Week 6 Flashcards
What marks the end of ME?
Printingpress came to England
What marks the beginning of ME?
Battle of Hastings
What was Latin used for in Trilingual England?
Language of;
- church
- learning/scholarship
- official (legal) documents
- literal arts
- lingua France across Europe
Linguistic scenario between 1100-1400
England had become Trilingual;
1. Latin
2. French
3. English
What was French used for in Trilingual England?
Administrative/legal documents
Spoken at court
Language of prestige
What was English used for in Trilingual England?
Language of majority
How did the use of French deteriorate over time in England?
11th century > language of rulers
13th century > French people became bilingual, because marriage still spread language around, but kids spoke English
15th century > knowledge of French was an achievement
What impressions did French leave on the English language?
- Government and administration
- Religion
- Law
- Army and navy
- Fashion, meals, social sphere
- Art, leaning, medicine
Synthetical language
Relies on inflections to indicate the function of words
Old English
Greek, Latin, Slavic languages
Analytical language
Relies on word order, prepositions and auxiliaries to indicate functions of words
English, French, Chinese
Is ME synthetic or analytical?
In between, trasitionphase
What is the Oxford English Dictionary useful for?
Etymology of words, chronological development of meaning, history of a word.
How did Chaucer influence the English language?
He slightly changed the 3rd person plural pronouns.
Hie > they (nominative)
Hira > hir (genitive)
Him and hie > hem (dative/accusative)
What is the Middle English Dictionary useful for?
Ethymology of words, all possible meanings, different spellings
Wife of Bathe’s Tale
Wife of Bathe = Alison
Jankin = misogynistic husband
Knight = rapes women, “what do women want?”
The Lothly Lady = tells the knight the answer, marries, changes.