Shaping English, Part One: People who Innovated English

When we think about the English language, complexity of its grammar is usually the first thing that comes into our minds. Sometimes, however, we are perplexed by countless spelling patterns and pronunciation challenges that are a nightmare for many students of English. Rarely do we think of people whose extensive work has shaped the English language as it is today and made a valuable impact on it.

The Swan of Avon

Anyone with even the slightest insight into the English literary circles has heard the name of William Shakespeare. Needless to say, he is considered by many to be the greatest playwright of all time. Ever since his death he has served as a source of inspiration for generations of writers.

The most sensitive figure of the Romantic period in English literature John Keats was so deeply inspired by the Bard that whenever he was writing a bust of Shakespeare would stand next to him. Keats liked to believe that the Bard’s spirit would instill creativity and bring a dash of fresh air into his poetry.

Four centuries after his death, contemporary authors are still looking for ideas in the Bard’s plays thus bringing new life to his classics.

But what is precisely Bard’s legacy to the English language?

Apart from immortal literary characters, Shakespeare invented more than 1700 words and phrases that are still in use in its original or slightly modified form. This is why if we want to understand English in its modern form, we have to take a closer look into Shakespeare’s expansive vocabulary. As a true poet, Shakespeare was not afraid to play with the English language.

Shakespeare’s work might be all Greek to you, just remember how many times you haven’t slept a wink because Hamlet’s or Macbeth’s troubles bedazzled you. But, one day you will simply have to break the ice and let the honey-tongued Bard seduce you with his majestic poetry. You could learn that all that glitters isn’t gold and that clothes make the man, although this is highly arguable and mostly baseless. For goodness sake, don’t be so cold-blooded towards the Bard. He was truly generous but certainly not lonely in his mission to shape the English language. He changed the course of English for ever and a day.

A tale of Samuel Johnson

Once upon a time there lived a boy named Samuel. Despite his most unfortunate childhood and a whole multitude of health issues that left him deaf in the left ear and almost blind, he grew up to be the most quoted person in the English literature next to Shakespeare, of course. Although he had written only one novel, published one play and some short poems, the entire second half of the 18th century was named after him.

So, what was Dr. Johnson’s contribution to the English language development?

The loquacious gentleman is a genuine man of words. His Dictionary of the English Language, published on 15 April 1755, certainly wasn’t the first, but was definitely the finest at that time. It took him eight years to read 2000 books, mark most interesting words and put together 42773 entries. He included citations and the most quoted person in his Dictionary was – Shakespeare. Dr. Johnson lived to see six editions of his magnificent work.

The result of his effort is a unique cultural monument. He gives no standard definitions – his entries are wondrous attempts to define the world and trace its origins. He is the first one who dared to take such an epic step and try to shape the English language.

Now, let’s have a look at some parts of the Johnson’s Dictionary and don’t put the blame on us, if this becomes your favorite book.

According to Dr. Johnson:

“Whoever thinks of going to bed before twelve o’clock is a scoundrel.”

His dictionary also includes entries such as:

Ba’ckfriend. n.s. [back and friend.] A friend backwards; that is, an enemy in secret.
Sófa. n.s. [I believe an eastern word.] A splendid seat covered with carpets.
Ídiot. n.s. [idiote, Fr. idiota.] A fool; a natural; a changeling; one without the powers of reason.

“Life is a tale,
Told by an IDIOT, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.” Shakespeare’s Macbeth.

Lip – wisdom. n.s. Wisdom in talk without practice.
Hope. n.s. Expectation of some good. An expectation indulged with pleasure.
Etch .n.s. A country word, of which I know not the meaning.

Sounds Interesting: John C. Wells

So far on our journey, we have met the Sweet Swan of Avon as well as one of the greatest men of Age of Enlightenment. While the former played with the English language moving its boundaries, the latter tried to tame it. It is now time to meet another extraordinary gentleman who is showing us how words look inside.

John C. Wells is a renowned phonetician and phonologist. Throughout his life, he has been researching topics such as pronunciation, teaching, spelling, and accents. As a president of the Spelling Society, Wells advocates the reformation of the English spelling. One of his major proposals is abolition of apostrophes.

Grammar Nazis look away now: according to him, the solution for the emerging literacy problems lies in simplification of spelling. Among other things, Wells says:

“People, even literate ones, get very confused about apostrophes. Let’s abolish them.”

Imagine that you want to go to the / ˈbeɪkəz /. If you say it out loud, there might be some misunderstandings. Do you wish to visit a shop of some baker, or a shop of some bakers? Or, perhaps you simply want to visit your friends in the baking business?

Wells argues that the apostrophe in the spelling of these words does not have an equivalent in pronunciation. In other words, apostrophe is useless since what helps us determine the situation is the wider context.

Certainly, this approach is highly unacceptable for language purists. Yet, if we go back to the period when Shakespeare’s First folio was published we will see a huge surprise on the front covers: