What linguistics is all aboutWhat is the grammar?The term “grammar” is very vague. Grammars were written in order to attempt to freeze a level of evolution of language and to try and enforce a certain register of “proper” usage. In other words, grammars were prescriptive of supposedly correct language use.It is a common mistake of talk shows to invite linguists to ask them how one should speak. Linguists explain that it is not their business, that their role is purely descriptive. On the contrary, they relish on neologisms, rap language, verlan, beur - le parler d'jeune.
Living languages evolve continuously. No human rule will ever prevent this.
Even though regional particularisms are fading away because of TV, the speed
of evolution is such that different generations speak different languages.
Actually, because of telecommunications, the speed of evolution is sharply
increasing.
The distinction is not hard and fast, of course, since many constructions of language can only be understood with respect to an ancient stage of the language, or to some interaction with other dialects or languages. Within a given state of language, many levels of speech are found; the polite register may be more or less sophisticated; speech is often constrained by ritualistic acts, conscious or not; specialized trades calls for technical jargon; oral speech is quite different from written text, etc. Grammars were written in order to teach the vernacular language to foreigners, and to attempt a full description of the analysed language. These descriptions were in turn used as prescriptions, and sometimes turned into ritual incantations, like Panini's grammar for Sanskrit considered as a perfect language, or to take a local example the dictées de Bernard Pivot and the dictionnaire de l'Académie Française. |