Inventing English - by Seth Lerer (Hardcover)

About the Book

A masterful, engaging history of the English language from the age of "Beowulf" to the rap of Eminem, this book percolates with creative energy ("Publishers Weekly").

Book Synopsis

Why is there such a striking difference between English spelling and English pronunciation? How did our seemingly relatively simple grammar rules develop? What are the origins of regional dialect, literary language, and everyday speech, and what do they have to do with you?

Seth Lerer's Inventing English is a masterful, engaging history of the English language from the age of Beowulf to the rap of Eminem. Many have written about the evolution of our grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary, but only Lerer situates these developments in the larger history of English, America, and literature.

Lerer begins in the seventh century with the poet Caedmon learning to sing what would become the earliest poem in English. He then looks at the medieval scribes and poets who gave shape to Middle English. He finds the traces of the Great Vowel Shift in the spelling choices of letter writers of the fifteenth century and explores the achievements of Samuel Johnson's Dictionary of 1755 and The Oxford English Dictionary of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He describes the differences between English and American usage and, through the example of Mark Twain, the link between regional dialect and race, class, and gender. Finally, he muses on the ways in which contact with foreign languages, popular culture, advertising, the Internet, and e-mail continue to shape English for future generations.

Each concise chapter illuminates a moment of invention-a time when people discovered a new form of expression or changed the way they spoke or wrote. In conclusion, Lerer wonders whether globalization and technology have turned English into a world language and reflects on what has been preserved and what has been lost. A unique blend of historical and personal narrative, Inventing English is the surprising tale of a language that is as dynamic as the people to whom it belongs.

Review Quotes

Inventing English is an invigorating read for the mind and the mouth.-- "Bloomsbury Review"

[An] elegant book.--Karenn Krangle "Vancouver Sun"

A fresh look at the history of the English language.--Cynthia Lee Katona "Magill Book Reviews"

A personal, selective and impassioned journey through the history of English.-- "Times Higher Education Supplement"

A wonderful book. It's not hard to find well-informed books about the history of the English language, and it's not hard to find good critical accounts of English literature, but to have the two intertwined in one book is remarkable.-- "Language Hat"

An important and valuable source for anyone who loves the English language, and language in general.--Gale Zoe Garnett "Toronto Globe & Mail"

An unusual linguistic and literary feast.--Anne Curzan "Michigan Quarterly Review"

Erudite and accessible. [Lerer] brings both love and rigour to his subject.--Gale Zoë Garnett "Globe & Mail"

Fun and illuminating.--Carol White "The Main Artery"

Interesting and informative.--Tom Oleson "Winnipeg Free Press"

Lerer not only navigates the shifting currents and boiling rapids of English, but also explores its secret coves.--Rob Kyff "Advocate"

Nonspecialists will join scholars in praising this remarkable linguistic investigation.--Bryce Christensen "Booklist"

The book percolates with creative energy and will please anyone intrigued by how our richly variegated language came to be.-- "Publishers Weekly"

The casual, witty, and sometimes provocative style in which the book is written provides a very apt vehicle for this very personal account.--Tim William Machan "Journal of English and Germanic Philology"

This absorbing book provides sufficient information about linguistics and early English language and literature for clarification... Essential.-- "Choice"

Written with real authority, enthusiasm, and love for our unruly and exquisite language.--Michael Dirda "The Washington Post"

About the Author

Seth Lerer is Distinguished Professor of Literature and the former Dean of Arts and Humanities at the University of California, San Diego. He is known nationally for his audio and videotape series, The History of the English Language, for the Teaching Company.