- What is the period of middle Ages? What are the sources of information about the middle ages?
- How did Old English differ from Modern English? Can you explain this with reference to both grammar and vocabulary?
- What were the major external causes of the development of American English?
- Which types of words are the easiest ones to be borrowed? List two loanwords each from Dutch and Italian.
- Characterise the influence of Scandinavian on the English language?
- Discuss the characteristics of English Language
- Discuss the concept of Indian English.
- Discuss the history and development of American English.
Case Detail
This section provides an in-depth look at three specific varieties of contemporary English. Received Pronunciation, Geordie Dialect, and English as spoken in the UK’s Minority Ethnic communities. Received Pronunciation -Received Pronunciation ( RP) is the proper term to describe the regionally neutral accent used by many middle class speakers in England. It is widely used as a reference point in dictionaries and as a model for teaching English as a foreign language. But have you ever wondered how it came into existence, how it is changing or what role it plays in 21st century Britain? Find out more by listening to over 100 audio clips that put RP in all its forms under the microscope. Received Pronunciation ( RP) is the proper term to describe the regionally neutral accent used by many middle class speakers in England. It is widely used as a reference point in dictionaries and as a model for teaching English as a foreign language. But have you ever wondered how it came into existence, how it is changing or what role it plays in 21st century Britain? Find out more by listening to over 100 audio clips that put RP in all its forms under the microscope. Geordie dialect- The UK has a number of distinctive dialects, and Geordie – the dialect of Newcastle-upon-Tyne – is arguably one of our most recognisable. In this section you can listen to more than 150 audio clips featuring a range of speakers from Tyneside and unpack the vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar that makes speech in the area so unique. You can use the audio clips and additional commentary to help you compare Geordie dialect with RP or with speech in your area. Minority ethnic English- For more than half a century, immigrants from the Indian subcontinent and the West Indies have added variety and diversity to the rich patchwork of accents and dialects spoken in the UK. In this section you can listen to a selection of audio clips that demonstrate a number of aspects of the English we hear in Britain’s Caribbean and Asian communities. You can also find out how English arrived in the Commonwealth and how it is used across the globe.
Question 1: Desribe the case in brief.
MCQ
Q1: What happened in 1707 that would forever alter the relationship between England, Wales, and Scotland?
the trial and execution of Mary, Queen of Scots
the Toleration Act
the failed invasion of the Spanish Armada
the Act of Union
Q2: .Words from which language began to enter English vocabulary around the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066?
French
Norwegian
Spanish
Hungarian
Q3: Which hero made his earliest appearance in Celtic literature before becoming a staple subject in French, English, and German literatures?
Beowulf
Arthur
Augustine of Canterbury
Alfred
Q4: Toward the close of which century did English replace French as the language of conducting business in Parliament and in court of law?
fourteenth
thirteenth
twelfth
eleventh
Q5: Who would be called the English Homer and father of English poetry?
Bede
Sir Thomas Malory
Geoffrey Chaucer
Caedmon
Q6: Only a small proportion of medieval books survive, large numbers having been destroyed in:
the Anglo-Saxon Conquest beginning in the 1450s.
the Norman Conquest of 1066.
the Peasant Uprising of 1381.
the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 1530s.
Q7: What is the first extended written specimen of Old English?
Boethius’s Consolidation of Philosophy
a code of laws promulgated by King Ethelbert
the Norman Conquest of 1066.
the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 1530s
Q8: In Anglo-Saxon heroic poetry, what is the fate of those who fail to observe the sacred duty of blood vengeance?
banishment to Asia
everlasting shame
mild melancholia
being buried alive
Q9: The use of “whale-road”for sea and “life-house”for body are examples of what literary technique, popular in Old English poetry?
symbolism
simile
metonymy
kenning
Q10: Which of the following statements is not an accurate description of Old English poetry?
Romantic love is a guiding principle of moral conduct.
Its formal and dignified use of speech was distant from everyday use of language.
Irony is a mode of perception, as much as it was a figure of speech.
Christian and pagan ideals are sometimes mixed.
Q11: The ultimate origins of the English language lie in which language family?
Indo-European
Latin
North American
Nono of the above
Q12: What is another name for Old English?
Middle English
Anglo-Saxon
Celtic
None of the above
Q13: Which one of the following texts was composed during the Old English period?
The Canterbury Tales
Beowulf
Fyrst Boke of the Introduction of Knowledge
None of the above
Q14: During the Middle English period, many words were borrowed from which two languages?
Celtic and Old Norse
Urdu and Iroquoian
Latin and French
None of the above
Q15: Published in 1604, the first monolingual English dictionary was
Nathaniel Bailey’s Universal Etymological Dictionary of the English Language
Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary of the English Language
Robert Cawdrey’s Table Alphabeticall
None of the above
Q16: Which Anglo-Irish writer proposed the creation of an English Academy to regulate English usage and “ascertain” the language?
Jonathan Swift
Samuel Johnson
Oliver Goldsmith
None of the above
Q17: Who published the book Dissertations on the English Language (1789), which advocated an American standard of usage?
Noah Webster
John Webster
Daniel Webster
None of the above
Q18: Which late-19th century novel introduced a colloquial prose style that significantly influenced the writing of fiction in the U.S.?
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Oroonoko, or the Royal Slave by Aphra Behn
None of the above
Q19: The Philological Society’s New English Dictionary on Historical Principles, begun in 1879, was eventually published under which title in 1928?
Roget’s Thesaurus
The King’s English
Oxford English Dictionary
None of the above
Q20: During which decade did the number of speakers of English as a second language exceed the number of native speakers for the first time?
1920s
1950s
1990s
None of the above
Q21: The first outstanding characteristic of English language is :
Receptiveness
Purity
Classical
Simplicity
Q22: The repetition of similar ending sounds
alliteration
onomatopoiea
rhyme
None of the above
Q23: Applying human qualities to non-human things
personification
onomatopoeia
alliteration
None of the above
Q24: A comparison of unlike things without using a word of comparison such as like or as
metaphor
simile
personification
None of the above
Q25: Using words or letters to imitate sounds
alliteration
simile
onomatopoeia
None of the above
Q26: A description that appeals to one of the five senses
imagery
personification
metaphor
None of the above
Q27: A poem that tells a story with plot, setting, and characters
lyric
free verse
narrative
None of the above
Q28: A poem with no meter or rhyme
lyric
free verse
narrative
None of the above
Q29: poem that generally has meter and rhyme
lyric
free verse
narrative
None of the above
Q30: Many Indians claim that Indian English is very similar to?
French
German
British English
Spenish
Q31: Feminine ending refers to :
a stressed final syllable in a line of verse
the ending of a poem in a stressed syllable
the ending of a poem in an unstressed syllable
an unstressed final syllable in a line of verse
Q32: Identify the matching pair :
Edward II : Zenocrate
The Spanish Tragedy : Horatio S
The Jew of Malta : Barabas
Tamburlaine : Gaveston
Q33: The word ‘nature’ in the eighteenth century literature stands for :
Nature of writing
External nature
Human nature
The Universe
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