Alfred prevails, only to be attacked again a few months later. His cause looks hopeless.
878 Decisive battle at Edington; Alfred and a large contingent of desperate Anglo-Saxons make a last stand (they know what awaits them if they fail). Alfred leads the Anglo-Saxons to decisive victory; blockades a large Viking camp nearby, starving them into submission; and exacts homage from the kings of Denmark and an oath that the Danes will leave Wessex forever.
Under Alfred's terms of victory, England is partitioned into a part governed by the Anglo-Saxons (under the house of Wessex) and a part governed by the Scandinavians (some of whom become underlords of Alfred), divided by Watling Street. 15 years of peace follow; Alfred reigns over peaceful and prosperous kingdom. First called "Alfred the Great".
925 Athelstan crowned king. Height of Anglo-Saxon power. Athelstan reconquers York from the Vikings, and even conquers Scotland and Wales, heretofore ruled by Celts. Continues Alfred's mission of making improvemen ts in government, education, defense, and other social institutions.
10th century Danes and English continue to mix peacefully, and ultimately become indistinguishable. Many Scandinavian loanwords enter the language; English even borrows pronouns like them, their they.
978 Aethelred "the Unready" becomes king at 11 years of age.
991 Aethelred has proved to be a weak king, who does not repel minor Viking attacks. Vikings experiment with a major incursion at Maldon in Essex. After losing battle, Aethelred bribes them to depart with 10,000 pounds of silver. Mistake. Sveinn, king of Denmark, takes note.
994-1014 After 20 years of continuous battles and bribings, and incompetent and cowardly military leadership and governance, the English capitulate to king Sveinn of Denmark (later also of Norway). Aethelred flees to Normandy, across the channel.
1014 Sveinn's young son Cnut (or Canute) crowned king of England. Cnut decides to follow in Alfred's footsteps, aiming for a peaceful and prosperous kingdom. Encourages Anglo-Saxon culture and literature. Even marries Aethelred's widow Emma, brought over from Normandy.
After Cnut's death his sons bicker over the kingdom. When they die without issue, the kingdom passes back to the house of Wessex, to young Edward, son of Aethelred and Emma, who had been raised in exile in Normandy. Edward is a pious, monkish man called "The Confessor".
Edward has strong partiality for his birthplace, Normandy, a duchy populated by the descendents of Romanized Vikings. Especially fond of young Duke William of Normandy. Edward is dominated by his Anglo-Saxon earls, especially powerful earl Godwin. Godwin's son, Harold Godwinson, becomes de facto ruler as Edward takes less and less interest in governing.
1066 January. Edward dies childless, apparently recommending Harold Godwinson as successor. Harold duly chosen by Wessex earls, as nearest of kin to the crown is only an infant. Mercian and Northumbrian earls are hesitant to go along with choice of Harold.
William of Normandy claims that Harold once promised to support HIM as successor to Edward. Harold denies it. William prepares to mount an invasion. Ready by summer, but the winds are unfavorable for sailing.
September. Harald Hardradi of Norway decides this is a good time to attack England. Harold Godwinson rushes north and crushes Hardradi's army at Stamford Bridge. The winds change, and William puts to sea. Harold rushes back down to the south coast to try to repel William's attack. Mercians and Northumbrians are supposed to march down to help him, but never do. They don't realize what's in store for them.
October. Harold is defeated and killed at the battle of Hastings.
December. William of Normandy crowned king of England in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day.
Excursus: The Bayeux Tapestry
Middle English Period (ca. 1100-1500) [Top]
1066-1075 William crushes uprisings of Anglo-Saxon earls and peasants with a brutal hand; in Mercia and Northumberland, uses (literal) scorched earth policy, decimating population and laying waste the countryside. Anglo-Saxon earls and freemen deprived of property; many enslaved. William distributes property and titles to Normans (and some English) who supported him. Many of the English hereditary titles of nobility date from this period.
English becomes the language of the lower classes (peasants and slaves). Norman French becomes the language of the court and propertied classes. The legal system is redrawn along Norman lines and conducted in French. Churches, monasteries gradually filled with French-speaking functionaries, who use French for record-keeping. After a while, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is no longer kept up. Authors write literature in French, not English. For all practical purposes English is no longer a written language.
