This is the fifth entry for my investigation into the history of Elizabethan English. The post following flows on from the previous one about the reformers to look at the standardisation of the language and how this was started in the Elizabethan period.
Introduction
Standardisation
is a process in which something is made to create a normal or standard form.
This idea is usually applied to physical objects rather than theoretical
concepts however the idea behind it applies to language just as much. In order
to understand this process, an idea of what it means must be established first.
This enables a common ground for understanding.Fluctuations in language relate to the changes in the language which can come about through various processes. It is actually the state of fluctuation, especially in a language, that results in the desire for standardisation so that all the rules are the same, creating commonality in the language. In the case of Elizabethan English and also Early Modern English (EModE) printers and editorial decisions had a great impact upon this process, both on the production of documents and also the writers themselves.
The history of the standardisation of EModE lays the foundation for the process of standardisation and this actually started previous to it. There were influences from abroad due to the social history previously and also in the contemporary period to EModE which had a great effect on the language. It was through this history that the language eventually became more standardised.
The dialect of a language and that which becomes dominant is usually the one which eventually becomes the commonly accepted standard. This was also the case for English in England. The dominance for this would come from the centres of learning and commerce in the south and then spread north. This presents an example of the standardisation of a language as other dialects fade out and are taken over by a stronger one.
What is Standardisation?
“In general, it is helpful to
think of standardisation as a
sociolinguistic process which expands the range of the uses to which a language
is put, but restricts its internal variability.” (Nevalainen, 2006:8)
Standardisation
is a concept which is most often used to describe physical products rather than
more fluid phenomena such as language, however it is useful to consider this as
a concept applied to language as its elements become more commonly used, or
standard. In the case of language the concept of it becoming standard implies
practices and spellings which become more and more common usage, defining the
language by these aspects. Indeed, Nevalainen (2006) gives a very useful
definition of a standard language.
“Standard language has been
defined as one that shows maximal variation in function and minimal variation
in form. Maximal variation of function means that a language community uses its
language for all purposes, both locally and nationwide.” (Nevalainen, 2006:29)
This was
the unknown target of the reformers such as John Hart and Richard Mulcaster
when they attempted to reform the language and make rules as to how it should
be formed. The process of standardisation of the language did not occur
quickly. In fact there was quite a bit of fluctuation in the language before
this was to occur.
Fluctuation in Language
“there is no doubt that,
throughout the early decades of the 17th century, the English
writing system was widely perceived to be a mess … there was not generally
recognized standard.” (Crystal, 2003:66)
The
evidence for this can be found clearly in the documents of the period. There
was no standard for spelling, punctuation or grammar established leaving such
matters up to the authors and publishers of the documents. With no recognisable
standard it is of little surprise that writing system would be considered a
mess and this fluctuation in the language was not assisted by the printers of
the period who became the target for criticism.
“There were many unfavourable
comments about the chaotic nature of the writing system at the time, and
printers in particular came in for a great deal of criticism.” (Crystal, 2003:66)
Some of the
criticism levelled at the printers was unjustified while some of it could be
seen to be. Authors also had their part to play in the absence of standard
language and their expectations to have their works printed as they were.
However, with the introduction of printers from outside England and
unfamiliarity with the language some of the inconsistencies in the language
were clearly as a result of the printers’ presentations. This is especially the
case where changes were made to the original texts,
“arbitrariness also crept in when
printers altered spelling (such as adding or deleting a final –e) in order to
make a line of words end neatly at the right-hand margin.” (Crystal, 2003:66)
The
addition of the final –e as an editorial consideration is one that needs to be
examined and others along with this. Examples of this sort of decision on the
part of the printers can be found in many documents from the Elizabethan
period. It is due to these inconsistencies that reformers attacked the printers
and the language that was being produced by them, as this did nothing for
encouraging the authors to take care with their own. What is most interesting
is that even though the language was in such a state of flux in the Elizabethan
period, the process of standardisation actually started years beforehand.
