230167 Early Modern English (S) (WiSe 2024/2025)

English changed greatly from Old English to Middle English and then Early Modern English. While Middle English is still more difficult for students to read/understand, Early Modern English sounds much more familiar and is relatively easy to understand. In this class we will look at the English language starting with the end of the Middle English period and from there move into Early Modern English. At the beginning of the class we will look at the social, economic, and political developments and situation in England in order to set the scene for the English language and language change. From there on we will spend most of the sessions looking at EModE texts and how they reflect the koinéization process, the development of the standard but also grammatical processes such as periphrastic structures and TMA. And, obviously, time will be devoted to the Great Vowel Shift and the foot-strut split. In addition, we will also touch on aspects of pragmatics.

Bibliography

Gramley, S. & V. Gramley (2024) The History of English. An Introduction, 3rd ed. Routledge London.