The Prodigal Tongue

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An American linguist teaching in England explores the sibling rivalry between British and American EnglishEnglish accents are the sexiest Americans have ruined the English language Such claims about the English language are often repeated but rarely examined Professor Lynne Murphy is on the linguistic front line In The Prodigal Tongue she explores the fiction and reality of the special relationship between British and American English By examining the causes and symptoms of American Verbal Inferiority Complex and its flipside, British Verbal Superiority Complex, Murphy unravels the prejudices, stereotypes and insecurities that shape our attitudes to our own language.With great humo u r and new insights, Lynne Murphy looks at the social, political and linguistic forces that have driven American and British English in different directions how Americans got from centre to center, why British accents are growing away from American ones, and what different things we mean when we say estate, frown, or middle class Is anyone winning this war of the words Will Yanks and Brits ever really understand each other Free Download The Prodigal Tongue [ author ] Lynne Murphy [ Kindle ePUB or eBook ] – kino-fada.fr Update Poo place This author is such a sneering hypocrite She might have lived for 20 years in the UK because of her husband but she has no love for the British She is talking about the words toilet, loo and lavatory she has forgotten bog, WC, khazi only old soldiers say this and brick shit house which is not used in polite company What all these British words for poo places have in common is that they are euphemistic They make reference to washing and water, but they don t menti Update Poo place This author is such a sneering hypocrite She might have lived for 20 years in the UK because of her husband but she has no love for the British She is talking about the words toilet, loo and lavatory she has forgotten bog, WC, khazi only old soldiers say this and brick shit house which is not used in polite company What all these British words for poo places have in common is that they are euphemistic They make reference to washing and water, but they don t mention naked bottoms and what comes out...It seems that the author is trying to maintain a balance between British English and American English throughout the whole book But as a reader, I can still detect that the author is defending consciously or unconsciously American English, her native tongue, against the accusations made by linguistically superior British people.It s a good book I basically agree with the author s main point, American English and British English are both great nationlect , it s impossible and meaningless to ar It seems that the author is trying to maintain a balance between British English and American English throughout the who...This is a British review of the British edition A lot of ink and paper has gone into books and articles about the differences between British and American English A lot of hot air has gone into complaining, at least on this side of the Atlantic, about the corruption of the language of Shakespeare and Milton by the depraved Almost invariably the result has been ill informed and inaccurate.Not before time comes a book that treats the subject seriously, by a writer who knows what she s talking a This is a British review of the British edition A lot of ink and paper has gone into books and articles about the differences between British and American En...I am fascinated by the English language, its dialects and accents, so I was always going to love this book The author is an American linguist who has lived in England for 20 years, so she knows what she s writing about Many of my prejudices about Americanisms have been quashed there are lots of words and phrases I thought were American in origin which actually originated in Britain, and vice versa We British people tend to think of American English as prudish and illogical, but Murphy point I am fascinated by the English language, its dialects and accents, so I was always going to love this book The author is an American linguist who has lived in England for 20 years, so she knows what she s writing about Many of my prejudices about Americanisms have been quashed there are lots of words and phrases I thought were American in origin which actually originated in Britain, and vice versa We British people tend to think of American English as prudish and illogical, but Murphy points out that British English can also be both these things Meanwhile, some Americans are under the impression that we use all kinds of weird words like bumbleshoot no, I ve nev...I love the chatty sort of language book that is equal parts academic and colorful examples John McWhorter is a favorite, and David Crystal Lynne Murphy was already a favorite of mine because of her language blog, Separated By a Common Language, and now she s written a book, yay She tackles a wide range of differences between the Englishes of Britain and of America and occasionally of Australia and Canada Even if you think you are aware of the vocabulary differences, you may be surprised, a I love the chatty sort of language book that is equal parts academic and colorful examples John McWhorter is a favorite, and David Crystal Lynne Murphy was already a favorite of mine because of her language blog, Separated By a Common Language, and now she s written a book, yay She tackles a wide range of differences between the Englishes of Britain and of America and occasionally of Australia and Canada Even if you think you are aware of the vocabulary differences, you may be surprised, as I was, to learn that there are manydifferences than what we call an umbrella or a sidewalk Just taking food as a topic, Murphy describes how soup is technically the same thing on either side of the Atlantic, but that in general, the default of soup in America is a clear broth with things in it, such as chicken noodle soup, and in Britain, soup is ...This was one of those books that felt like it came into my life at exactly the moment it was meant to Yes, I am one of many Anglophiles that admits to having an inferiority complex about my Americanisms, or American Eng...Every once in a while I ll come across a British person who feels the need to correct Americanisms for lack of a better term Grammar, word choice, spelling, etc I won t lie, this makes me roll my eyes, especially when it s on a social media platform that was invented and headquartered in the US and bases most of their employees in the US But that is neither here nor there I was intrigued by the concept of this book and English, either the US version or British version The things that seep Every once in a while I ll come across a British person who feels the need to correct Americanisms for lack of a better term Grammar, word choice, spelling, etc I won t lie, this makes me roll my eyes, especially when it s on a social media platform that was invented and headquartered in the US and bases most of their employees in the US But that is neither here nor there I was intrigued by the concept of this book and English, eith...This books first half was hilarious It gotserious in the second half but was still very easy to read as a non fiction book An absolute must for Americans in England or Brits in America Or anyone with exper...What fun I was surprised to discover how many words I thought were american but were british and how many I thought were british were actually american She writes with a fun sense of humor making this a pleasure to read And there are quizzes at the end She has a blog on this topic which I ...A very interesting book about differences between American and British English Some parts I already knew for example that fall is from old English and was originally part of British English but there was quite a lot I learned I didn t know that in American English is quite is interchangeable with very I would have given this book 5 stars if it was not for the fact there are certain parts where she says things that supposedly British people say but that I as a British person have never A very interesting book about differences between American and British English Some parts I already knew for example that fall is from old English and was originally part of British English but there was quite a lot I learned I didn t know that in American English is quite is interchangeable with very I would have given this book 5 stars if it was not for the fact there are certain parts where she says things that supposedly British people say but that I ...

The Prodigal Tongue
  • 22 July 2018
  • Paperback
  • 368 pages
  • 0143131109
  • Lynne Murphy
  • The Prodigal Tongue