Bilingualism gradually becomes more common, especially among those who deal with both upper and lower classes. Growth of London as a commercial center draws many from the countryside who can fill this socially intermediate role.
1204 The English kings lose the duchy of Normandy to French kings. England is now the only home of the Norman English.
1205 First book in English appears since the conquest.
1258 First royal proclamation issued in English since the conquest.
ca. 1300 Increasing feeling on the part of even noblemen that they are English, not French. Nobility begin to educate their children in English. French is taught to children as a foreign language rather than used as a medium of instruction.
1337 Start of the Hundred Years' War between England and France.
1362 English becomes official language of the law courts. More and more authors are writing in English.
ca. 1380 Chaucer writes the Canterbury tales in Middle English. the language shows French influence in thousands of French borrowings. The London dialect, for the first time, begins to be recognized as the "Standard", or variety of English taken as the norm, for all England. Other dialects are relegated to a less prestigious position, even those that earlier served as standards (e.g. the Wessex dialect of southwest England).
Excursus: Chaucer's Canterbury Tales
1474 William Caxton brings a printing press to England from Germany. Publishes the first printed book in England. Beginning of the long process of standardization of spelling.
Excursus: The Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye
Modern English Period (ca. 1500-present) [Top]
1500-1650 Early Modern English develops. The Great Vowel Shift gradually takes place. There is a large influx of Latin and Greek borrowings and neologisms.
1552 Thomas Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, publishes the Book of Common Prayer, a translation of the church's liturgy into English.
1611 King James Bible published, which has influenced English writing down to the present day.
Excursus: Common phrases from the King James Bible
1616 Shakespeare dies. Recognized even then as a genius of the English language. Wove native and borrowed words together in amazing and pleasing combinations.
Excursus: Shakespeare's Legacy
1700s Classical period of English literature. The fashion for borrowing Latin and Greek words, and coining new words with Latin and Greek morphemes, rages unabated. Elaborate syntax matches elaborate vocabulary (e.g. writings of Samuel Johnson).
The rise of English purists, e.g. Jonathan Swift, who decried the 'degeneration' of English and sought to 'purify' it and fix it forever in unchanging form.
17th-19th centuries British imperialism. Borrowings from languages around the world.
Development of American English. By 19th century, a standard variety of American English develops, based on the dialect of the Mid-Atlantic states.
Establishment of English in Australia, South Africa, and India, among other British colonial outposts.
Excursus: Borrowed words in English
19th century Recognition (and acceptance) by linguistic scholars of the ever-changing nature of language. Discovery of the Indo-European language family. Late in century: Recognition that all languages are fundamentally the same in nature; no "primitive" or "advanced" languages.
19th-20th centuries Scientific and Industrial Revolutions. Development of technical vocabularies. Within a few centuries, English has gone from an island tongue to a world language, following the fortunes of those who speak it.
20th century Communications revolution. Spread of a few languages at the expense of many. Languages of the world begin to die out on a large scale as mastery of certain world languages becomes necessary for survival. Classification and description of non-Indo-European languages by linguists continues, in many cases in a race against the clock.
1945-present American political, economic, military supremacy. Borrowing patterns continue. English has greater impact than ever on other languages, even those with more native speakers. Becomes most widely studied second language, and a scientific lingua franca.
By the 1990s, preferences begin to shift in many places from British to American English as the selected standard for second language acquisition. The twin influences of British and American broadcasting media make the language accessible to more and more people. Hollywood and the pop music industry help make English an irresistible medium for the transmission of popular culture. Even long-established European cultures begin to feel linguistically and culturally threatened, as English comes into use in more and more spheres and large numbers of English borrowings enter their languages.
New waves of immigrants to the U.S. Linguistic diversity increases where the newcomers settle, but immigrants repeat the pattern of earlier settlers and lose their language within a generation or two. The culture at large remains resolutely monolingual (despite the fears of cultural purists). But as ever, the language continues to absorb loanwords, continually enriched by the many tongues of the newcomers to these shores.
