however, this difference in the conditions, that the first arose from constraint imposed upon it from without; the second was rather the result of its own spontaneous action. As long as the Normans looked with scorn on the native subjects, and attempted to silence the native tongue, the English writers appear to have almost ignored the existence of the Norman language, even though it must have been in use all around them.1 They proudly refused to clothe themselves in the trappings of the conqueror. Nor until after the Normans had begun themselves to adopt the English language, and to use it for French in the grammar-schools in the construing of Latin (which took place about the middle of the fourteenth century), did they cordially avail themselves of contributions from that source. When they did, however, they compensated themselves by seizing and assimilating whatever in the Norman vocabulary, phraseology, literary matter, and versification seemed adapted to aid them in their own literary career. 23. The language, once synthetic and homogeneous, was now become analytic and composite, from this time forward allowing itself more and more freedom of manner, and incorporating from every quarter new stores of matter. The two great changes which without destroying its spirit had materially altered its outward aspect, and which some look upon as proofs of degradation, were in fact preparing it more effectually for its ultimate prosperity. The loss of the artificial machinery of inflections, and the intimate mingling of Norman life-blood with its own, were both great advantages, and made the language more free, flowing, harmonious, and forcible than it had ever been before. The simplicity of its structure, and the opulence of its vocabulary, were rendering it a flexible medium for the representation of those graces and felicities of style which distinguish literature from the mere utterance of words. It was preparing to become the fit vehicle for the noble conceptions of Shakspeare and Milton. Its preparation, however, for these highest displays of power and beauty occupied nearly three centuries, and during this long period (including the green and luminous period of Chaucer), it was ever assimilating to itself materials from without, till at length the language and the literature formed the grand union of which all Englishmen have a right to be proud. (1) "The Brut," a long poem in Semi-Saxon, translated about A.D. 1200 by Layamon, an English priest, from the Norman French, and consequently perpetually suggesting, as it were, the incorporation of Norman words with his own English, contains in its 30,000 lines only about fifty such words. с FIFTH STAGE. MODERN ENGLISH.-PERIOD OF RE-ESTABLISHMENT. 24. The English of the last three centuries is, by general consent, treated as Modern. This epithet is considered quite in harmony with the fact that the language in the course of that period has undergone great changes, and that the English of Tennyson and Carlyle is in many respects-not merely personal -very different from that of Lylie, Hooker, and Shakspeare. All its most important grammatical features were finally impressed upon it in the sixteenth century (the introduction of its" in the seventeenth century being nearly the only important exception); and although we have adopted many words which were formerly unknown, and invested many old ones with fresh meanings, yet the great bulk of the vocabulary remains the same. Neither the slight grammatical changes, nor the accession of new words, nor the loss of old ones, has had the slightest tendency to disturb the essential character of the language, which is, indeed, growing into greater simplicity and freedom still by the obliteration of distinctions which have no practical advantage, as well as by the occasional recovery from the buried, but not forgotten, stores of "Original English," of words, and even idioms which may come to be permanently re-adopted. Not only many of Tennyson's poems, but some works that have been very recently published-as Morris's "Life and Death of Jason," a poem of singular power and beauty-indicate this latter tendency very strongly, and seem to show that whatever vicissitudes our language may be destined to undergo, the essentially English part of it will ever hold its supremacy and appeal most powerfully to the affections, the taste, the heart, and home of the Englishman. 1 (1) These points, amongst others, may be noted-(1) The distinction between the present tenses of the indic. and subj. moods is becoming obsolete. "If I be," if thou be," &c., will soon find no place in the English grammars of the nineteenth century. The pret.