Activities from  the following videos:

Cockney rise and demise, Pennock Speck, Barry, 03/12/2008 09:51:27.

Received Pronunciation up to 2nd world war,  Pennock Speck, Barry, 28/04/2009 08:26:01.

The Beginnings of Standard English and the rise of RP, Pennock Speck, Barry, 11/03/2009 02:18:55

The birth of Standard English and the demise of Cockney

True/False

1. Cockney has always been thought of as vulgar. False (During the Middle Ages and Elizabethan times, cockney was usually used by all classes expect in the court)

2. The pronunciation of thrust in Cockney in Elizabethan times was /θ/ False (Frust)

3. The pronunciation of chain  in Cockney in Elizabethan times was /tʃeɪn/ True (Chyne)

4. The pronunciation of mother in Cockney in Elizabethan times was /ð/ False (Movver and fevver instead of mother and father)

5. In the late 18^th century speech became a class marker. True (Middle class wanted to be part of the high class so they tried to abandon cockney)

6. Johnson believed it was possible to fix language. False (It was as impossible to maintain permanence in language as to believe in the elixir of eternal life)

7. Public schools are private

8. No formal guidance about spelling and pronunciation of English before the 19^th century. False (Publication of the English dictionary in 1755 by Samuel Johnson)

9. RP speakers today have a more relaxed way of pronouncing certain vowels. True (They don't say the words so quickly because they don't have tension around the larynx)

10. RP speakers today normally use the glottal stop in the middle of the words butter and later.

11. RP has been influenced by Cockney. True (There are changes in the pronunciation of vowels. As an example J. C. Wells comments how in the past the u vowel was pronunced, as seen in Jupiter which was similar to spoon, /u:/ (back, near pure cardinal u and large amount of lip rounding) Nowadays it is said less strong like an /u / ( more central and with less lip rounding)

12. At public schools boys are forced to use RP. True ( Middle class was able to work in industry, army, imperial civil servants, lawyers, politicians, teachers, etc)

13. One in twenty people in England speak what Burchfield calls received standard. False ( One in fifty people speak it)

14. The invention of television turned public school English into BBC English. True ( The radio and the television helped to spread  the public school English)

15. People who spoke public school English were considered more intelligent, more trustworthy, and even better looking. True ( Having an standard English instead of Cockney, gave people more chances of a successful career)

 

People to Remember

1. Professor, Sir. Randolph Quirk =  I. Grammarian and linguist  

2. Bob Barletrop = C. An expert on Cockney  

3. Jonathan Swift  = D. He proposed an Academy to regulate English  

4. George Bernard Shaw =  G. Playwright and spelling reformer  

5. J.C. Wells = B. An expert on accents of English

6. Dr. Robert Burchfield =  E. Editor of the OED  

7. James Boswell = J. Johnson’s biographer

8. Henry Machyn = F. He kept a diary.  

9. Samuel Johnson = H. Author of a dictionary

10. Pat Butler = A. BBC announcer

Academic year 2008/2009
© a.r.e.a./Dr.Vicente Forés López
Barry Pennock Speck
© Carolina Cody Aldaz
cacodyal@alumni.uv.es
Universitat de València Press