New waves of Germanic invaders and settlers came from Norway and Denmark starting in the late 8th century. The more violent of these were known as Vikings, sea-faring plunderers who retained their ancient pagan gods and attacked settlements and churches for gold and silver. They spoke a northern Germanic dialect similar to, yet different in grammar from Anglo-Saxon. In the 11th century, the attacks became organized, state-sponsored military invasions and England was even ruled for a time by the kings of Denmark and Norway. The Scandinavian influence on the language was strongest in the north and lasted for a full 600 years, although English seems to have been adopted by the settlers fairly early on.
The Norman Invasion and Conquest of 1066 was a cataclysmic event that brought new rulers and new cultural, social and linguistic influences to the British Isles. The Norman French ruling minority dominated the church, government, legal, and educational systems for three centuries. The Norman establishment used French and Latin, leaving English as the language of the illiterate and powerless majority. During this period English adopted thousands of words from Norman French and from Latin, and its grammar changed rather radically. By the end of that time, however, the aristocracy had adopted English as their language and the use and importance of French gradually faded. The period from the Conquest to the reemergence of English as a full-fledged literary language is called Middle English. Geoffrey Chaucer wrote his masterpiece, The Canterbury Tales, in Middle English in the late 1300s.
William Caxton set up the first printing press in Britain at the end of the 15th century. The arrival of printing marks the point at which the language began to take the first steps toward standardization and its eventual role as a national language. The period from 1500 to about 1650 is called Early Modern English, a period during which notable sound changes, syntactic changes and lexical enrichment took place. The Great English Vowel Shift, which systematically shifted the phonetic values of all the long vowels in English, occurred during this period. Word order became more fixed in a subject-verb-object pattern, and English developed a complex auxiliary verb system. A rush of new vocabulary from the classical languages, the modern European languages, and more distant trading partners such as the countries of Asian minor and the Middle East entered the language as the renaissance influences of culture and trade and the emerging scientific community of Europe took root in England.
Shakespeare wrote prolifically during the late 1500s and early 1600s and, like Chaucer, took the language into new and creative literary territory. His influence on English drama and poetry continued to grow after his death in 1616 and he has never been surpassed as the best known and most read poet/playwright of modern English.
The King James Bible was published in 1611, the culmination of at least a century of efforts to bring a Bible written in the native language of the people into the Church establishment and into people's homes. Among the common people, whose contact with literature often did not go far past the Bible, the language of the scriptures as presented in this version commissioned by King James I was deeply influential, due in part to its religious significance, but also to its literary quality. Its simple style and use of native vocabulary had a surpassing beauty that still resonates today.
By the 1700s almost all of the modern syntactic patterns of English were in place and the language is easily readable by modern speakers. Colonization of new territories by the newly united Kingdom of Great Britain spread English to the far corners of the globe and brought cargoes of still more loanwords from those far-flung places. At this point English began to develop its major world dialectal varieties, some of which would develop into national standards for newly independent colonies. By the 21st century, as the language of international business, science, and popular culture, English has become the most important language on the planet.
Comparison of the Lord's Prayer in different stages of English
Pre-English Period (before 600 AD) [Top]
ca. 3000 B.C.
(or 6000 B.C?) Proto-Indo-European spoken in Baltic area.
(or Anatolia?)
Excurses: Indo-European languages | Proto-Indo-European
ca. 1000 B.C. After many migrations, the various branches of Indo-European have become distinct. Celtic becomes most widespread branch of I.E. in Europe; Celtic peoples inhabit what is now Spain, France, Germany and England.
55 B.C. Beginning of Roman raids on British Isles.
43 A.D. Roman occupation of Britain. Roman colony of "Britannia" established. Eventually, many Celtic Britons become Romanized. (Others continually rebel).
Excursus: History of Latin
200 B.C.-200 A.D. Germanic peoples move down from Scandinavia and spread over Central Europe in successive waves. Supplant Celts. Come into contact (at times antagonistic, at times commercial) with northward-expanding empire of Romans.
Early 5th century. Roman Empire collapses. Romans pull out of Britain and other colonies, attempting to shore up defense on the home front; but it's useless. Rome sacked by Goths.
Germanic tribes on the continent continue migrations west and south; consolidate into ever larger units. Those taking over in Rome call themselves "Roman emperors", even though the imperial administration had relocated to Byzantium in the 300s. The new Germanic rulers soon adopt the Christianity of the late Roman state, and begin what later evolves into the not-very-Roman "Holy Roman Empire".
ca. 410 A.D. First Germanic tribes arrive in England.