History of Standardisation
“In English the process of standardisation
began in the late Middle Ages with the expansion of the vernacular to many
functions earlier occupied by French or Latin.” (Nevalainen, 2006:8)
The
influence of French was due to the Norman invasion of 1066, and the influence
of Latin was through the influence of the church where the primary education
came from in the Middle Ages. The fact that English began to expand into the
areas occupied by these two languages in the Middle Ages demonstrates the
growing influence and importance of English even in this period. Aside from
this growing influence other parts of the language had become standardised by
this period, grammar by word-order for example (Smith, 2005:12). This was
heavily based on the Latin grammar, but this is no surprise and continues to be
the same even in the modern period.
The
standardisation processes would only have more and more of an impact as
elements became more and more commonly used. The process which began in the
Middle Ages was in full flight by the time of Shakespeare. The standardisation
of written English and emergence of pronunciation became standard in sixteenth
century (Smith, 2005:9). This was toward the later part of this period and was
influenced by the reformers of the middle to late sixteenth century. It was
London which would lead the charge and set the standards. This should be of
little surprise considering the population and being a centre of culture and
learning.
“Spelling, in public texts at any
rate, became much more fixed. It was modelled on the usages adopted by the
early printers, broadly those current in sixteenth-century London.” (Smith,
2005:124)
As in all
cases private texts are less controlled as they were not typically for public
consumption and thus less likely to be affected by public opinion. The printers
began to adopt those practices presented by reformers such as John Hart and
Richard Mulcaster in order that the language was better suited to perform the
functions it was designed for. The changes in language were extremely
impressive over the period of the sixteenth century, but toward a standard. “As
Caxton would have predicted, the English language changed a great deal between
1500 and 1700; but dialect levelling also took place.” (Nevalainen, 2006:31).
Dialect
Dialects
form a kind of standard form of the language which is usually isolated to a
particular social group or particular area of a country. This can be seen
especially in countries as vast as China in which the dialect can change in a
short time of travelling. The same was the case for English in England at the
time of Shakespeare, the “language of England and lowland Scotland, but it had
barely penetrated into Wales, Ireland, and the Scottish Highlands and islands”
(Bryson, 2009:58). What is most interesting is that it was due to population
and economic pressures that the lowland dialect or that of London would
eventually dominate.
“George Puttenham noted that the
English of London stretched not much more than sixty miles from the city
[London]. But its influence was growing all the time.” (Bryson, 2009:52)
London was
a centre of commerce and learning and also had one of the largest populations
in the period. These factors allowed the language to spread and become common
within London in a relatively short period of time and then allowed it to
spread. Indeed the English of London went from a medieval to a modern language
in a relatively short period of time, taking about twenty years (Bryson,
2009:52). This is the dialect which would eventually dominate most of England
and become the standard form of English which is known today.
Conclusion
In order
for a language to become standardised, it must first take control of and indeed
defeat the forces of fluctuation in the language. This is a long and trying
process and was the goal of reformers such as Richard Mulcaster and John Hart.
This standardisation process establishes benchmarks for the language as to see
what is accepted as part of the language and what is considered to be against
the accepted rules of the language.The process of standardisation is exactly that, a process and this takes time. The fact that the process started in the Middle Ages and continued well into the Renaissance period, and even beyond demonstrates the extended nature of this process. This process allows a standard form of the language to form and thus allow for deeper examination and further development of the language. In most cases what will eventuate is that one dialect will eventually become more common and become more dominant than others and thus become the standard.
In the case of EModE the process was a long one and proceeded with many fluctuations in the language as can be seen in Elizabethan English. This makes the language difficult to pin down but also allows for great experimentation and thus development in the language. In this way fluctuation expressed in the language allows for a better form of the language when it is finally standardised. Needless to say in the history of Elizabethan English the process of standardisation was an on-going one and did not finally come about until after its period, however examples of this process can be seen as the language becomes more established.
Bibliography
Bryson, B. (2009) Mother
Tongue: The Story of the English Language, Penguin Books Ltd, London, UK
Crystal, D. (2003) The
Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language (2nd ed),
Cambridge University Press, New York, USA
Nevalainen, T. (2006) An Introduction to Early Modern
English, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, Scotland
Smith, J. (2005) Essentials
of Early English, Routledge, New York, USA
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