Dr. Fee's Introduction for Present Day English

English 209: Introduction to Present Day English

What were some questions concerning vocabulary during the beginning of this period, and who were some major figures who raised such questions?
· Many early Americans were against borrowing, especially from French—Noah Webster
· Others supported “judicious neology”—Thomas Jefferson
· In the nineteenth century there was a movement to use ancient “Saxon” terms instead of Latinate equivalents—William Morris
· No concerted effort then or now to keepout foreign terms

What about spelling reform?
· Since the late EME period, interest has focused on consistency rather than reform
· Since the nineteenth century on, great emphasis has been placed on “correct” spelling—social and educational cue
· Spelling is now a regular and separate part of the grade-school curriculum
· Isaac Pitman and A.J. Ellis formulate 38-character Phonotype alphabet of 1870
· 1876—National Union of Elementary teachers urge commission on spelling reform
· 1879—The British Spelling Reform Association organized
· “Anglic” becomes New Spelling of 1941
· “Regularized Inglish”—both this and N.S. differed only slightly from standard
· George Bernard Shaw left a behest to fund a 40-character alphabet
· These groups were concerned with making learning to read easier for children and foreigners
· In early America spelling refom was associated with nationalism—Benjamin Franklin
· Noah Webster best known American reformer, reached middle ground in his 1828 dictionary
· 1876 Francis Marsh and American Spelling Reform Association
· 1906 Simplified Spelling Board—Carnegie and T. Roosevelt

What about dictionaries?
· The OED—Coleridge, Furnivall, Murray, Bradley, Craigie, and Onions; ¾ of a century for the first edition, six editors, Murray edited nearly half, and dedicated his life to the project
· What was the process for compiling the OED?
· Why is it considered so authoritative?
· As exhaustive as it is, why can it never be considered completely comprehensive?