410-600 Settlement of most of Britain by Germanic peoples (Angles, Saxons, Jutes, some Frisians) speaking West Germanic dialects descended from Proto-Germanic. These dialects are distantly related to Latin, but also have a sprinkling of Latin borrowings due to earlier cultural contact with the Romans on the continent.
Celtic peoples, most of whom are Christianized due to the late Roman adoption of Christianity, are pushed increasingly (despite occasional violent uprisings) into the marginal areas of Britain: Ireland, Scotland, Wales. Anglo-Saxons, originally sea-farers, settle down as farmers, exploiting rich English farmland.
By 600 A.D., the Germanic speech of England comprises dialects of a language distinct from the continental Germanic languages.
Old English Period (ca. 600-1100) [Top]
600-800 Rise of three great kingdoms politically unifying large areas: Northumbria, Mercia, Wessex. Supremacy passes from one kingdom to another in that order.
ca. 600 Christianity introduced among Anglo-Saxons by St. Augustine, missionary from Rome. At the same time, Irish missionaries bring the Celtic form of Christianity to mainland Britain from the northwest.
793 First serious Viking incursions. Lindisfarne monastery sacked.
Excursus: Map of Viking invasions
800 Charlemagne, king of the Franks, crowned Holy Roman Emperor; height of Frankish power in Europe. Wessex kings aspire to similar glory; want to unite all England, and if possible the rest of mainland Britain, under one crown (theirs).
840s-870s Viking incursions grow worse and worse. Large organized groups set up permanent encampments on English soil. Slay kings of Northumbria and East Anglia, subjugate king of Mercia. Storm York (Anglo-Saxon Eoforwic) and set up a Viking kingdom (Jorvik). Wessex stands alone as the last Anglo-Saxon kingdom in Britain.
871 Vikings move against Wessex. In six pitched battles, the English hold their own, but fail to repel attackers decisively. In the last battle, the English king is mortally wounded. His young brother, Alfred, who had distinguished himself during the battles, is crowned king.
871-876 Alfred builds a navy. The kings of Denmark and Norway have come to view England as ripe for the plucking and begin to prepare an attack.
876 Three Danish kings attack Wessex. Alfred prevails, only to be attacked again a few months later. His cause looks hopeless.
878 Decisive battle at Edington; Alfred and a large contingent of desperate Anglo-Saxons make a last stand (they know what awaits them if they fail). Alfred leads the Anglo-Saxons to decisive victory; blockades a large Viking camp nearby, starving them into submission; and exacts homage from the kings of Denmark and an oath that the Danes will leave Wessex forever.
Under Alfred's terms of victory, England is partitioned into a part governed by the Anglo-Saxons (under the house of Wessex) and a part governed by the Scandinavians (some of whom become underlords of Alfred), divided by Watling Street. 15 years of peace follow; Alfred reigns over peaceful and prosperous kingdom. First called "Alfred the Great".
925 Athelstan crowned king. Height of Anglo-Saxon power. Athelstan reconquers York from the Vikings, and even conquers Scotland and Wales, heretofore ruled by Celts. Continues Alfred's mission of making improvemen ts in government, education, defense, and other social institutions.
10th century Danes and English continue to mix peacefully, and ultimately become indistinguishable. Many Scandinavian loanwords enter the language; English even borrows pronouns like them, their they.
978 Aethelred "the Unready" becomes king at 11 years of age.
991 Aethelred has proved to be a weak king, who does not repel minor Viking attacks. Vikings experiment with a major incursion at Maldon in Essex. After losing battle, Aethelred bribes them to depart with 10,000 pounds of silver. Mistake. Sveinn, king of Denmark, takes note.
994-1014 After 20 years of continuous battles and bribings, and incompetent and cowardly military leadership and governance, the English capitulate to king Sveinn of Denmark (later also of Norway). Aethelred flees to Normandy, across the channel.
1014 Sveinn's young son Cnut (or Canute) crowned king of England. Cnut decides to follow in Alfred's footsteps, aiming for a peaceful and prosperous kingdom. Encourages Anglo-Saxon culture and literature. Even marries Aethelred's widow Emma, brought over from Normandy.
