Research Catalog

The emergence of standard English

Title: The emergence of standard English / John H. Fisher.
Author: Fisher, John H.
Publication: Lexington : University Press of Kentucky, 1996.

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Status	Format	Access	Call Number	Item Location
Request for On-site Use Request Scan How do I pick up this item and when will it be ready?	Text	Use in library	PE524.7 .F7 1996	Off-site

Details

Description

208 pages; 24 cm

Summary

"In these nine essays Fisher chronicles his gradual realization that Standard English was not a popular evolution at all but was the direct result of political decisions made by the Lancastrian administrations of Henry IV and Henry V - decisions intended to validate their usurpation of the English throne from Richard II and to create a new sense of nationalism. To achieve this standardization and acceptance of the vernacular, these kings turned to their Chancery scribes, who were responsible for writing and copying legal and royal documents." "Henry IV and V also made special use of authors in their promotion of English as the national language, and Chaucer played a central role in this language planning. None of Chaucer's writings, nor those of any English author, had been copied and circulated before Henry IV's accession in 1399. Once the Lancastrians decided to elevate English to the level of a national language, and thus to replace the French and Latin that had previously been the standard language of government and letters, they looked for appropriate models to disseminate." "Chaucer, a relative of the king and a superb writer in the vernacular, began to be labeled as an ideal master of language, and it was Henry V who inspired the fifteenth-century tradition of citing Chaucer as the "maker" of English. Even more important to linking language development to the government establishment, however, is the fact that Chaucer himself composed in the English of the Chancery scribes."--Jacket.

Subject

Genre/Form

History

Bibliography (note)

Includes bibliographical references (p. [183]-197) and index.

Contents

Introduction -- A language policy for Lancastrian England -- Chancery and the emergence of standard written english -- European chancelleries and the rise of standard languages -- Animadversions on the text of Chaucer -- Chaucer's french: a metalinguistic inquiry -- Piers Plowman and chancery tradition -- Caxton and chancery english -- The history of received pronunciation.

ISBN

0813119359
9780813119359
0813108527
9780813108520

LCCN

95016425

OCLC

ocm32467301
32467301
SCSB-2070259

Owning Institutions

Princeton University Library