Differences Between Descriptive And Prescriptive Grammar

Venus Engram EN 452 Dr Kate Hickey Feb 9, 2017 What is Grammar? The system of arranging words and phrases to create well-formed sentences in a language, also referred to as syntax, is the core to understanding what grammar is. Studying how words are formed in language (morphology) is another system that defines grammar. Once this is grasped, it is important to understand the difference between descriptive and prescriptive grammar, in addition to their significance. Presenting language as it is actually used by writers and speakers of diverse communities in unalike settings and contexts is the agenda of descriptive grammar. In other words, the function of descriptive grammar is to describe rather than legislate. Linguists†¦show more content†¦Instead, the field recognizes the legitimacy of other dialects that will benefit and aid successful grammar instruction (descriptive grammars). With that, it is evident many grammar instructors must change their way of thinking and assemble the descriptive point of view into educating. Roman rhetorician,Quintilian, aimed to use grammar instruction as a means to produce habits of language that would encourage students to become successful and productive citizens (Murphy, 2012). Quintilian’s students created a bank of resources that were intended to assist in creating their own language that should be engaging and effective. This was accomplished by carefully examining how esteemed authors used language in defined written and oral presentations. Grammar instruction became increasingly fragmented as a result (Abbott, 2012; Murphy, 2012). The goal of preparing students to be successful, productive citizens by ,producing habits of effective language, was ultimately lost and replaced with a new goal to master speaking correctly. Exaggeration on â€Å"correct language† use was a consequence of the rapid changes occurring in the English language. Scholars were concerned with the expansion of English dialects which created an urgency to standardize terms of vo cabulary, spelling, and grammar. Standardization efforts caused the publishing of numerous dictionaries, grammars, and pronunciation manuals with an emphasis onShow MoreRelatedSimilarities and Differences Between Prescriptive and Descriptive Grammars888 Words   |  4 PagesGrammar contributes to the meaningful linkage between words and phrases, making sense of a language semantically in a socially agreed framework. To achieve this, rules and principles are laid down to produce a uniform structure of a language usage. Concerning about social acceptability, different theories have been employed to result in different types of grammatical description (O’Halloran, Coffin 2005). Meanwhile, as language is in a constant state of flux in terms of phonetics, morphology, semanticRead MoreResearch on Prescriptive Grammar and Its Comparison with Descriptive Grammar1988 Words   |  8 Pagesi Research on Prescriptive Grammar and Its Comparison with Descriptive Grammar ii Abstract In English linguistics, there are two approaches which are opposite to each other theoretically: prescriptive grammar and descriptive grammar. These two grammars were born in different historical conditions, and the application rules involved in has been still under the dispute through the development of English linguistics. It is significant to study the development trend and application in EnglishRead MoreNoah Webster Essay925 Words   |  4 Pagespronunciation and grammar (Short Summary Website). As a teacher, and as a patriot, Webster felt a need for an American textbook. He wanted consistency and he wanted it to reflect that there was an American dialect of English that was distinctive from that of England (Bett Website). He had also noted that the social classes of England were often distinguished by differences in dialect, and he wished the United States to have a single, distinctive dialect that would rise above differences in class (BettRead MoreAuthority an d American Usage1259 Words   |  6 PagesWallace, poses an argument about the English language, and the different beliefs of its usage. This essay was written in defense of Bryan A. Garner’s, A Dictionary of Modern American Usage. His argument in â€Å"Authority and American Usage† is the difference the between prescriptivism perception and the descriptivism perception (Linguistic terms that could easily be made into smaller, more understandable words for people like me). Since the beginning of time, language has evolved. From biblical times, toRead MoreCharacteristics Of Esp Stevens ( 1988 ) Definition Essay2248 Words   |  9 Pages2.1.2. CHARACTERISTICS OF ESP Stevens (1988) definition of ESP makes a distinction between absolute character and variable character: 1. ABSOLUTE CHARACTERISTICS (language teaching is designed to meet specified needs of the learner; related in content to particular disciplines, occupation and activities; centred on the language appropri ate to those activities in syntax, text, discourse, semantics, etc., and analysis of the discourse; designed in contrast with General English); 2. VARIABLE CHARACTERISTICSRead MoreThe s Theory Of Universal Grammar Essay873 Words   |  4 Pagesuniversal grammar? Do you agree with it? (You will need to look this up online.) Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, logician, political commentator, social justice activist, and anarcho-syndicalist advocate. His universal grammar theory is a theory in linguistics, usually credited to Noam Chomsky, proposing that the ability to learn grammar is hard-wired into the brain. It is sometimes known as mental grammar , and as opposed to other grammars , e.g. prescriptiveRead MorePrescriptivism v. Descriptivism1552 Words   |  7 Pagesfavour. In Bryan A. Garner’s essay, â€Å"Making Peace in the Language Wars†, he describes himself as a ‘descriptive prescriber’ (Garner, Making Peace in the Language Wars 2008, 270), and offers a truce that fulfils both sides of the argument as the crux of his essay. While the separate sides of the argument are relatively easy to define, it seems that no one sticks to them religiously, and the argument is between individuals fighting over individual points. The two sides ar e that of the descriptivist and thatRead MoreThe language2821 Words   |  12 Pageslanguage has between 10 and 12 basic vowel sounds; this is the answer the linguist is interested in. Language is first and foremost oral; speech as a means of communication has been around for perhaps 200,000 years or more, while writing has existed for only about 6,000 as far as we know. Many languages, including many Native American languages as well as most of the creole languages of the Caribbean, exist without a written tradition. This in no way diminishes their language-ness. Grammar is a setRead MoreCritical Thinking: Reasoning and Inference Essays2817 Words   |  12 PagesChemistry studies the structure, composition, and properties of material substances and the transformations they undergo. The origin, evolution, and development of human society is the object studied by sociology. Economics, biology, geography, and grammar all have objects of knowledge which they investigate, describe, and try to explain. Critical thinking involves a knowledge of the science of logic, including the skills of logical analysis, correct reasoning, and understanding statistical methodsRead More Chomsky and Knowledge of Language Essay3331 Words   |  14 Pagestheory of Chomsky has changed the long, traditional way of studying language. The nature of knowledge, which is closely tied to human knowledge in general, makes it a logical step for Chomsky to generalize his theory to the study of the relation between language and the world-in particular, the study of truth and reference. But his theory has been controversial and his proposal of innate ideas has been resisted by some empiricists who characterize him as rationalist. In our view, these empiricists