English Grammatical Categories
and the Tradition to 1800

This book examines the traditional grammar, very briefly for its Greek and Latin origins, and fully during its first two hundred years as 'English' grammar.

Ian Michael (Author)

9780521143264, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 10 June 2010

640 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 3.6 cm, 0.93 kg

First published in 1970, this book examines the traditional grammar, very briefly for its Greek and Latin origins, and fully during its first two hundred years as 'English' grammar. It asks when the application of Latin grammar to English was made; how far it was made knowingly; whether anyone protested that English needed a a grammar of its own. The two hundred and seventy-two English grammars known up to 1800 are studied. Dr Michael shows that the old grammatical tradition is much less unanimous and authoritative than is often supposed, and describes a previously unknown movement to reform English grammar and make it more suited to English, which was expressed in about forty grammars during the first half of the eighteenth century. The book also provides much evidence about the relation between logic and language, especially in making definitions, and about methods of teaching during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Preface
Introduction
Part I. The Tradition: 1. The sources
2. Grammar, divisions of grammar and parts of discourse
3. Parts of speech
4. Classification within the parts of speech
5. Accidents
6. Syntax
Part II. The English Categories: 7. The terms 'grammar'
8. Systems of parts of speech
9. Noun, substantive and adjective
10. The pronoun
11. The article
12. The verb
13. Tense
14. Mood, conjugation, irregularity
15. Other parts of speech
16. Syntactical categories
17. Protest and acceptance
Appendices.

Subject Areas: Linguistics [CF]