2000, ISBN: 9780905778464

Gebundene Ausgabe

Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1994. 258 pp, 9 1/2" H. Inscribed on blank page preceeding half title page: "Rishma / For the poet and the / scholar in you, … Mehr…

Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1994. 258 pp, 9 1/2" H. Inscribed on blank page preceeding half title page: "Rishma / For the poet and the / scholar in you, / best wishes, / John Willinsky". "(P)erhaps no other dictionary has done more to standardize the English language than the formidable twenty-volume 'Oxford English Dictionary' in its 1989 second edition. Yet this most Victorian of modern dictionaries derives its meaning by citing the earliest known usage of words and by demonstrating shades of meaning through an awesome data base of over five million examples of usage in context. In this fascinating study, John Willinsky challenges the authority of this imperial dictionary, revealing many of its inherent prejudices and questioning the assumptions of its ongoing revision. 'Clearly, the OED is no simple record of the language - as she is spoke' - he writes. 'It is a selective representation reflecting certain elusive ideas about the nature of the English language and people. (This book) reveals, by statistic and table, incident and anecdote, how serendipitous, judgmental, and telling a task editing a dictionary such as the OED can be.' Willinsky analyzes the favored citation records from the three editorial periods of the OED's compilation: the Victorian, imperial first edition; the modern supplement; and the contemporary second edition composed on an electronic data base. He reveals shifts in linguistic authority: the original edition relied on English literature and, surprisingly, on translations, reference works, and journalism; the modern editions have shifted emphasis to American sources and periodicals while continuing to neglect women, workers, and other English-speaking countries. His dissection of dictionary entries exposes contradictions and ambiguities in the move from citation to definition. He points out that Shakespeare, the most frequently cited authority, often confounds the dictionary's simple sense of meaning with his wit and artfulness. He shows us how the most famous four-letter words in the language found their way, one hundred years later, through a belabored editorial process into the supplement. Willinsky sheds considerable light on how the OED continues to shape the English language through the sometimes idiosyncratic, often biased selection of citations by hired readers and impassioned friends of the language." Very minor wrinkling at the top/bottom of the spine. Dust jacket has some light edge wrinkling, a heavy crease down the front flap.. Inscribed by author.. First Edition. Hard Cover. Very Good+/Very Good-., Princeton University Press, 1994, 3, Burton-on-trent, Staffordshire, United Kingdom: Wrens Park Publishing. New in New dust jacket. 2000. Hardcover. King Harold Godwineson (c. 1022-66) is one of history's shadowy figures, known mainly for his defeat and death at the battle of Hastings. His true status and achievements have been overshadowed by the events of October 1066 and by the bias imposed by the Norman victory. In reality, he deserves to be recalled as one of England's greatest rulers. This volume sets out to correct this distorted image by presenting Harold's life in its proper context, offering the first full-length critical study of his career in the years leading up to 1066. Ian Walker presents a carefully research critique of the sources for our knowledge of Harold, reconciling the distortions in the divergent "English" and "Norman" accounts available to modern commentators, allowing the reader to make a realistic assessment of Harold and his rival William of Normandy, and in the process enhancing our view of both. Includes a section on the English Earldoms under King Edward, abbreviations, notes, bibliography, and index. Illustrated throughout, including 8 pages in color. The binding is a glossy pictorial matching the jacket. ; 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall ., Wrens Park Publishing, 2000, 6<