How to use this Page

Since the groundbreaking Original Pronunciation productions at Shakespeare’s Globe in London in 2004-05, OP has captured the imagination of performers, directors, and the play-going public. Going back to the pronunciation of the late 16th and early 17th centuries reveals nuances, puns, and rhymes that otherwise lie completely hidden, and gives fresh dynamism to productions.

The post Why people enjoy hearing Shakespeare in Original Pronunciation appeared first on OUPblog.

In 2004, Shakespeare's Globe in London began a daring experiment. They decided to mount a production of a Shakespeare play in 'original pronunciation' (OP) - a reconstruction of the accents that would have been used on the London stage around the year 1600, part of a period known as Early Modern English. They chose Romeo and Juliet as their first production, but - uncertain about how the unfamiliar accent would be received by the audience - performances in OP took place for only one weekend.

The post Original pronunciation: the state of the art in 2016 appeared first on OUPblog.

In All's Well that Ends Well (3.7), Helena devises a plan to ignite the affections of her husband, for which she needs the help of her new acquaintances, a widow and her daughter. The widow is naturally suspicious, but Helena persuades her by offering to pay for her daughter's marriage.

The post Money, money, money appeared first on OUPblog.

False friends (‘faux amis’) are words in one language which look the same as words in another. We therefore think that their meanings are the same and get a shock when we find they are not. Generations of French students have believed that demander means ‘demand’ (whereas it means ‘ask’) or librairie means ‘library’ (instead of ‘bookshop’). It is a sign of a mature understanding of a language when you can cope with the false friends, which can be some of its most frequently used words. Having a good grasp of the false friends is a crucial part of ‘learning to speak French.’

The post Shakespeare’s false friends appeared first on OUPblog.

In the summer of 2012, I got a contract for a book about language, based on my experiences of more than 30 years as a copy editor at The New Yorker. I was thrilled, because now I had license to buy all the books about language that I wanted. That September, I was driving on [...]

There’s something about the idea of ‘original pronunciation’ (OP) that gets the pulse racing. I’ve been amazed by the public interest shown in this unusual application of a little-known branch of linguistics — historical phonology, a subject that explores how the sounds of a language change over time. I little expected, when I was approached by Shakespeare’s Globe in 2004 to help them mount a production of Romeo and Juliet in OP, that ten years on the approach would become a thriving linguistic industry. Nor could I have predicted that a short documentary recording about OP for the Open University (which I made with actor son Ben in 2011) would for no apparent reason go viral towards the end of 2013, with 1.5 million hits in recent months.

A dozen Shakespeare plays have now been produced in original pronunciation, including A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Kansas University in 2010 and Hamlet at the University of Nevada (Reno) in 2011. This year a group from the University of Texas (Houston) brought an OP production of Julius Caesar to the Edinburgh Fringe. Next January, Ben Crystal and his OP ensemble are presenting Pericles in Stockholm as part of an Interplay series along with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. More productions are in the pipeline.

But it isn’t just Shakespeare. The interest in him tops the list, but it is a long list, in which the work of any dramatist from the period can be treated in this way. And not just drama. Poems and prose too. My recording of the Sonnets is available on the website associated with the book Pronouncing Shakespeare. An OP recording by Ben of one of John Donne’s long sermons can now be heard as part of the Virtual St Paul’s Cross project.

Donne takes us forward in time to the 1620s. Going backwards in time, the British Library wanted an original pronunciation recording of William Tyndale to accompany the publication of its facsimile of the Tyndale Gospels. They chose the Matthew Gospel, and I recorded this for them in 2013. That takes us back to 1525. There are earlier recordings in the BL archive, made for the Evolving English winter exhibition in 2011-12, including extracts from Beowulf, Chaucer, Caxton, and Paston. The British Library also commissioned a CD of Shakespeare extracts from Ben and his ensemble: Shakespeare’s Original Pronunciation.

