American Speech: A Quarterly of Language Usage

The Journal American Speech: A Quarterly of Language Usage is currently published in Durham, NC. The website for Duke University Press mentions that it has been in print since

1925. This journal originally started out as a monthly publication and has now moved on to being a quarterly one. The 1925 issue states that the Journal was originally published in

Baltimore by the Williams and Wilkins Publishing agency. In the 1969 issue of the journal, it states that the journal is now published by Columbia University Press. Now, the journal is

published by Duke University Press and is published on behalf of the American Dialect Society Publications. The Editor is Michael Adams, the Senior Associate Editor is Michael B.

Montgomery, The Associate Editor is Allison Burkette and the Managing editor is Charles Carson (Duke University Press). The Editorial boards all appear to be National boards

throughout the publications; including such people as Louise Pound, Kemp Malone, and Allen Walker Read. This journal’s purpose is to study the use of, pronunciation of, and change of words through time in the American speech (Duke).

The 1925 edition of this journal has articles like: “Conservatism in American Speech”, “The Americanization of Czech Given Names”, “The Misuse of Medical Terms”, “A Linguistic Patriot”, “A Ramble in the Garden of Words: The Ectoplasm of the Puritans and the Incubus of the Cavaliers”, “Trouper Talk”, “Irradiation of Certain Suffixes”, “Speech Tunes and the Alphabet”, “The Kraze for “K””, and “Pudding-Time.“ These are all articles there are no poems or short stories, and no book reviews (Pound). Most of the articles from the 1925 edition are rather short, only about 1-3 pages, and focus on a specific type of speech. The article “Trouper Talk” refers to the unique language used by performers. The author Gretchen Lee mentions the different types of names for the props and curtains. Also the performers tended to use specific terms to describe themselves and the way they performed. For instance a performer is either a “flop” or a “wow.” They can either “die standing up” or they can “lay em in the aisle.” Lee shows very clearly in this article how different the speech of performers is from every day speech (Lee).

The 1969 issue has articles along the lines of: “The Treatment of Foreign Terms in Chicago Restaurant Menus”, “Typological Recycling and the Anomaly/Ungrammaticality Dichotomy: The Evolution of the English Verbal Endings”, “Dreamed Words: Their Implications for Linguistic Theory”, “Where Has All the Usage Gone?”, “Timothy Flint”, “Contributor of Americanisms, 1826”, “A Study of Sixteenth-Century British Speech”, “Among the New Words”. Again it is mostly just articles, no book reviews or creative pieces (Magris). The 1969 issue has much longer articles than the 1925 issue, about 4-7 pages each, that focus more on the usage of language rather than specific types of speech. A few of the articles still focus on speech, one of the articles “Among New Words” by I. Willis Russell mentions words that have been added to American Speech. For instance one of the words that was added in the 1960’s was “audible” the author mentions the use of this word in pro-football and how it “originated” in 1965 Tuscaloosa or at least this version of the word appeared then. Other words found in this dictionary style article are: Conglomerate (business term), Expansion(football), Spacewalk (NASA),and STOL (airlines)(Russell).

The 2013 issue had these articles: “THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDREN’S USE OF DISCOURSE LIKE IN PEER INTERACTION” “STYLES, STEREOTYPES, AND THE SOUTH: CONSTRUCTING IDENTITIES AT THE LINGUISTIC BORDER”, “Among New Words” , “The Ohiospeaks Project: Engaging Undergraduates in sociolinguistic Research” “Using Language Journals To Discover American Speech”, and “Learning How To Mean.” This Review Article: “The Lexical Ride of a Lifetime.” These Reviews: “Variation is Central: Creolists Engage Sociolinguistic Questions” and “Viva La Kleine Alsase!” (Adams). The articles in the 2013 journal have increased from just a few pages to anywhere between 5-20 pages. These articles are much longer and appear to go into more depth. An  interesting feature is that they kept the article “Among New Words” from 1969, and they just keep updating it. This edition is by Benjamin Zimmer and Charles E. Carson. However, the 1969 version of the article was more of a dictionary while this is like an awards show. They list the words and then pick the Word of the Year. There are awards such as “Least Likely to Succeed”, “Most Useful” and “Most Creative.” The overall winner of this year’s meeting was “hashtag”