-subj., however, still holds its ground. (2) Poetical writers, freely and unreproved, use such preterites as "clomb," "dr ve," "spake;" and such old words as "natheless," and all more freely use "therefrom," "thereat," &c. (3) The crime of separating the preposition from its object is no longer shunned. We "the conclusion they had arrived at was no longer," &c., instead of "at which they," &c. (4) The rel. pron. that is superseding both who and which; and whose is used for of which, as well as for of whom. say, II. Essentials of Anglo-Saxon Grammar.' ALPHABET. THE original English alphabet did not contain the letters j, k, q, v, or z. It had, however, three letters which the modern has not, þ, d, and æ. (1) The few paradigms given here are in no sense to be considered as an AngloSaxon grammar. They will, however, aid the pupil in reading the extracts from Ælfred and Ælfric, and thus serve to illustrate the original stage of the English language. (2) The subject of A.S. pronunciation is so difficult, every point being open to discussion, that very plausible objections may be taken against the above-or, indeed, any other-scheme. Its adoption, however, in reading, will be found of great assistance in frequently revealing something which the form of the word had concealed, e.g. pronounce húnd, hound, and wif, wive, and we see at once the close connection between the ancient and modern words, and see in the latter case why the plural is wives, and not wifes. 2. CONSONANTS. с c, before a, o, and u = = k in take; before e and i in child. sc sc, before a, o, and usk in skin; before e and i sh in shine. ff, when final or between two vowels = v in wives. probably, y g, before a, o, and u = g in goat; before e and i = in yes. = th in thin; : th in then. The other consonants are pronounced generally as in modern English. DEFINITE ARTICLE AND DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUN. (Used also as a Relative, and sometimes as a Personal, Pronoun.) Se, &c. Examples, taken from extracts, in the text, pp. 1-12:Se hearpere, bæs hearperes wíf, be þám hearpere, &c. Seó was haten, for þære mirhþe, þære beóde nama, &c. bæt wif, wið þæs wifes, on þæt gemære, þæs landes folc, &c. þá stánas, þá eá, on þám muntum, þæra cnapena. Seo, &c. bæt Plural De indeclinable is often used for se, seó, þæt, as a demonstrative, but especially as a relative, and later as the article, the; e.g. þára be wilnað, of those that desire. (See extracts, p. 5). (1) Seó = O.E. sheo, sho, and modern she; þæt = mod. that. (2) þá, þæra þám = they, their, them. The forms originally corresponding in A.S. were hi, hira, or heora, him or heom (see p. xl.). These words, changed into ho, heo; hire, here, her; hem or him, long maintained their ground in O.E., but almost suddenly gave place to thei, ther, their, thaim, and tham, and finally gained their present form. (3) pas, þære, pán, are the origin of thus in this manner; there in that place; than (then)= )= at that time. Than is the true spelling, and was in use up to the beginning of the eighteenth century. (4) þy is found in O.E. forthy for that reason, therefore. This, and not the article the, is seen in the phrase, "the more the better" (A.S. "by máre by betere "), i.e. by that more by that better. In Latin, quo magis eo melius. SECOND DECLENSION. (Nouns ending in a consonant, and masculines in e.) þeód N. Sing. Plural. -a Acc. húnd -as (1) -an. From this we have O.E. pl. termination en-e.g. A.S. oxa, pl. oxan, O.E. oxen. A.S. eáge, pl. eágan, O.E. eyghen, eyen, and eyne. Many similar instances are found in O.E. and the provincial dialects, as hosen, shoon, peasen. (2) -ena. This termination is seen in the well-known word Witenagemót, i.e. mote or meeting of wise men, fr. wita, a wise man or counsellor, declined like nama. Oxenaford or Oxenford, now Oxford, is another instance of the same kind. (3) -as. This term. became changed in O.E. into es or is, and thus prepared for mod. Eng. -s for both possessive case and plural number. Chaucer has, "smale houndes ;" and Wiclif, "sonis of seyntis." (4) -es. This termination, the genitive or possessive of O.E. and mod. Eng., is seen pure in the compound Dom-es Day Book. In O.E., whether es or is-for both are found-it was always a separate syllable; so Chaucer, "in his lordes werre ; Wiclif, "Goddis Sone." (5) -um. Vestiges of this termination are thought to be traceable in the adverb whilom at whiles. |