The Story of English
This seminar welcomes students interested in the historical development of English both in terms of its structures and its great importance on the world stage. In doing so we shall learn a personal “story” of a familiar character, whom we encounter every day but may not necessarily know. We shall see how the language keeps changing over time and how speakers create linguistic norms. We shall also pay attention to the remarkable capacity of English for adopting foreign vocabulary and its richness in synonyms of different origins (Germanic, Greek, Latin, and many others). The students will enhance their writing skills by becoming more conscientious users of English and its wide range of expressive devices. 3 hrs. sem.