QUESTIONS ON CROWLEY

1. What does elocution mean?

Elocution is the art of public speaking in which gesture vocal production and delivery are emphasized. Elocution lessons are lessons to improve pronunciation, grammar, style and tone in order to improve one’s public speaking.

2. What do polyglossia and monoglossia mean?

Polyglosssia refers to the coexistence of multiple languages in the same area.While monoglossia is the predominance of one language in an area, the absence of a coexistence of languages.

3. What kind of English does Puttenham recommend?

Putternham recommends the natural, pure and most usual of a country. He recommends the speech of the court.

4. What does “copious” mean?

“Copious” means abundant in number without order at all.

5. What does “trope” mean?

“Trope” is the use of a word in a different sense than that which is proper to it.

6. Why does Crowley call the standardization process a war?

Because it was a process of fights until the standard language became regularized. The linkage of language and war was very common trope in the 18^thC.

7. What does “encomium” mean?

“Encomium” is a warm praise.

8. Who wrote the “Proposal for Correcting, Improving and Ascertaining the English Tongue” (1712)?

Johnathan Swift.

9. Do Johnson and Swift agree that the English language has degenerated?

Yes. They agree that the English language has degenerated. Johnson stated that “tongues, like governments, have a natural tendency to degeneration”, and Swift spoke of the need for a reform in the language.

10. Swift proposes an academy. Who else?

Daniel Defoe.

11. Why were the Whigs against an academy?

They saw the academy as a link with France, and this with the Stuart claimants to the monarchy.

12. What does Sheridan mean by “the genius of the people”?

He means the metaphysical constitution and spirit of the British people. Because British people would not summit to any laws they do not give their own consent.

13. What reason does Swift give for the “decay of Latin”?

The change of government into totalitarian power, which meant that there was no need for orators.

14. What does “suffer” mean?

Writers were worried that if they wrote in English, in the future, people would not be able to understand their texts because the language was constantly changing.

15. Who was the first person to make the link between language and nation?

Herder.

16. What was Sheridan´s solution to the problem of divergence in pronunciation?

Clergy should be taught pronunciation in order that they could then act as the medium of propagation.

17. How did several authors describe other European languages?

Lemon classifies French as flimsy, Italian as neat and Spanish as grave, for example.

18. In which novel did Defoe capture colonial fantasy?

In Robinson Crusoe.

19. Locke thought that learning Latin was not necessary for which group of people?

He thought it was not necessary for the bourgeois.

20. How did learning standard English help to empower people?

It was the language used for economic, political and social life.

21. What kind of English is deemed to be “proper” English?

It seems that the English used in London, Universities and Court was the “proper” one.

22. How was the inculcation of linguistic patterns carried out with middle-class children?

The inclination of linguistic patterns was carried out with middle-class children by means of discipline, punishment and education. By rewarding and punishing good or bad use of orthographic and semantic skills. For example, dividing the class in groups of children according to the length of words they could spell, rewarding them if they do properly changing into a better group.

23. What was the purpose of training women linguistically in the 18th C. according to Crowley?

To fulfill the role of the mother, passing on pure language to her children; and to act as companion to the men in public spheres.

24. Why did Locke warn against children talking to servants?

He said that they would pick up inadequate habits as well as tricks and vices.

25. What was the difference between the mistakes made by the working classes and those made by the Gentry according to Sheridan?

The working classes make structural mistakes, whereas the Gentry generally make occasional mistakes.

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