Why we need to invent new words by Andrew K. Pt 2 Flashcards
According to Kaufman, what have dictionaries shown?
Dictionaries turned the language from a house that we are all free to renovate, into a museum we are only allowed to look at.
What does he define ‘dictionaries’?
People should be free to create as dictionaries are “just a book”
According to Kaufman, what should dictionaries show?
Dictionaries should show that new word can offer us a short or more conventional way of describing a situation as well as our creativity.
How does Kaufman use metaphors to compare lexicography?
Comparing language that was once “a house we all free to renovate” contrastingly into “a museum only allowed to look at”
How does Kaufman use metaphors to compare lexicographers?
Compares the fear of lexicographer as “a red velvet” that we need to step over “to make up your own words”
How does Kaufman compare lexicography (in terms of creating words) and what language change theory does this link to?
Compares lexicography, in terms of every word to a “suitcase, into which we pack an idea and then hand it to someone else” this also has elements of wave theory.
What language change ideas can dictionaries affect according to Andrew Kaufman? Remember to give other examples.
Targeting prescriptivist view on dictionaries using “slang” as an example. On the computer there is red line underneath the words, they’re not seen as “correct.” More examples are ‘googling’, ‘skyping’ & ‘sexting.’
What can we evaluate his argument?
This is ironic considering all these words are done on a computer domain, yet they are stills seen as wrong. However, due to more liberation and customisation we can add our own words or slang to the preordained dictionary. Therefore, we are creating our own dictionaries that we feel are acceptable. On the other hand, words that we may feel acceptable may not necessarily be agreed with other users. Which is why we must accept that we cannot all accept the descriptivist way of thinking. People have the right to choose how they see language regardless of how fixed it may be.
