Roger Fowler

It is widely recognized that language is humanity’s most distinctive and valuable faculty. In this work, originally published in 1974, Roger Fowler explains the character and absorbing interest of language. Designed as an introductory text for students and others concerned with human communication, the book is clearly and concisely written, yet it in no way oversimplifies its rich and complicated subject.The opening chapters set the scene by a discussion of the power of language in the social and psychological life of a man, while the main body of the book is an introduction to linguistics, the science of language study. Coverage is provided of the main topics in linguistic description – semantics, syntax, phonetics – as well as of the functions of language, its status in society and its relation to the individual. The reader is invited to participate in some advanced thinking within an up-to-date and consistent linguistic theory. Particular attention is given to the individual as language-learner, since the process of language acquisition illuminates most clearly the naturalness and the complexity of language.The author’s arguments are illustrated with hundreds of examples from English and other languages. Suggestions for further reading are included in the exposition, and the reader who follows the arguments and pursues the carefully arranged bibliographical recommendations will acquire a substantial insight into contemporary linguistics – the most important and advanced of the modern human sciences.

Originally published in 1966, this book provides students of the earliest stage of our literature with a selection of texts for a complete introductory course. All the principal poems and prose works in this literature are represented, including more generous extracts from Beowulf than are common in anthologies of this type. By omitting texts of primarily philological and historical interest it has been possible to include enough literary texts to satisfy all but the advanced student, who will follow this volume with the specialised editions available. A departure from the traditional design of Old English anthologies is the provision of full critical and annotative apparatus. In the past it has been necessary for students to go beyond their Readers, to specialised editions or to learned articles, in order to discover even the most basic information about the extracts or their content. Here each text is accompanied by an introduction which gives brief details of (where known) date, authorship, manuscript situation, character and critical interest. Line-by-line explanatory notes are also provided, and a bibliography of books and articles for further study. The glossary aims to be more explicit about form and meaning, and easier to use than those of earlier selections.

Originally published in 1966, this book provides students of the earliest stage of our literature with a selection of texts for a complete introductory course. All the principal poems and prose works in this literature are represented, including more generous extracts from Beowulf than are common in anthologies of this type. By omitting texts of primarily philological and historical interest it has been possible to include enough literary texts to satisfy all but the advanced student, who will follow this volume with the specialised editions available. A departure from the traditional design of Old English anthologies is the provision of full critical and annotative apparatus. In the past it has been necessary for students to go beyond their Readers, to specialised editions or to learned articles, in order to discover even the most basic information about the extracts or their content. Here each text is accompanied by an introduction which gives brief details of (where known) date, authorship, manuscript situation, character and critical interest. Line-by-line explanatory notes are also provided, and a bibliography of books and articles for further study. The glossary aims to be more explicit about form and meaning, and easier to use than those of earlier selections.

It is widely recognized that language is humanity’s most distinctive and valuable faculty. In this work, originally published in 1974, Roger Fowler explains the character and absorbing interest of language. Designed as an introductory text for students and others concerned with human communication, the book is clearly and concisely written, yet it in no way oversimplifies its rich and complicated subject.The opening chapters set the scene by a discussion of the power of language in the social and psychological life of a man, while the main body of the book is an introduction to linguistics, the science of language study. Coverage is provided of the main topics in linguistic description – semantics, syntax, phonetics – as well as of the functions of language, its status in society and its relation to the individual. The reader is invited to participate in some advanced thinking within an up-to-date and consistent linguistic theory. Particular attention is given to the individual as language-learner, since the process of language acquisition illuminates most clearly the naturalness and the complexity of language.The author’s arguments are illustrated with hundreds of examples from English and other languages. Suggestions for further reading are included in the exposition, and the reader who follows the arguments and pursues the carefully arranged bibliographical recommendations will acquire a substantial insight into contemporary linguistics – the most important and advanced of the modern human sciences.

Originally published in 1979. This book studies language variation as a part of social practice - how language expresses and helps regulate social relationships of all kinds. Different groups, classes, institutions and situations have their special modes of language and these varieties are not just stylistic reflections of social differences; speaking or writing in a certain manner entails articulating certain social meanings, however implicit. This book focuses on the repressive and falsifying side of linguistic practice but not without recognising the power of language to reveal and communicate. It analyses the language used in a variety of situations, including news reporting, interviews, rules and regulations, even such apparently innocuous language as the rhymes on greetings cards. It argues for a critical linguistics capable of exposing distortion and mystification in language, and introduces some basic tools for a do-it-yourself analysis of language, ideology and control.

