What is Grammar?Descriptivism vs. Prescriptivism

Something that young people are not taught properly at school.

A collection of archaic terminology: ‘auxiliary’, ‘past participle’, ‘relative clause’ etc.

A cluster of prohibitions that make people worry about whether they speak their own language properly (Don’t end sentences with prepositions, Less people is wrong; you should say fewer people, Don’t split infinitives etc.)

Conceptions about Grammar

With a partner, come up with your own definition of grammar.

‘The rules of combining words into sentences’

1 a : the study of the classes of words, their inflections, and their functions and relations in the sentence b : a study of what is to be preferred and what avoided in inflection and syntax. (Merriam-Webster, 2009)

Definition of Grammar

Language without grammar? Grammar is essentially a limited set of

devices for expressing certain kinds of necessary meaning that cannot be conveyed by referential vocabulary alone.

What is Grammar for?

Watch the video and answer following questions in a group of 4:

Do you agree with John Simon that ungrammatical usage leads to the deterioration of language?

Who of the 2 opponents is the real linguist? Why do you think that?

What do you think about slang? Is it acceptable or a sign of uneducated language?

Descriptivism vs. Prescriptivism

Prescribes rules governing what people should or shouldn’t say

Prescriptive grammar

Don’t end sentences with prepositions! Less people is wrong; you should say fewer people! Don’t split infinitives! Don’t use double negatives!

It’s ungrammatical to end a sentence with a preposition

It’s ungrammatical to split an infinitive. Linguistics is what I live for. Captain Kirk wants to boldly go were no

man has gone before. We don’t need no education.

(Pink Floyd)

Violation of Language rules?

Who of these 2 is the Prescriptivist?

Describes the rules that govern what people do or can say (their “mental grammar”)

Descriptive rules are linguists’ attempt to represent your mental grammar.

Descriptive rules are natural, followed intuitively, need not be taught.

Descriptive Grammar

Right or wrong???1. We love linguistics classes.2. *Love we linguistics classes.3. If I were you, I would take lots of linguistic

classes.4. If I was you, I would take lots of linguistic

classes.

Descriptive Grammar

1. (?)We don’t need no prescriptive rules.2. (?)My teacher don’t believe in

prescriptivism.Non-standard vs. wrong

Descriptive Grammar

Descriptivists describe systematic phenomena in language and label them non-standard if they don’t confirm with grammar rules.

Prescriptivists believe that there is only one right way of speaking correctly and appropriately.

Descriptivism vs. Prescriptivism