Introduction: does prescriptivism fail?; 1. Prescriptivism's umbrella: standards, style, restoration, and political intervention; 2. Prescriptivism's lessons: scope and 'The history of English'; 3. Checking grammar and grammar checkers; 4. Dictionaries and the idea of 'real words'; 5. Non-sexist language reform and its effects; 6. Reappropriation and challenges to institutionalized prescriptivism; 7. Finding shared ground: public conversations about prescriptivism.
Anne Curzan presents a pioneering new definition of prescriptivism as a linguistic phenomenon.
Anne Curzan is Professor of English in the Department of English Language and Literature at the University of Michigan.
'Anne Curzan takes prescriptivism seriously; this informative,
engaging and readable book deserves serious attention from anyone
with an interest in the history - or the future - of English.'
Deborah Cameron, University of Oxford
'This is the most sensible study I have read of the urge to fix and
regulate the English language. Anne Curzan is one of the most
accomplished historical linguists at work today, and Fixing English
represents a clear and effective case for why, like it or not,
'prescriptivism' has always been with us.' Seth Lerer, University
of California, San Diego
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