But the interest extends well beyond literature. Notably present in the talkback sessions after the first original pronunciation productions at the Globe were people interested in early music. And since then there have been many explorations into the kind of pronunciation used by Purcell (late 17th century), Dowland, and other composers. As with their literary counterparts, musicologists have been struck by the fact that so many of the rhymes in songs, madrigals, and operatic texts simply don’t work in modern English, and they want to hear them as they would have been. They note the way many of the vowels and consonants would have had different values in those days, and they want to explore how the texts would sound with those old values articulated. The result is a very different auditory experience, and — by all accounts — an exciting one.

Finally there are the heritage people. It’s all well and good establishing a historical centre where an old period is recreated, and people dress up in old clothes and walk around — but how should they speak? The occasional ‘verily’ and ‘forsooth’ isn’t enough. Here too we see an interest in recreating styles of speech that would have been used in those days.

Add all these constituencies together and you can see why the original pronunciation experiment has become something of an OP movement, with more and more people wanting to learn about OP, to hear it in practice, and to explore its application in texts that so far have received no study. Every new text brings to light something new — such as a previously unnoticed pun, or a fresh way of speaking a line. At university level, people are beginning to write dissertations on the subject. Ben, as I write, is exploring ways for his ensemble to cope with new OP commitments. There’s plenty to do. With only a dozen Shakespeare plays explored so far, that leaves a couple of dozen more awaiting investigation.

The consequence is an urgent need to provide materials to help people take original pronunciation activities forward. Paul Meier already has some tutorial material on his website, and his Dream production is available both as an audio recording and on a DVD. Several articles have now been written answering the usual questions people ask (such as ‘how do you know’?). And I am hard at work on an OP Shakespeare dictionary, which will enable people to make transcripts for themselves. I have paused, in the middle of letter N, to write this post. But with luck and a good following wind, I should have it finished in time for the great anniversary in 2016. And it will be published, of course, by Oxford University Press.

The post The lure of sounds appeared first on OUPblog.

        

Related Stories

• Why you should never trust a pro
• Peace treaties that changed the world
• Is Arabic really a single language?

 

By Kate Farquhar-Thomson

I look forward to the last week of May every year and 2014 is no exception. To what am I referring? My annual pilgrimage to Hay-on-Wye of course.

Every year since I can remember, I find myself in England’s famous book town for the excellent Hay Festival. Now in its 27th year the eponymous book festival can be found nestling under canvass for 11 days in the Black Mountains of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Due to the breadth of our publishing at OUP we are lucky enough to field a great ‘team’ of authors every year at this internationally renowned festival and this year is no exception.

Sharing the Green Room with the likes of Stephen Fry, Ruby Wax, Monty Don, and James Lovelock, this year, will be Ian Goldin, Professor of Globalization and Development and Director of the Oxford Martin School at the University of Oxford, who will be speaking about ‘Meeting Global Challenges’. This talk kicks off a series of three talks inspired by the new book Is the Planet Full?  Edited by Goldin, the book has 10 contributors and later in the week talks will also pull out some of the books’ major themes such as ‘The End of Population Growth?’ addressed by Professor Sarah Harper, Co-Director, Oxford Institute of Population Ageing, ‘Can the World Feed 10 Billion People (Sustainably & Equitably)’ discussed by Charles Godfrey and with Yavinder Malhi who will be looking at the question ‘Bigger than the Biosphere? A metabolic perspective on our human-dominated planet’.

The Hay Festival site. Photo by Finn Beales.

A specialist in ancient Greek history, Professor Paul Cartledge will be talking about his latest book After Thermopylae. Illustrating the diversity of the OUP’s contribution to the festival this year and offering something for everyone, the week continues with Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones discussing spies and spying; John van Wyhe, who is flying in from Singapore, will talk about Alfred Russell Wallace of whom last year saw the 100 year anniversary of his death; Justin Gregg, who knows a thing or two about dolphins, asks Are Dolphins Really Smart? For the scientists among us Professor Peter Atkins will surely answer the question What is Chemistry? in a fully illustrated talk on the subject.

Frequent visitors to Hay will be familiar with David & Hilary Crystal who have entertained many a festival goer over the years and this year they plan to take us on a literary tour through the UK looking at how the language was shaped by Wordsmiths and Warriors in history.