Riverside Shakespeare

     The Riverside Shakespeare collection is a comprehensive work that includes supplemental work to help acholars study Shakespeare in a more organized way. This book holds a wide editorial staff from places all over America. The General and Textual editors are G. Blakemore Evans (Harvard University) and J.J.M. Tobin (University of Massachusetts.) The rest of the editorial staff includes: Herschel Baker (Harvard), Anne Barton ( Trinity College), Frank Kermode (King’s College), Harry Levin (Harvard), Hallett Smith( California Institute of Technology),  and Marie Edel (Houghton Mifflin Company)(ii). This staff helps add essays, illustrations, and historical information to the texts of shakespeare that bring it to life.

    This source is organized into a vast introduction, which includes: a list of illustrations, abbreviations, a General introduction, 20th century Shakespeare Criticism, Shakespeare text, Glossary of Selected Bibliographical Terms, Chronology and Sources, and opening pages of the first folio (ix). All of this is before the first play appears. The plays are organized by type to make studying them easier. It begins with Comedy, then Histories, Tragedies, Romances, and ending with Poems. At the end of the resource are several critical essays.

    This text may appear to be dauntingly enormous, but within is a wealth of easily navigable information. Before and after each play are some notes to help people study the play. At the beginning of The Comedy of Errors an introduction appears by Anne Barton; this introduction introduces some of the themes and motifs of the play. There is also an index that ranges from pgs 2036- 2048, divided into topics. The first index is of characters, then an index to First Lines of The Passionate Pilgrim,  finally First lines of songs and song snatches. At the end is a concise glossary to assist with terminology.

    This source is an excellent guide to Shakespeare’s works, especially for the novice. These works are almost designed to be explored and delved into, this work makes that easier by providing multiple sources in one location. By having critical analysis within a few page flips assists many scholars in the reading and understanding of texts, the Riverside just happens to conveniently package it for people.

Works Cited

Shakespeare, William, G. Blakemore Evans, and J. J. M. Tobin. The Riverside Shakespeare. Boston:

     Houghton Mifflin, 1997. Print.

A History of the English Language

   This reference source was written by Albert C. Baugh and Thomas Cable, and published in New Jersey by Pearson Publishings. They are currently on the sixth edition of this reference. While the authors of this text are male, the entire publishing staff is female. The publishing staff is comprised of those that were assigned to the project by Pearson Publishing. This narrows the scope of those working on the project to the authors, since the editorial staff was assigned not picked for their work.This reference book is written on the English language as we know it and how it came to be the way it is. The book is divided into chapters and then subheadings in that chapter, the chapters are also organized by era. Some of the Chapters include: “English Present and Future”, “Old  English”, “the Reestablishment of English”, and “the English Language in America”. The easiest way to navigate this source is to read the subheadings or use the index.

    Within the chapters of the book, the authors traverse the changes that have occurred in the English Language in a clear and concise manner. For instance the entirety of Old English (chapters 3 and 4) is covered in no more than 65 pages. Inside of those 65 pages 53 subheadings are covered. The authors attempt to spend no more than a page on each subheading only expanding when completely necessary. By doing this they cover the vast majority of the history of the English Language without going too far. Some of the subheadings here follow the lines of: Old English pronunciation, Old English Vocabulary, The Germanic Conquest, Continental Borrowing, The tests of borrowed words, and Effect on Grammar and Syntax ( Baugh vii-viii).

    Littered throughout the novel are charts and examples to help explain what is difficult for reader to understand without visuals. In the chapter “Old English”, The Lord’s Prayer(Baugh 58) appears, so that one may reference how the prayer would have been written in OE verses the way it wouldbe written today. When the book is  talking of the Great vowel Shift, a Chart appears that shows the changes that took place on the vowels, and the way that they affected the way English speakers pronounce things today (Baugh 197.)  This chart shows how words would have been said phonetically before the shift and then after the shift. These charts help readers better understand the material in this source.

