Download or read book The Origins of English Nonsense written by Noel Malcolm and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 360 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Noel Malcolm's remarkable book lays before us the extent of nonsense verse some 250 years earlier than Edward Lear and Lewis Carroll. It presents an anthology of the work by these poets in the 17th century and discusses the development of this genre.
Download or read book The Origin of Specious Nonsense written by John J. May and published by . This book was released on 2010-01-01 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Origins of English Words written by Joseph Twadell Shipley and published by JHU Press. This book was released on 2001-07-01 with total page 688 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There are no direct records of the original Indo-European speech. By comparing the vocabularies of its various descendants, however, it is possible to reconstruct the basic Indo-European roots with considerable confidence. In The Origins of English Words, Shipley catalogues these proposed roots and follows the often devious, always fascinating, process by which some of their offshoots have grown. Anecdotal, eclectic, and always enthusiastic, The Origins of English Words is a diverting expedition beyond linguistics into literature, history, folklore, anthropology, philosophy, and science.
Download or read book Dictionary of Word Origins written by Jordan Almond and published by Citadel Press. This book was released on 1995 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This dictionary gives the intriguing origins of hundreds of everyday words and expressions. Useful for reference and fun just for browsing, Dictionary of Word Origins is also a great way to expand vocabulary and enjoy doing it.
Download or read book Nonsense and Other Senses written by Elisabetta Tarantino with the collaboration of Carlo Caruso and published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing. This book was released on 2020-07-24 with total page 465 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book deals with a topic that is gaining increasing critical attention, the literature of nonsense and absurdity. The volume gathers together twenty-one essays on various aspects of literary nonsense, according to criteria that are deliberately inclusive and eclectic. Its purpose is to offer a gallery of “nonsense practices” in literature across periods and countries, in the conviction that important critical insights can be gained from these juxtapositions. Most of the cases presented here deal with linguistic nonsense, but in a few instances the nonsense operates at the higher level of the interpretation of reality on the part of the subject—or of the impossibility thereof. The contributors to the volume are established and younger scholars from various countries. Chronologically, the chapters range widely from Dante to Václav Havel, and offer a large span of national literatures (Czech, English, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese) and literary genres (poetry, prose, and drama), inviting the readers to trace their own pathway and draw their own lines of connection. One point that emerges with particular force is the notion that what distinguishes literary nonsense is its somehow “regulated” nature. Literary nonsense thus sounds like a deliberate, last-ditch attempt to snatch order from the jaws of chaos—the speech of the “Fool” as opposed to the tale told by an idiot. It is this kind of post-Derridean retrieval of choice as the defining element in semantic transactions which is perhaps the most significant insight bequeathed by the study of nonsense to the analysis of poetry and literature in general.
Download or read book Bad English written by Ammon Shea and published by National Geographic Books. This book was released on 2015-06-02 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The author of Reading the OED presents an eye-opening look at language “mistakes” and how they came to be accepted as correct—or not. English is a glorious mess of a language, cobbled together from a wide variety of sources and syntaxes, and changing over time with popular usage. Many of the words and usages we embrace as standard and correct today were at first considered slang, impolite, or just plain wrong. Whether you consider yourself a stickler, a nitpicker, or a rule-breaker in the know, Bad English is sure to enlighten, enrage, and perhaps even inspire. Filled with historic and contemporary examples, the book chronicles the long and entertaining history of language mistakes, and features some of our most common words and phrases, including: Decimate Hopefully Enormity That/which Enervate/energize Bemuse/amuse Literally/figuratively Ain’t Irregardless Socialist OMG Stupider Lively, surprising, funny, and delightfully readable, this is a book that will settle arguments among word lovers—and it’s sure to start a few, too.
Download or read book The Secret History of the English Language written by M. J. Harper and published by Melville House Publishing. This book was released on 2008 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents a new history to explain the story of English.
Download or read book A Book of Nonsense written by Edward Lear and published by . This book was released on 1862 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A collection of over 100 limericks with the author's original illustrations.
Download or read book Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue written by John McWhorter and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2009-10-27 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A survey of the quirks and quandaries of the English language, focusing on our strange and wonderful grammar Why do we say “I am reading a catalog” instead of “I read a catalog”? Why do we say “do” at all? Is the way we speak a reflection of our cultural values? Delving into these provocative topics and more, Our Magnificent Bastard Language distills hundreds of years of fascinating lore into one lively history. Covering such turning points as the little-known Celtic and Welsh influences on English, the impact of the Viking raids and the Norman Conquest, and the Germanic invasions that started it all during the fifth century ad, John McWhorter narrates this colorful evolution with vigor. Drawing on revolutionary genetic and linguistic research as well as a cache of remarkable trivia about the origins of English words and syntax patterns, Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue ultimately demonstrates the arbitrary, maddening nature of English— and its ironic simplicity due to its role as a streamlined lingua franca during the early formation of Britain. This is the book that language aficionados worldwide have been waiting for (and no, it’s not a sin to end a sentence with a preposition).
