Caxton on Dialects
From Landmarks in
Linguistic Thought by two linguists, Roy Harris and
Talbot
Summarized by Jenny Cook
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"Caxton on dialects" is a term taken from the book Landmarks in Linguistic Thought written by two linguistics, Roy Harris and Talbot.
During the European Renaissance, the idea of a national language was introduced. Unfortunately, not all languages were alike and there were many differences in spellings and linguistic attributes. Finding a way to bring it all together to a national
level seemed to be an unreachable feat. Caxton took the responsibility, and by forfeit, began printing the dialect of the south east Midlands. At first this was discouraged because it did not measure up to the Latin and Greek Languages. Eventually, the
Renaissance thinkers thought this could be used as a tool to mold into a language that fit a national structure.
Throughout time, people discovered that no language was perfect and would cause some confusion for some people, which made it temporary and subject to change.
With the introduction of this concept to print, Caxton helped educate people with the east Midland dialect. He introduced the I instead of using ic(h) and home instead of hame. The result of this change was that other dialects w
ere no longer printed. By using one type of dialect, east Midlands English, Caxton polished the first step in standardizing a national language.
The printing of this identical information made it possible for the material to be read by one whole community of people at the same time. This was evident when newspapers were printed in the eighteenth century. Unfortunately, this type of print li
mited the reading community to the wealthier and more educated people. We could consider this a great start for making the image of a national community become a reality. Without this stepping stone in history, we would not be where we are today.
Questions for thought. . .
1. What were some of the problems Catcon faced?'
2. How did he overcome these problems?
3. Do you think this changed history? Why?
4. What was one drawback of creating this national language?