This thesis analyses the use of six features of African American English in tweets containing #BlackTwitter and #BlackLivesMatter. Six features of the African American English are indentified (i.e....Show moreThis thesis analyses the use of six features of African American English in tweets containing #BlackTwitter and #BlackLivesMatter. Six features of the African American English are indentified (i.e. y’all, ain’t followed by a negative, aspectual be, finna, ’bout, and tryna), and the historical background of variety is discussed. The tweet IDs of corpus of 1489 tweets are included in the Appendix.Show less
This study aims to clarify the general attitudes of Dutch people towards the usage of anglicisms in Dutch. To this end the function and presence of anglicisms in Dutch are analysed, followed by the...Show moreThis study aims to clarify the general attitudes of Dutch people towards the usage of anglicisms in Dutch. To this end the function and presence of anglicisms in Dutch are analysed, followed by the creation and distribution of a survey that presents ten frequently used anglicisms in Dutch. The results of the survey display an overall neutral stance towards the presence and usage of anglicisms in Dutch, with some interesting outcomes considering the age, education level, and province of origin of the participants.Show less
In this thesis, I will study formulaic language use by applying the linguistic model as applied to Jane Austen's own letters in Tieken-Boon van Ostade's (2014) In Search of Jane Austen: The...Show moreIn this thesis, I will study formulaic language use by applying the linguistic model as applied to Jane Austen's own letters in Tieken-Boon van Ostade's (2014) In Search of Jane Austen: The Language of the Letters, section '3.3. Letter-Writing Formulas' to Jane Austen's fictional letters as part of her novels. By looking at the opening and closing formulas in the 41 letters that are included in Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), Emma (1815), Northanger Abbey (1818) and Persuasion (1818), I aim to determine the implications of the formulaic language use for the relationships. From this analysis, then, it will also become clear what differences and similarities there are between the language in Jane Austen’s own letters and her fictional letters as part of her novels.Show less
This thesis explore's Shakespeare's use of the second person singular pronouns 'you' and 'thou' in his Sonnets (1609). It focuses on the influence of addressees, rhyme, and invocation on...Show moreThis thesis explore's Shakespeare's use of the second person singular pronouns 'you' and 'thou' in his Sonnets (1609). It focuses on the influence of addressees, rhyme, and invocation on Shakespeare's choice in pronoun, using literary and linguistic theories. It concludes that the identity of the addressee was of most influence on Shakespeare's choice in pronoun, whereas rhyme was of little influence. Invoked identities, such as Time, a Muse or the Soul, are predominantly addressed using 'thou'.Show less
This study provides a structural analysis of over a 100 years of wills from Jane Austen's paternal and maternal ancestors. This study provides evidence for will-making as a family tradition that...Show moreThis study provides a structural analysis of over a 100 years of wills from Jane Austen's paternal and maternal ancestors. This study provides evidence for will-making as a family tradition that has been passed from one generation to the next and offers a structural analysis for seventeenth century wills.Show less
The Chelmsford pauper letters (1820–1829), a subcorpus of the Essex pauper letters (1731–1837) (Sokoll 2006), were addressed to the overseer in Chelmsford, the county town of Essex, in which the...Show moreThe Chelmsford pauper letters (1820–1829), a subcorpus of the Essex pauper letters (1731–1837) (Sokoll 2006), were addressed to the overseer in Chelmsford, the county town of Essex, in which the pauper writers, who were generally very poor, asked for poor relief or other forms of assistance. In this thesis, the various ways in which the writers of the Chelmsford pauper letters applied politeness strategies (Brown and Levinson 1987) to protect the negative face of the addressee have been examined. A corpus analysis revealed which opening formulas and phrases to express the request were used by the pauper writers. The analysis shows that the Chelmsford pauper letters display a much greater variation in the usage of opening formulas than for instance the letters by the Clift Family (Austin 1991). The pauper writers, who received little to no education, used a different register which allowed for more variation. This register, as well as the general outline of a letter, was probably spread in an oral way, since the pauper writers did not consult letter writing manuals, which were extremely popular in their age (Fens-de Zeeuw 2008). Similar for the opening formulas, the letters display a great amount of variation in the usage of phrases to express the request for relief. Interestingly, a development towards the use of parenthetical please is visible in the letters. There is a significant preference for please to, an intermediate step in the development from the phrase be pleased to to please (Tieken-Boon van Ostade and Faya Cerqueiro 2007). Moreover, three instances of please are found in the letters. These early instances are remarkable, because please was thought not to occur without to in the beginning of the nineteenth century. The use of please therefore indicates that this development is very likely a change from below.Show less
The use of 'you' and 'thou' in Early Modern English texts compared to their use in spoken language of the time has been subject of debate for many years, but no consensus has yet been reached....Show moreThe use of 'you' and 'thou' in Early Modern English texts compared to their use in spoken language of the time has been subject of debate for many years, but no consensus has yet been reached. Several case studies and comprehensive studies of various text types have been performed, but hardly any of the previous studies compared different text types with each other. By combining statistical analysis with a detailed interpretation of Shakespeare’s The Tempest and comparing the results to those found in sixteenth century court records and letters, a new attempt has been made to uncover a general model for the use of 'you' and 'thou' in spoken language of the Early Modern English period.Show less