There is not much Lawrence Freedman, Professor of War Studies at King’s College London, doesn’t know about Strategy. And his latest book on the topic gives us a panoramic synthesis of the role of strategy throughout world civilization, from ancient Greece through the nuclear age. He was appointed Official Historian of the Falklands Campaign in 1997 and more recently, in June 2009, served as a member of the official inquiry into Britain and the 2003 Iraq War.

During the final weekend of the festival Thomas Weber will bring insight and detail on Hitler’s formative experiences as a soldier on the Western Front when discussing Hitler’s First War and Julian Thomas will discuss ‘The Dorstone Dig‘ where over the last couple of summers, the archaeological team have uncovered two 6,000-year-old burial mounds and the remains of two huge halls that appear to have been ritually burned down.

I, for one, will be looking forward to being entertained and educated during my week at Hay and I hope you are too!

Kate Farquhar-Thomson is Head of Publicity at OUP in Oxford.

Subscribe to the OUPblog via email or RSS.
Image credit: Hay Festival site. Photo by Finn Beales.

The post Looking forward to the Hay Festival 2014 appeared first on OUPblog.

        

Related Stories

• Tinderbox drenched in vodka: alcohol and revolution in Ukraine
• Why literary genres matter
• My democracy, which democracy?

 

Spell It Out: The Curious, Enthralling and Extraordinary Story of English Spelling David Crystal

Much like he does in The Story of English in 100 Words, Crystal has made language history exceedingly accessible. This is a basic history of English spelling and how it developed over time, and why it’s so darn wacky. (Short story-- trying to use the latin alphabet for a non-Latin language, scribes changing spelling to make things easier/prettier on the page, French influence after the Norman conquest, and the Great Vowel shift.)

But, for a book that could easily be boring, short chapters and a conversational style make this one an easy read. I also love love love love that Crystal doesn’t decry texting and the internet as ruining spelling. He also makes wonderful arguments as to why spelling is more important than ever. There's also an entire section for early education teachers with his ideas about how to teach spelling to make it more relevant, easier, and fun.

Very fun, and an Outstanding Book for the College Bound that I think teens will really enjoy.

Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Linguist and author David Crystal was recently interviewed on NPR's Talk of the Nation, discussing the paperback release of Walking English: A Journey in Search of Language: "Whether near his home in Wales or abroad, linguist David Crystal always travels with an insatiable curiosity about the English language. For his book, Walking English, he hit the road in search of new linguistic experiences. Crystal is fascinated by distinctive accents and towns with unusual names. He takes particular interest in intriguing turns of phrase old and new, whether they're rooted deep in Anglo-Saxon origins or fresh off a TV ad."

David Crystal's The Stories of English is nominated by Michael Quinlon in The Wall Street Journal as one of the Five Best Books on the English language: "This richly textured, nontechnical account of the evolution of English is fascinating because it interweaves multiple narratives. In parallel with the standard language, David Crystal discusses varieties usually considered nonstandard -- dialect, slang and the speech of ethnic minorities -- which previously hadn't received the same level of attention. Traditionalist speakers and grammarians deplore such varieties as inferior or corrupt, but they are increasingly becoming accepted as legitimate, not least because only one in three speakers of English now has it as a mother tongue. With a cornucopia of examples that range from "The Canterbury Tales" to "The Lord of the Rings," and from the correspondence of medieval kings to Internet chatroom gossip, Crystal's exposition is a delight."

David Crystal's By Hook or by Crook receives warm praise from The Bloomsbury Review in the May/June 2008 issue: "Crystal stands out amongst contemporary linguists, as his ruminations on the language often go beyong strict linguistic study and delve into the realm of the trivial, the unusual, the humorous, or the fascinating - in short, all those things avid readers find intriguing about language. By Hook or By Crook may be Crystal's most unusual contribution to this field yet, and perhaps his most enjoyable as well."