    This resource is very helpful for students and professors when discussing the English Language. Even when discussing pieces of Literature from different periods: Beowulf from Old English, Canterbury Tales from Middle English, and Shakespeare form Early Modern. This book can help scholars understand the meaning behind unfamiliar words, the reason they were used and what they truly meant at the time. This is a handy resource to have in ones back pocket because language is at the root of everything, and understanding its history brings one closer to understanding many things.

Works Cited

Baugh, Albert C., and Thomas Cable. A History of the English Language. 6th ed. Abingdon:

        Routledge, 2011. Print

Mythological Heroes in Modern and Contemporary Literature

Introduction

    Golden Fleeces to recover, body parts to rediscover, and mazes to navigate. Mythological references litter everyday phrases and products. People use mythology everyday without realizing it. The mythology of the world surrounds everyone, and affects everything they do. Mythology most importantly affects literature. Authors have been using myths to influence and inspire their writing for inspiration and illusions for centuries.

    Mythology seems so far away and inconsequential at times. Why is it important to know who defeated the Minotaur in the labyrinth and how many children were sacrificed to it? Why is it so important to know that Loki was not only the god of mischief but also the god of illusions and riddles? Because they reappear today in contemporary literature such as in The Hunger Games, and in graphic novels, such as the  character the Joker from the Batman universe. It goes much farther back than that too. Knowing that these allusions exist gives the literature an entirely new depth.

    The sources in this bibliography focus on mythology and its influences on the modern world, specifically that of literature. Works include those that focus on a specific piece and the mythology that is at play there, and a few that deal with the idea of mythology as a whole. A few deal with mythology’s influence on a particular field of study. These ten  sources are organized alphabetically according to MLA standards.

    This bibliography can be used by a wide range of scholars. Anyone from students, teachers, and those that are just curious about  mythology. The bibliography is a general overview of sources that can be building blocks for others in this topic. The resources here may also lead researchers down a different path, like Mythology in feminist texts. What appears here is just a small scratch of the things mythology has touched.

Bahun-Radunović, Sanja, and V. G. Julie. Rajan. Myth and Violence in the Contemporary Female

             Text: New Cassandras. Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2011. Print.

Bahun-Radunović edited this collection of articles that discuss the different types and uses of mythology in modern texts, specifically those by females. The articles within this book are divided into three parts: “Myth, Violence, Border-Crossing: Global Expressions of Self and Society”    , “Of Archetypes, Creativity, and Ethics: Inscribing the Feminine in Mythology”, and “Instead of an Afterword”. These articles discuss the use of Mythology in Novels, Poems, and Drama. The authors even mention multiple mythological heroes and their effect on Modern works. There are Indian, Greek, and Chinese mythologies at work in these articles.

Berndt, Katrin, and Lena Steveker. Heroism in the Harry Potter Series. Farnham: Ashgate,

             2011.   Print.

    Berndt and Steveker have gatheres articles for a book of that dissects Harry Potter and the type of heroism used in it. In the first part of the book there is an article by Lisa Hopkins, called “Rowling’s Web of Illusions”. This article discusses the similarities in Harry Potter and Homer’s The Iliad. In the second and third part of the book other authors mention that Harry becomes a hero through many trials, and that in some ways he reflects the persona of a Mythological  Hero. This book has a vast index that is easy to use and can help someone navigate the book.

Galloway, David. The Absurd Hero in American Fiction. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press,

1970. Print.

In this book by Galloway the American hero is explored in chapters like: “ The Myth of the Absurd” and “The Absurd Man as the Tragic Hero” This work discusses the use of the hero in the American novel, the development of the character, and the history of the character. There are a few instances when it becomes clear that the Modern American heroes are based on some Mythological heroes. Hercules and Oedipus can both be found in the extensive index.

Hamilton, Edith. Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes. New York, NY: Warner, 1999.

          Print.

    This book is one of the leading resources on mythology. Hamilton is a renowned researcher in this field. This book makes a fantastic addition to any research because it covers a wide range of mythology. It spans from simple myths around the world to in depth hero analysis.There are some specific chapters on each  Greek hero including ones on : “Jason”, “Hercules”, and “Perseus.” This book gives a very general and diverse view of mythology.

Magoulick, Mary. What Is Myth? N.p., 2003. Web. 24 Oct. 2013.

    This website is written to explain the different types of myths and the ways that they can and are used. She explains that myths can be used to make better parallels in literature, but they are also used in day to day life also. The biggest part of the article is when she mentions different types of mythology and the influences they have. She discusses Greek, Native American, and Norse. The information here is an excellent stepping stone for being able to pinpoint mythology in literature when it is used.

Newell, Dianne, and Victoria Lamont. “Rugged Domesticity: Frontier Mythology in Post-

            Armageddon Science Fiction by Women.” Science Fiction Studies 97th ser. 32.3 (2005):

            423-42. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 20 Oct. 2013.

    This journal article covers four science fiction novels from the years 1900-1999. These novels are all dystopian novels. They are based on the modern version of American’s civilization’s encounter with savagery that was identified by Rickard Slotkin. The novels that are discussed are Shadow on the Hearth by Judith Merril, Sunburst by Phylis Gotleib, The Long Tomorrow by Leigh Brackett, and Dommsday Morning by C.L. Moore. The authors of the article explore the way these four authors employ mythology to make their novels more potent.

Peterson A, Dunworth D. Mythology In Our Midst : A Guide To Cultural References [e-book].

                   Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press; 2004. Available from: eBook Collection

                    (EBSCOhost), Ipswich, MA. Accessed October 20, 2013.

     This eBook is written in a very sectional maner, everything is broken down into an almost list-like format. At the begining is a list of roughly 30 of the most common mythological references. Among these are, Gilgamesh, Loki, The tree of Life, Adam and Eve, and Pygmalion. Then within each of these refrences, the author defines the myth and mentions some modern uses. Sometimes Peterson will use Literature but he will also mention movies. In the Adam and Eve section he mentions the times in books when characters are tempted, is comparable to Eve in ways, and also a modern movie that uses it as a mythological influence is Weird Science.

Potts, Stephen. “The Many Faces of the Hero in Lord of the Rings.” Twentieth Century Literary

                        Criticism. Vol 137. Detroit: Gale, 2003. 4-11. Literature Resources from Gale.

                      Web. 30 Sept. 2013

        This short article takes an in depth look at a contemporary trilogy and focuses on how it was created. Lord of the Rings is a very popular series and this article not only discusses the Mythology Tolkien based his characters on, but also the Mythology he created. This article draws focus on the hero, Frodo, and how he can be interpreted as a character based on the great heroes from other myths.

Pondrom, Cyrena. “The Role of Myth in Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God.”American

          Literature. 58.2 (1996): 181-202. JSTOR. Web. 20 Oct. 2013

    Pondrom argues in this article that most people pay attention to the use of racial issues in the novel,  and not the creative use of mythological elements, that give the novel a whole new life. This novel includes Isis and Osiris and Aphrodite and Hephaestus themes. That is two different culture’s mythologies at play in this work. She argues that these mythological elements when taken into account give the novel entirely new depth.

Rollins, Ronald. “Finn Again: O’Casey Resurrects Celtic Heroes in Red Roses for Me.”Drama

For    Students. Vol. 19. Detroit: Gale, 2004. 52-58. Literature Resources from Gale.Web.

          30 Sept.   2013.

     Rollins’ essay focuses on one play and one culture’s mythology, and what is based on that mythology.This article focuses in on characters in the play and how they really reflect the characters of the myths. This is an essay pulled from a larger journal and since it is only six pages long it is very easy to navigate. It is a well done analysis of this play and its mythological background for “Drama for Students.”