Spreading the Word by John H Mcwhorter
The idea that there is one best English is so intuitively plausible and so relentlessly inculcated in us that it is only natural to attempt to uphold this Standard among our students. Our error is in thinking that anything that deviates from this Standard is wrong. In Spreading the Word, linguist John McWhorter proves that these nonstandard dialects are not bastardizations of Standard English, but alternate variations upon the basic plan of English, of which the Standard is but one.With a general focus on classroom applications, McWhorter makes accessible to teachers, teacher educators, and administrators basic language principles that are commonly accepted by linguists, but rarely disseminated to a general audience. Using data from several different languages, McWhorter shows that the speech differences we hear in America are qualitatively equivalent to those heard in other parts of the world where the same differences are not considered bad language. He links his thesis not only to prescriptive grammar, but to more immediate issues facing classroom teachers, such as Black English and code switching between Spanish and English. A complete chapter is dedicated to showing how mixture between languages is a worldwide and natural phenomenon, rather than a language-ravaging accident.
Spreading the Word closes with a brief overview of eight of the most spoken languages in this country that are least like English. In doing so, McWhorter helps us come to view the language palette that exists in our classrooms as an asset not a problem. Most of all, he reinforces our best instincts about accepting and celebrating our students' language, while giving us solid grounds for doing so.
At Columbia University, John McWhorter teaches linguistics, Western civilisation, music history, and American studies. He is a CNN.com columnist, a regular contributor to the Atlantic, a frequent guest on CNN and MSNBC, and the host of Slate's language podcast, Lexicon Valley. He is also a New York Times best-selling author and TED speaker. The Power of Babel, Our Glorious Bastard Language, Words on the Move, Talking Back, Talking Black, and The Creole Debate are among his linguistic works.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780325001982 |
| ISBN 10 | 0325001987 |
| Title | Spreading the Word |
| Author | John H Mcwhorter |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Heinemann USA |
| Year published | 2000-01-14 |
| Number of pages | 83 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |