Responses are due by Friday, April 3rd.
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The Renaissance was the period of time from 1500 to 1650 was the rebirth of culture and scholarship in Europe. During this time period, there was also a great rise of vernacular languages, an expansion on printing, and a universal grammar was developed.
During this time period, many scholars started to look deeper into languages such as, Latin and Greek. With this coming about there was also a study into vernacular languages. A vernacular language is a normal everyday language that is used instead of an educated language. A focus was being put on everyday language and on the classics as well.
The Renaissance also started the advent of printing in Europe. With a rise in literacy and larger demand on education all around the world, a way of getting the text out to the world was needed.
Common grammar was third part introduced in the Renaissance. Developed by Port Royal School, the individuals that developed the rationalist grammar were called the Port-Royal grammarians. Their main goal in writing this common grammar was to write a form of grammar that contained all of the properties of common languages of the time period. This resulted in a common or universal form of grammar being formed. To begin their grammar concept they started analyzing sentences into prepositions. The prepositions were then defined into concepts and judgments, and then into subject and predicates. The universal grammar is broken into words of the first and second kind. The words of the first kind are pronouns, nouns, participles, adverbs, and articles. The words of the second kind are conjunctions, interjections, and verbs.
All in all, the Renaissance brought forth a wealth of knowledge of the vernacular language, printing, a rise in literacy, and a major start in the examination of grammar. The knowledge of language was very limited at this time and therefore made the student of language very basic. There was no real understanding of the relationships between different languages and how they can form from each other.
Did you know anything about vernacular language? Why would the advent of printing be so important to the rate of literacy?
by: Jordan Glodich
16 comments:
Before reading this article I knew nothing about the Renaissance or the various languages it created. I didn't know anything about vernacular language, but it sounds very interesting. The Renaissance was a very busy time period for language and grammar. I am studying the Renaissance in a British Literature class, but these things were not mentioned. Printing so many versions of literature was important because it made reading possible for all classes in society. I have also never read about the rules for universal grammar. This was an article I knew nothing about before reading and I feel like I learned something useful from it.
After reading this article I learned a lot. I had never heard of vernacular languages. I was really interested in the printing aspect of the article. I see the correlation between printing and literacy. Since there was more literature for people to read there was a demand on literacy so that the people could read was what was offered. Universal grammar seems like a hard concept to create. Not all language run on the same rules and concepts. However, it is interesting that they broke the grammar into parts like we do today. I also found it to be interesting that we still use the parts of speech that we still use. This article was very helpful in finding the roots to grammar and literature.
Prior to this informative summary, I knew that the Renaissance period pertained mostly towards the innovations of music, free-spirited individuals and art. I held no knowledge that the Renaissance period umbrellas grammar concepts and development as well. This was a surprise. Then again, seeing as how artistic perspectives evolved within this time, it is only certain that ideas on grammar developed. I'm aware that there are vernacular languages throughout different locations. It's interesting to learn that within this time period, ideas were brought about to construct these languages. It makes me curious to know that if these Port-Royal grammarians hadn't been so stagnant on their applications, how language structure would be presented today. These applications have done well for literacy and how we, as people, can relate to it. I'm not entirely savvy on the printing perspective, but I'm sure that with these grammar accommodations, it makes literacy universally available for all parts of society.
After reading this article, the printing interested me. I had not known much about the Renaissance or the numerous languages that formed. The printing portion of the article was interesting because without print one would not be able to read. Printing makes literacy available to all.The rules of universal grammar were very unfamiliar to me before reading this article. After reading this very informative article, I learned that the Renaissance period was very influential on the rules and concepts of grammar. The grammarians of this period influenced much of the languages in present day society. After reading this article, I feel more informed as to how languages were created, and the roots of literature and grammar concepts.
I enjoy this book; the excellent writing style boasts high readability, but wastes none of my time. The archaic English sections tickled me. I neVer realized how often we use "v" in our language, and although I suppose I should haVe, I didn't know that writers used "u" to signify what we pronounce "v". The selection reads that ". . . there was no understanding of the process of language change . . . [which] in fact, was equated with corruption and decay," and, "speech was considered to be an imperfect representation of writing." These statements struck me as odd since those attitudes prevail today. The Standard Ideology that dominates the academic and professional spheres relies upon those very principles, and we have our own issues today with the use and classification of vernaculars. That these same conflicts continue to occur is interesting.
The sentence deconstructions employed by the Port Royal Grammarians seemed similar to those used by the author of "Grammar Without Grammar" -- yet another example of the cyclical nature of culture. Perhaps we might assuage concerns over the "obsolete" and "stale" nature of grammar lessons in our public schools by returning to what excited crazy hermits in 1637.
I knew that the Renaissance was a time of great cultural and inventive growth, however, I didn't realize that it had such an impact on language. It certainly makes sense that the aspect of printing made such a dramatic impact on language because if there is more material out there for people to read, then there are going to be more people introduced to it. In turn, if more people are introduced to it then of course it is going to have an impact on the language. I actually learned quite a bit from this post.
Before this article, I knew very little about vernacular language. Throughout my History courses I learned that the Renaissance had a very particular vernacular language. I found this article to be very informative, and I learned more detail about this language. The advent of printing would defiantly have an impact on rate of literacy. With printing more readily available to the public, literacy became more common, instead of a leisure activity for the wealthy.
I learned a lot from reading this articl. I knew what vernacular meant, but I did not know that the Renaissance was the period when grammar was developed. Prior to reading this article, I did not know the language of the time was limited before printing took place. Printing opened a whole new world for people to learn about other languages. Prior to reading this, I know the Renaissance was really important in art and music. I did not know the significance this period had on grammar. I thought the reading on the Renaissance was very informative and I enjoyed learning new things about this period.
I don't know much about vernacular language. After reading this article I know slightly more about it. It was quite an interesting article and I definitely learned something new from it. The advent of printing was so important to the rate of literacy in the Renaissance because it gave more people an opportunity to read and be educated. Without it, people wouldn't have been able to get books and educate themselves. This was a very interesting article to read and I learned a lot from it.
Before reading this article, I was aware of the Renaissance period. However,I had no prior knowledge of what vernacular language was. In fact, I had no clue of a lot of the styles of vernacular languages. The Renaissance seemed to have paved the way for English and its great contribution to literature.
For many centuries, only the rich and powerful knew how to read and speak their language correctly. A great deal of this was attributed to the fact that the 'blue collar' people could not afford books or prints-before the press these prints were very expensive.
Once the printing press got going and enabled for cheaper books, newspapers, and publications, the average Joe could purchase these items. With the language readily available to go over, literacy rates improved and different languages were explored once again.
This Renaissance passage from our book was very interesting to read. Before reading this, I had no idea what vernacular language meant. I also found it interesting that with the spread of vernacular language throughout Europe came at the same time that the printing began to expand. It made me curious as to which one affected the other? If the printing press brought on the learning of vernacular languages or perhaps the language brought on the printing expansion. It's also fascinating to see that even back in the 1650's they were already giving parts of speech labels like "subject" and "predicate." Overall, this was a very neat passage to read.
Before reading this article, I didn’t know anything about vernacular language. It is obvious that literacy increased with the advent of printing. Before printed material was available, it was very expensive to purchase reading material. Only members of the upper class were able to purchase books. This event in history was important for many reasons. It opened a new world of literature to those in the lower classes. It enriched society. People of all different backgrounds were able to learn from reading. It allowed people of different cultures to learn about each other and understand each other. This article caused me to think about all the ways in which literature affects our lives.
I have never been exposed to the literacy growth during the time of the Renaissance; but only to the type of writings that were produced during that time period. The rapid growth in literacy and different vernacular languages is a direct result of this time period, and the result of the printing press. This inventive technology allowed great pieces of writing to reach people in mass quantities, thus increasing the will and the want to learn how to read!
I wasn't very familiar with the Renaissance period before reading this article. I've heard of its contribution to architecture but not literature. I was surprised to read that we, Americans today, use the same grammar concepts that were developed so many years ago. The concept of printing having a direct effect on literacy only seems to make sense. The more material there was to read, the more people who knew how to do so. It's hard for me to think of people of the Renaissance speaking in vernacular language because my mental picture includes these people speaking very educated and correct language, not slang.
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