After Cnut's death his sons bicker over the kingdom. When they die without issue, the kingdom passes back to the house of Wessex, to young Edward, son of Aethelred and Emma, who had been raised in exile in Normandy. Edward is a pious, monkish man called "The Confessor".
Edward has strong partiality for his birthplace, Normandy, a duchy populated by the descendents of Romanized Vikings. Especially fond of young Duke William of Normandy. Edward is dominated by his Anglo-Saxon earls, especially powerful earl Godwin. Godwin's son, Harold Godwinson, becomes de facto ruler as Edward takes less and less interest in governing.
1066 January. Edward dies childless, apparently recommending Harold Godwinson as successor. Harold duly chosen by Wessex earls, as nearest of kin to the crown is only an infant. Mercian and Northumbrian earls are hesitant to go along with choice of Harold.
William of Normandy claims that Harold once promised to support HIM as successor to Edward. Harold denies it. William prepares to mount an invasion. Ready by summer, but the winds are unfavorable for sailing.
September. Harald Hardradi of Norway decides this is a good time to attack England. Harold Godwinson rushes north and crushes Hardradi's army at Stamford Bridge. The winds change, and William puts to sea. Harold rushes back down to the south coast to try to repel William's attack. Mercians and Northumbrians are supposed to march down to help him, but never do. They don't realize what's in store for them.
October. Harold is defeated and killed at the battle of Hastings.
December. William of Normandy crowned king of England in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day.
Excursus: The Bayeux Tapestry
Middle English Period (ca. 1100-1500) [Top]
1066-1075 William crushes uprisings of Anglo-Saxon earls and peasants with a brutal hand; in Mercia and Northumberland, uses (literal) scorched earth policy, decimating population and laying waste the countryside. Anglo-Saxon earls and freemen deprived of property; many enslaved. William distributes property and titles to Normans (and some English) who supported him. Many of the English hereditary titles of nobility date from this period.
English becomes the language of the lower classes (peasants and slaves). Norman French becomes the language of the court and propertied classes. The legal system is redrawn along Norman lines and conducted in French. Churches, monasteries gradually filled with French-speaking functionaries, who use French for record-keeping. After a while, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is no longer kept up. Authors write literature in French, not English. For all practical purposes English is no longer a written language.
Bilingualism gradually becomes more common, especially among those who deal with both upper and lower classes. Growth of London as a commercial center draws many from the countryside who can fill this socially intermediate role.
1204 The English kings lose the duchy of Normandy to French kings. England is now the only home of the Norman English.
1205 First book in English appears since the conquest.
1258 First royal proclamation issued in English since the conquest.
ca. 1300 Increasing feeling on the part of even noblemen that they are English, not French. Nobility begin to educate their children in English. French is taught to children as a foreign language rather than used as a medium of instruction.
1337 Start of the Hundred Years' War between England and France.
1362 English becomes official language of the law courts. More and more authors are writing in English.
ca. 1380 Chaucer writes the Canterbury tales in Middle English. the language shows French influence in thousands of French borrowings. The London dialect, for the first time, begins to be recognized as the "Standard", or variety of English taken as the norm, for all England. Other dialects are relegated to a less prestigious position, even those that earlier served as standards (e.g. the Wessex dialect of southwest England).
Excursus: Chaucer's Canterbury Tales
1474 William Caxton brings a printing press to England from Germany. Publishes the first printed book in England. Beginning of the long process of standardization of spelling.
Excursus: The Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye
Modern English Period (ca. 1500-present) [Top]
1500-1650 Early Modern English develops. The Great Vowel Shift gradually takes place. There is a large influx of Latin and Greek borrowings and neologisms.
1552 Thomas Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, publishes the Book of Common Prayer, a translation of the church's liturgy into English.
1611 King James Bible published, which has influenced English writing down to the present day.
Excursus: Common phrases from the King James Bible
1616 Shakespeare dies. Recognized even then as a genius of the English language. Wove native and borrowed words together in amazing and pleasing combinations.
Excursus: Shakespeare's Legacy
1700s Classical period of English literature. The fashion for borrowing Latin and Greek words, and coining new words with Latin and Greek morphemes, rages unabated. Elaborate syntax matches elaborate vocabulary (e.g. writings of Samuel Johnson).