Originally published in 1979. This book studies language variation as a part of social practice - how language expresses and helps regulate social relationships of all kinds. Different groups, classes, institutions and situations have their special modes of language and these varieties are not just stylistic reflections of social differences; speaking or writing in a certain manner entails articulating certain social meanings, however implicit. This book focuses on the repressive and falsifying side of linguistic practice but not without recognising the power of language to reveal and communicate. It analyses the language used in a variety of situations, including news reporting, interviews, rules and regulations, even such apparently innocuous language as the rhymes on greetings cards. It argues for a critical linguistics capable of exposing distortion and mystification in language, and introduces some basic tools for a do-it-yourself analysis of language, ideology and control.

Transformational syntax is an analytic technique of grammatical description which has exciting psychological and philosophical ramifications inspiring creative research into the conceptual powers and behaviour of man. In this book, first published in 1971, the author suggests that the techniques of the classical period (1964-66) of transformational syntax provide the securest foundation for syntactic analysis, and are indispensable if students are to understand recent changes to the analytical technique. This title will be of interest to students of language and linguistics.

In The Language of Literature, first published in 1971, Roger Fowler argues that the vitality and centrality of the verbal dimension of literature, and, read as a whole, the papers in this collection imply a consistent point of view on language in literature. The author focuses on the continuity of language in literature with language outside literature, on its cultural appropriateness and adjustment, and on its power to create aesthetic patterns and to organise concepts, to make fictions. This title will be of interest to students of literary theory.

Transformational syntax is an analytic technique of grammatical description which has exciting psychological and philosophical ramifications inspiring creative research into the conceptual powers and behaviour of man. In this book, first published in 1971, the author suggests that the techniques of the classical period (1964-66) of transformational syntax provide the securest foundation for syntactic analysis, and are indispensable if students are to understand recent changes to the analytical technique. This title will be of interest to students of language and linguistics.

In The Language of Literature, first published in 1971, Roger Fowler argues that the vitality and centrality of the verbal dimension of literature, and, read as a whole, the papers in this collection imply a consistent point of view on language in literature. The author focuses on the continuity of language in literature with language outside literature, on its cultural appropriateness and adjustment, and on its power to create aesthetic patterns and to organise concepts, to make fictions. This title will be of interest to students of literary theory.

Newspaper coverage of world events is presented as the unbiased recording of `hard facts`. In an incisive study of both the quality and the popular press, Roger Fowler challenges this perception, arguing that news is a practice, a product of the social and political world on which it reports. Writing from the perspective of critical linguistics, Fowler examines the crucial role of language in mediating reality. Starting with a general account of news values and the processes of selection and transformation which go to make up the news, Fowler goes on to consider newspaper representations of gender, power, authority and law and order. He discusses stereotyping, terms of abuse and endearment, the editorial voice and the formation of consensus. Fowler's analysis takes in some of the major news stories of the Thatcher decade - the American bombing of Libya in 1986, the salmonella-in-eggs affair, the problems of the National Health Service and the controversy of youth and contraception.

We are living in a time of rapid radical social change. In New Accents each volume in the series will seek to encourage rather than resist the process of change, to stretch rather than reinforce the boundaries that currently define literature and its academic study. This volume explores new approaches in the criticism of fiction.

We are living in a time of rapid radical social change. In New Accents each volume in the series will seek to encourage rather than resist the process of change, to stretch rather than reinforce the boundaries that currently define literature and its academic study. This volume explores new approaches in the criticism of fiction.

A fruitful, well-established development in literary studies has been the application of ideas drawn from linguistics. Precise analytical methods help the practical criticism of texts, while at the same time the theory of language has illuminated literary theory. Linguistic Criticism is an introduction to the subject by one of its most experienced practitioners. Roger Fowler sets out clearly and simply a variety of analytical techniques whose application he demonstrates in discussion of a wide range of texts drawn from fiction, poetry, and drama. He concentrates on structures which relate literature to ordinary language, stressing the importance of the reader's every day language skills. This second edition gives clarified and expanded sections dealing with the role of the reader in literary criticism, and includes more twentieth-century texts and examples for analysis and discussion.

George Orwell is well known for his strong views on language, society and politics, and admired for the robust, personal tone of his writings. The Language of George Orwell, the first detailed study of his style, demonstrates his stylistic versatility, and analyzes the linguistic techniques which create a variety of memorable effects in his novels and other prose works. Roger Fowler is a leading exponent of linguistic criticism, the method of analysis employed in this book.

Newspaper coverage of world events is presented as the unbiased recording of hard facts. In this study of the British press, Roger Fowler challenges this perception, arguing that news and the language it employs is a phenomenon created by social and political factors.