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This test consists of 5 short answer questions and 1 (of 3) essay topics.
Short Answer Questions
1. How many soldiers' names were presented to the House by Mr. Mondell in 1919?
2. Which of the following does Mencken not list as a once-slang word turned into one commonly accepted?
3. What was the common, popular American slang word used for Germans during the First World War, according to Mencken?
4. To how many in number does the comparative adjective relate?
5. What was the original name of Brooklyn?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
The primary conflict voiced by Mencken in The American Language is that which exists between the spirit of linguistic conservationism and a spirit of linguistic innovation. Analyze this conflict as it is presented throughout the book and report insightfully on the strengths and weaknesses of each spirit. How is each spirit superior to the other? How is it inferior? Is there a valid argument to be made in favor absolutely of one or the other? What arguments may be presented in support of each? What are the arguments that may be presented against each? Is there a plausible compromise that may be made between the two?
Essay Topic 2
In describing the ways in which American became a distinct dialect, Mencken ascribes great power to the development of a national literature. Examine the relationship between a national literature and a distinct national dialect. What effect does literature have on its readership? What effect does local speech have on authors? How do authors and the literature they write influence a whole nation? How do they help to make the speech of the whole nation distinct from other nations? What, in particular, emerges from the works of popular authors? What is the overall significance of the relationship between a national literature and a national dialect?
Essay Topic 3
A significant contributor to the present state of the American language is the influx of foreign words, particularly in the 19th and 20th centuries. Compose an essay analyzing the impact and influences of these various foreign words. What particular contributions have they made to the language? How do they reflect the overall composition of the American populace? How have these words themselves changed? How have they changed the language overall? How do all of these changes indicate the tendencies of the American English dialect?
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This section contains 391 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) |
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