The rise of English purists, e.g. Jonathan Swift, who decried the 'degeneration' of English and sought to 'purify' it and fix it forever in unchanging form.
17th-19th centuries British imperialism. Borrowings from languages around the world.
Development of American English. By 19th century, a standard variety of American English develops, based on the dialect of the Mid-Atlantic states.
Establishment of English in Australia, South Africa, and India, among other British colonial outposts.
Excursus: Borrowed words in English
19th century Recognition (and acceptance) by linguistic scholars of the ever-changing nature of language. Discovery of the Indo-European language family. Late in century: Recognition that all languages are fundamentally the same in nature; no "primitive" or "advanced" languages.
19th-20th centuries Scientific and Industrial Revolutions. Development of technical vocabularies. Within a few centuries, English has gone from an island tongue to a world language, following the fortunes of those who speak it.
20th century Communications revolution. Spread of a few languages at the expense of many. Languages of the world begin to die out on a large scale as mastery of certain world languages becomes necessary for survival. Classification and description of non-Indo-European languages by linguists continues, in many cases in a race against the clock.
1945-present American political, economic, military supremacy. Borrowing patterns continue. English has greater impact than ever on other languages, even those with more native speakers. Becomes most widely studied second language, and a scientific lingua franca.
By the 1990s, preferences begin to shift in many places from British to American English as the selected standard for second language acquisition. The twin influences of British and American broadcasting media make the language accessible to more and more people. Hollywood and the pop music industry help make English an irresistible medium for the transmission of popular culture. Even long-established European cultures begin to feel linguistically and culturally threatened, as English comes into use in more and more spheres and large numbers of English borrowings enter their languages.
New waves of immigrants to the U.S. Linguistic diversity increases where the newcomers settle, but immigrants repeat the pattern of earlier settlers and lose their language within a generation or two. The culture at large remains resolutely monolingual (despite the fears of cultural purists). But as ever, the language continues to absorb loanwords, continually enriched by the many tongues of the newcomers to these shores.
meaning
Meaning of Words
Semantic change | Metaphor | Metonymy | Neologisms
In Linguistics, Semantics (from the Greek semantikos, or 'significant meaning', derived from sema 'sign') is traditionally defined as the study of meaning. One area of study is the study of the semantic relations between different linguistic expressions, usually words. These relations include homonymy, synonymy, antonymy, polysemy, hypernymy, and hyponymy. Linguists describe these relations and also try to characterize with as much precision as possible the meanings of words and other linguistic elements.
Semantic change [Top]
Semantic change in the context of words describes the gradual shift in the conventional meaning of words, as people use them in new types of contexts and these usages become normal. Often in the course of semantic change, a word shifts its meaning to the point that the modern meaning is radically different from the original usage. For example, awful originally meant 'awe-inspiring, filling (someone) with deep awe', as in the awful majesty of the Creator. At some point it came to mean 'breath-takingly bad; so bad that it fills (a person) with awe and amazement'. People began to use the word in contexts where the awe felt was due to something's extreme negative qualities, as in an awfully bad performance. But now the intensity of the expression has faded somewhat and an awful tasting medicine need not inspire any deep sense of awe. The word in informal usage now just means 'very bad'. Similar developments are found with terrible 'inspiring terror' and its onetime synonym terrific. The first kept its negative meaning, but lost some of its intensity; the second came to be associated with positive qualities and only then weakened its intensity. The result is that the latter two words have gone from being synonyms to almost exact antonyms.
Examples of semantic change
Metaphor [Top]
Metaphor is a complex cognitive phenomenon. It is traditionally thought of as a kind of comparison, although how we make instant and internally consistent comparisons between quite disparate things is not really understood. No artificial system, such as models in artificial intelligence, can decode metaphors, and certainly no such system can produce them. Examples of metaphors in everyday language abound. The expression, You are the sunshine of my life compares someone's beloved with sunshine; something that is impossible in literal terms unless that person becomes a ball of nuclear fusion. The expression candle in the wind likens life to a candle flame that may easily be blown out by any passing draft or gust. The fragility of life is thus emphasized. But metaphor is not just associated with poetic language or especially high-flown literary language. Metaphor is an extremely common and pervasive process in language usage and its results frequently become conventionalized. Thus, the meanings of many words have their origin in metaphor. For example, a cape-like garment that protected against the weather was given the name cloak, a word borrowed from French, in which it meant 'bell'. The garment was given the name for a bell because of its cut: It created a somewhat bell-like shape when draped over the shoulders and allowed to fall vertically to the knees or below, where it "belled" out from the body.
