This volume opens with an examination of the decay that the English language has suffered over the past century and explains the origin and remedy of its two chief menaces: ambiguity and cacophony. The second part of the book illustrates the manner in which speakers and writers misuse language. Chapters include "The Prodigal…

Percentages of unexpected pronominal usage in Japanese are listed. Data was gathered from Japanese magazine articles concerning individuals. Tendencies rather than strict rules became evident. (SC)

The characteristics of academic writing are examined in this paper, and some remedies are suggested for correcting the "language deformities" that many academic writers persist in creating. Three categories of error to which academic writers are apt to be susceptible are discussed. The first category covers errors that are shortcomings…

In fast speech, certain segments pronounced in careful speech may be deleted. Rules of a generative phonology have been used to account for fast speech forms. An alternative approach is suggested which views fast speech deletions as merely limiting cases of segment reduction, under conditions of increased tempo and/or casualness. To complement…

Intended for composition instructors at the college level, this journal contains articles on the various aspects of composition instruction and the writing process. Articles in this issue discuss the following subjects: (1) the state of the art of advanced composition, (2) the structure of advanced composition, (3) a taxonomy of communication acts…

As opposed to being a "closed" text (tightly constrained by physical formats, corporate style, and specialized vocabulary), technical writing is actually "open" in the sense that such a text can be interpreted subjectively by an informed audience. Three ethical issues that should be explored in teaching technical writing include personality--the…

Discusses a way to introduce students to idioms and figurative expressions while stimulating their interest in literature. (MB)

Considers the use and significance of catachresis in Giambattista Vico and James Joyce: in Vico's case the linguistic and metaphysical background is the one defined as actuating the utterances of the theological poets, the first mortals; and in Joyce's case it is the background of newly discovered psychological forces and their role in the conduct…

Explores the usage and grammatical agreement problems of the words "everyone" and "everybody." (HTH)

Speech conditions of emission can result in influences on the speaker, leading to dramatic changes in the speaker's speech production. However, most studies performed on the "speaking styles" restrict their observations to very contrasted situations and compare so-called "spontaneous" speech to the "laboratory"…