David Crystal's By Hook or By Crook: A Journey in Search of English has received a starred review in Booklist: "Crystal has been dubbed a latter-day Samuel Johnson, and with good reason, as evidenced by the long list of academic studies penned by the distinguished linguist, among them How Language Works. However, it is Professor Henry Higgins, popularized on stage and screen that he most often cites in this delightful book, which is part travelogue, part memoir, and part meditation on the intellectual and emotional underpinnings of language. What is most seductive about Crystal's narrative, though, is the fascinating glimpse it provides into the quicksilver mind of a man who is so knowledgeable and yet still so curious about our mercurial language."

The United Nations has proclaimed 2008 The International Year of Languages, "recognizing that genuine multilingualism promotes unity in diversity and international understanding." One of the world's foremost authorities on languages is David Crystal, author of Overlook's The Stories of English, How Language Works, and the forthcoming By Hook or By Crook: A Journey in Search of English. The new work is a departure for Crystal: an entertaining linguistic travelogue, and an attempt to capture the seductive, quirky, teasing, tantalizing nature of language itself. By Hook or By Crook will be published in May 2008.

When I began blogging about children's books, I mostly reviewed picture books and Middle Grade fiction. Over the years, however, I've been increasingly drawn to Young Adult literature as well, a category I did not read as a teenager. Part of what interests me about Young Adult fiction, is a simple question: When is a book meant only for the teens and when is it meant exclusively for adults? What differentiates one market from the other? Well, sometimes, it's hard to tell. Today I'm reviewing two books--one marketed as YA, the other as adult fiction--that cross age boundaries and can be enjoyed by all readers approximately ages 13 and up.

First up is Nancy Crocker's brilliant and heartfelt Billie Standish Was Here. Marketed as Young Adult fiction and meant for readers ages 14 and older, it would be a shame if this book were not read by adults everywhere.

Billie Standish is a self-sufficient only child, born to farmers in Cumberland, Missouri, in 1959. Because she's a girl, Billie's parents ignore her, leaving her to run the household, when they are off working the farm. (The irony being, of course, that Mom works alongside her husband, as much a farmer as he is.) When the novel opens Billie is eleven and is wandering a deserted town. Frightened and intrigued, she asks her neighbor--an elderly woman named Miss Lydia--what's happened. The dam is overwhelmed and a warning has been issued. Most of the town's residents fear flood, but Miss Lydia and Billie's parents have decided to remain put.

Billie benefits, however, by making a new friend in Miss Lydia. Miss Lydia hires Billie for a variety of small tasks, paying her with dinner and a dollar. Billie enjoys the older woman's company and conversation. There's only one downside to this new arrangement--Miss Lydia's vile, loutish son, Curtis. Billie, an intelligent girl, is stunned by Curtis and can't believe how different he is from Miss Lydia:

"I stared at my bedroom ceiling that night thinking about how every single person on earth, no matter who they turned out later, started out as somebody's baby.

Everybody started out as a blessing or a disappointment. A prayer that had been answered or nothing more than another mouth to feed. All by the time they'd drawn their first breath. "

Billie should know. Her mother had desperately wanted a boy, and Mom got Billie.

The unthinkable happens, changing Miss Lydia and Billie's burgeoning friendship. Curtis drags Billie into a truck and rapes her. Almost immediately, there's a town scandal: Miss Lydia has shot her son, thinking he was an intruder. From that moment on, Billie and Miss Lydia are more than friends--they're conspirators. Over the years, their friendship develops and even widens as they admit a third person--Billie's classmate, Harlan--into their midst. Miss Lydia teaches Billie and Harlan about current events, inspires them both to go to college (especially Billie, who she makes her heir), and teaches them love, compassion, and loyalty.

Billie Standish was Here is a testament to unlikely friendships and how much they can change your world. Nancy Crocker's 1960s lower Midwest dialect never falters in the book, never seeming false or folksy. As a result, her characters walk off the pages. This book is a gem--don't miss it. (And, if you don't believe me, check out Jules' rave review over at Seven Impossible Things About Breakfast.)

I'm far too antisocial and impatient to belong to a book group myself, but Billie Standish was Here is the perfect book group selection. There's so much to discuss