Metaphor is considered by cognitive scientists to be a very powerful conceptual tool because it allows language users to express abstract concepts by reference to more concrete concepts which are more accessible and understandable. For example, many words for concepts without visible correlates, such as temporal terms, are taken from the vocabulary of spatial language. The words long and short describe a spatial dimension (of, for example, a table), but they also can describe a span of (invisible) time. Metaphors occasionally impede understanding, when people fail to recognize the metaphor. For example, petrified literally means 'turned to stone', but now figuratively means 'terrified' (because of the way that people and animals freeze when in extreme fear). Those who don't know the literal meaning and take the metaphorical meaning as the basic one may wonder why petrified wood has the name it does! Sometimes what was originally a metaphor can completely lose its metaphorical force, when most or all speakers can no longer see the metaphor. Such cases are called dead metaphors or opaque metaphors. The word understand, for example, is a dead metaphor, having its origins in the idea that "standing under" something was akin to having a good grasp of it (another, slightly less dead metaphor) or knowing it thoroughly. Another example is the word consider which was originally a metaphor meaning 'consult the stars (using astrological principles) when making a decision', mantel once meant 'cloak or hood to catch smoke', gorge means throat, and so forth for thousands more.
Metonymy [Top]
Metonymy is the use of one word with the meaning of another with which it is typically associated. Metonymy works by contiguity rather than similarity. The name for one thing is applied with the meaning of a different, but spatially and/or temporally associated thing. When someone uses metonymy, they don't wish to transfer qualities (as you do with metaphor), but to indirectly refer to one thing with another word for a related thing. The common expression The White House said today... is a good example of metonymy. The term White House actually refers to the authorities who work in the building called the White House. The latter is of course an inanimate object that says nothing. Similarly, in a monarchy the expression the Crown is used to mean the monarch and the departments of the government headed by the monarch. Crown literally refers only to a physical object sometimes worn by the actual monarch. In both of these cases the physical objects referred to by the words used become emblematic of the institutions associated with the object, and so the words for those objects can be applied to the (less concretely visible) institutions. Metonymy can be seen as a kind of shorthand indirect reference, and people use it all the time, sometimes in very fleeting and non-conventional ways. For example, a doctor or nurse might refer in shorthand to a patient by means of the body part treated (The broken ankle is in room 2); a waiter might use a similar metonymy for a customer, this time using the order as an identifying feature, saying The ham sandwich left without paying. In both cases the spatio-temporal contiguity of two things is exploited to use the word for one to refer to the other. The expression the press is used not only for an actual printing press (which are now becoming rare) but also for the collective institution of the print news media.
Metonymy is a conceptual device of probably equal importance to metaphor when it comes to speakers' strategies for expressing what they want to say in different ways (and their hearers' strategies for working out what that is).
Semantic change | Metaphor | Metonymy | Neologisms
In Linguistics, Semantics (from the Greek semantikos, or 'significant meaning', derived from sema 'sign') is traditionally defined as the study of meaning. One area of study is the study of the semantic relations between different linguistic expressions, usually words. These relations include homonymy, synonymy, antonymy, polysemy, hypernymy, and hyponymy. Linguists describe these relations and also try to characterize with as much precision as possible the meanings of words and other linguistic elements.
Semantic change [Top]
Semantic change in the context of words describes the gradual shift in the conventional meaning of words, as people use them in new types of contexts and these usages become normal. Often in the course of semantic change, a word shifts its meaning to the point that the modern meaning is radically different from the original usage. For example, awful originally meant 'awe-inspiring, filling (someone) with deep awe', as in the awful majesty of the Creator. At some point it came to mean 'breath-takingly bad; so bad that it fills (a person) with awe and amazement'. People began to use the word in contexts where the awe felt was due to something's extreme negative qualities, as in an awfully bad performance. But now the intensity of the expression has faded somewhat and an awful tasting medicine need not inspire any deep sense of awe. The word in informal usage now just means 'very bad'. Similar developments are found with terrible 'inspiring terror' and its onetime synonym terrific. The first kept its negative meaning, but lost some of its intensity; the second came to be associated with positive qualities and only then weakened its intensity. The result is that the latter two words have gone from being synonyms to almost exact antonyms.