Download or read book Hobbes the Scriblerians and the History of Philosophy written by Conal Condren and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-10-06 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Satire was core to the work of Thomas Hobbes although his critics also used it as a weapon to ridicule him. Condren uses Hobbes as an example to demonstrate that an examination of the persona is needed to advance our understanding of a writer's philosophy.
Download or read book Jabberwocky written by Lewis Carroll and published by Kids Can Press Ltd. This book was released on 2008-02 with total page 42 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An illustrated version of the classic nonsense poem from "Through the Looking Glass."
Download or read book The Palgrave Handbook of Humour History and Methodology written by Daniel Derrin and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021-01-12 with total page 538 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This handbook addresses the methodological problems and theoretical challenges that arise in attempting to understand and represent humour in specific historical contexts across cultural history. It explores problems involved in applying modern theories of humour to historically-distant contexts of humour and points to the importance of recognising the divergent assumptions made by different academic disciplines when approaching the topic. It explores problems of terminology, identification, classification, subjectivity of viewpoint, and the coherence of the object of study. It addresses specific theories, together with the needs of specific historical case-studies, as well as some of the challenges of presenting historical humour to contemporary audiences through translation and curation. In this way, the handbook aims to encourage a fresh exploration of methodological problems involved in studying the various significances both of the history of humour and of humour in history.
Download or read book Poetics and Ethics of Anthropomorphism written by Christopher Kelen and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-10-24 with total page 253 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Poetics and Ethics of Anthropomorphism: Children, Animals, and Poetry investigates a kind of poetry written mainly by adults for children. Many genres, including the picture book, are considered in asking for what purposes ‘animal poetry’ is composed and what function it serves. Critically contextualising anthropomorphism in traditional and contemporary poetic and theoretical discourses, these pages explore the representation of animals through anthropomorphism, anthropocentrism, and through affective responses to other-than-human others. Zoomorphism – the routine flipside of anthropomorphism – is crucially involved in the critical unmasking of the taken-for-granted textual strategies dealt with here. With a focus on the ethics entailed in poetic relations between children and animals, and between humans and nonhumans, this book asks important questions about the Anthropocene future and the role in it of literature intended for children. Poetics and Ethics of Anthropomorphism: Children, Animals, and Poetry is a vital resource for students and for scholars in children’s literature.
Download or read book A Dictionary of English Etymology written by Hensleigh Wedgwood and published by . This book was released on 1859 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Nonsense and Meaning in Ancient Greek Comedy written by Stephen E. Kidd and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2014-06-12 with total page 215 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book employs the concept of 'nonsense' to explore those parts of Greek comedy perceived as 'just silly' and therefore 'not meaningful'.
Download or read book Concise Oxford English Dictionary written by Angus Stevenson and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2011-08-18 with total page 1728 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Concise Oxford English Dictionary is one of the most popular choices in Oxford's renowned dictionary line. This Luxury Edition is perfect for anyone looking to invest in a reliable resource for home, school, or office. It includes unique features such as cut thumb tabs, printed endpapers, ribbon marker, with coloured head and tailbands making it a centerpiece for all bookshelves. This centenary edition of the Concise Oxford English Dictionary Luxury Edition presents the most accurate picture of English today. It contains over 240,000 words, phrases, and definitions, providing superb coverage of contemporary English, including rare, historical, and archaic terms, scientific and technical vocabulary, and English from around the world. The dictionary has been updated with hundreds of new words--including sub-prime, social networking, and carbon footprint--all based on the latest research from the Oxford English Corpus. In addition, the dictionary features an engaging new center section, with quick-reference word lists (containing, for example, lists of Fascinating Words and Onomatopoeic Words), and a revised and updated English Uncovered supplement, which examines interesting facts about the English language. Sprinkled throughout the text are intriguing Word Histories, detailing the origins and development of numerous words. The volume also retains such popular features as the hundreds of usage notes which give advice on tricky vocabulary and pointers to help you improve your use of English. Finally, the dictionary contains full appendices on topics such as alphabets, currencies, electronic English, and the registers of language (from formal to slang), plus a useful Guide to Good English with advice on grammar, punctuation, and spelling. This Luxury Edition also includes 12 months' of access to Oxford Dictionaries Online at oxforddictionaries.com.
Download or read book England An Elegy written by Roger Scruton and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2006-05-10 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Provides an account of England which is an analysis of its institutions and culture, and a celebration of its virtues. This book covers aspects of the English inheritance, informed by a philosophical vision. It shows that there is such a country as England, that it has a distinct personality and endows its residents with a distinct moral ideal.