Examples of semantic change
Metaphor [Top]
Metaphor is a complex cognitive phenomenon. It is traditionally thought of as a kind of comparison, although how we make instant and internally consistent comparisons between quite disparate things is not really understood. No artificial system, such as models in artificial intelligence, can decode metaphors, and certainly no such system can produce them. Examples of metaphors in everyday language abound. The expression, You are the sunshine of my life compares someone's beloved with sunshine; something that is impossible in literal terms unless that person becomes a ball of nuclear fusion. The expression candle in the wind likens life to a candle flame that may easily be blown out by any passing draft or gust. The fragility of life is thus emphasized. But metaphor is not just associated with poetic language or especially high-flown literary language. Metaphor is an extremely common and pervasive process in language usage and its results frequently become conventionalized. Thus, the meanings of many words have their origin in metaphor. For example, a cape-like garment that protected against the weather was given the name cloak, a word borrowed from French, in which it meant 'bell'. The garment was given the name for a bell because of its cut: It created a somewhat bell-like shape when draped over the shoulders and allowed to fall vertically to the knees or below, where it "belled" out from the body.
Metaphor is considered by cognitive scientists to be a very powerful conceptual tool because it allows language users to express abstract concepts by reference to more concrete concepts which are more accessible and understandable. For example, many words for concepts without visible correlates, such as temporal terms, are taken from the vocabulary of spatial language. The words long and short describe a spatial dimension (of, for example, a table), but they also can describe a span of (invisible) time. Metaphors occasionally impede understanding, when people fail to recognize the metaphor. For example, petrified literally means 'turned to stone', but now figuratively means 'terrified' (because of the way that people and animals freeze when in extreme fear). Those who don't know the literal meaning and take the metaphorical meaning as the basic one may wonder why petrified wood has the name it does! Sometimes what was originally a metaphor can completely lose its metaphorical force, when most or all speakers can no longer see the metaphor. Such cases are called dead metaphors or opaque metaphors. The word understand, for example, is a dead metaphor, having its origins in the idea that "standing under" something was akin to having a good grasp of it (another, slightly less dead metaphor) or knowing it thoroughly. Another example is the word consider which was originally a metaphor meaning 'consult the stars (using astrological principles) when making a decision', mantel once meant 'cloak or hood to catch smoke', gorge means throat, and so forth for thousands more.
Metonymy [Top]
Metonymy is the use of one word with the meaning of another with which it is typically associated. Metonymy works by contiguity rather than similarity. The name for one thing is applied with the meaning of a different, but spatially and/or temporally associated thing. When someone uses metonymy, they don't wish to transfer qualities (as you do with metaphor), but to indirectly refer to one thing with another word for a related thing. The common expression The White House said today... is a good example of metonymy. The term White House actually refers to the authorities who work in the building called the White House. The latter is of course an inanimate object that says nothing. Similarly, in a monarchy the expression the Crown is used to mean the monarch and the departments of the government headed by the monarch. Crown literally refers only to a physical object sometimes worn by the actual monarch. In both of these cases the physical objects referred to by the words used become emblematic of the institutions associated with the object, and so the words for those objects can be applied to the (less concretely visible) institutions. Metonymy can be seen as a kind of shorthand indirect reference, and people use it all the time, sometimes in very fleeting and non-conventional ways. For example, a doctor or nurse might refer in shorthand to a patient by means of the body part treated (The broken ankle is in room 2); a waiter might use a similar metonymy for a customer, this time using the order as an identifying feature, saying The ham sandwich left without paying. In both cases the spatio-temporal contiguity of two things is exploited to use the word for one to refer to the other. The expression the press is used not only for an actual printing press (which are now becoming rare) but also for the collective institution of the print news media.
Metonymy is a conceptual device of probably equal importance to metaphor when it comes to speakers' strategies for expressing what they want to say in different ways (and their hearers' strategies for working out what that is).
Langgan:
Catatan (Atom)