Words and phrases that are to do with sex in literary and spoken English - Responses to offending language from the eighteenth and nineteenth century

Responses to offending language from the eighteenth and nineteenth century

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Drama, Anthologies
Cover of the book Words and phrases that are to do with sex in literary and spoken English - Responses to offending language from the eighteenth and nineteenth century by Thomas Eger, GRIN Publishing
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Thomas Eger ISBN: 9783638510288
Publisher: GRIN Publishing Publication: June 15, 2006
Imprint: GRIN Publishing Language: English
Author: Thomas Eger
ISBN: 9783638510288
Publisher: GRIN Publishing
Publication: June 15, 2006
Imprint: GRIN Publishing
Language: English

Seminar paper from the year 2001 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, grade: 1,0, Bielefeld University, 12 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: In his book 'Dr. Bowdler's Legacy' Noel Perrin tells us in the first chapter that a big change of morality took place with the turn of the nineteenth century in England. He puts it as follows: '... the first new generation of the nineteenth century (grew) up more strait-laced, inhibited, and conventional than its parents, so that sons discussed their fathers' wild oaths, and daughters worried about their mothers' loose sexual behaviour.' According to Perrin one of the cornerstones of this new way of thinking was that the people began to acquire a more reserved attitude towards sexuality. The chief cause of this tendency was what can be called the rise of the idea of delicacy, or 'the new prudery'. From the middle of the eighteenth century onwards, delicacy came to be regarded as a special and precious characteristic - especially among women. Basically, it means that people felt offended as soon as they were confronted with sexuality in whatever form. Blushing and fainting were outward indicators of this new propriety. Another consequence was that people began to keep away from anything that might be a burden on their conscience. An important result of this trend was the emergence of the idea of expurgation in literature. That is people simply started to remove 'words or scenes that were considered likely to offend or shock'. The pioneering work in this field was Dr. Bowdler's 'Family Shakespeare', which was published in 1807. Dr. Bowdler's aim was - according to the fashion of his time - 'to exclude from this publication whatever is unfit to be read aloud by a gentleman to a company of ladies'. In another passage he says that he wants to enable a father to read one of Shakespeare's plays to his family circle 'without incurring the danger of falling unawares among words and expressions which are of such a nature as to raise a blush on the cheek of modesty ...'. As he says in the preface to the first edition, Bowdler was primarily concerned with profanity and obscenity. In this essay I will constrict myself to the field of obscenity in its sexual dimension. In the first part of my paper I will watch a Victorian at work by examining Bowdler's version of 'Romeo and Juliet' and comparing it to Shakespeare's. What kind of words and passages does he change and in what way does he revise them? Does he treat different terms in different ways?

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Seminar paper from the year 2001 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, grade: 1,0, Bielefeld University, 12 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: In his book 'Dr. Bowdler's Legacy' Noel Perrin tells us in the first chapter that a big change of morality took place with the turn of the nineteenth century in England. He puts it as follows: '... the first new generation of the nineteenth century (grew) up more strait-laced, inhibited, and conventional than its parents, so that sons discussed their fathers' wild oaths, and daughters worried about their mothers' loose sexual behaviour.' According to Perrin one of the cornerstones of this new way of thinking was that the people began to acquire a more reserved attitude towards sexuality. The chief cause of this tendency was what can be called the rise of the idea of delicacy, or 'the new prudery'. From the middle of the eighteenth century onwards, delicacy came to be regarded as a special and precious characteristic - especially among women. Basically, it means that people felt offended as soon as they were confronted with sexuality in whatever form. Blushing and fainting were outward indicators of this new propriety. Another consequence was that people began to keep away from anything that might be a burden on their conscience. An important result of this trend was the emergence of the idea of expurgation in literature. That is people simply started to remove 'words or scenes that were considered likely to offend or shock'. The pioneering work in this field was Dr. Bowdler's 'Family Shakespeare', which was published in 1807. Dr. Bowdler's aim was - according to the fashion of his time - 'to exclude from this publication whatever is unfit to be read aloud by a gentleman to a company of ladies'. In another passage he says that he wants to enable a father to read one of Shakespeare's plays to his family circle 'without incurring the danger of falling unawares among words and expressions which are of such a nature as to raise a blush on the cheek of modesty ...'. As he says in the preface to the first edition, Bowdler was primarily concerned with profanity and obscenity. In this essay I will constrict myself to the field of obscenity in its sexual dimension. In the first part of my paper I will watch a Victorian at work by examining Bowdler's version of 'Romeo and Juliet' and comparing it to Shakespeare's. What kind of words and passages does he change and in what way does he revise them? Does he treat different terms in different ways?

More books from GRIN Publishing

Cover of the book The Falklands Crisis: Britain's Justifications for its Resort to Military Force through the Example of a Speech by Margaret Thatcher by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book Prevailing schools of thought in the PR China and their effects on economic and social acting of humans today by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book Dialysis - Principle, Advantages and Disadvantages by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book Cost drivers and economies of scale in the automobile industry by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book Survey on Activities of Swiss Manufacturing Companies in China with special focus on M&A by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book Hedge Funds. Principles, Chances and Risks by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book The role of the IMF in general and its role in Kosova by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book Experience on specific problems - Joint ventures between Hong Kong company and company from the local government of the People's Republic of China (developing country) by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book The Kurile Island Conflict by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book Regional variation in British English - Focus on Scotland by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book Media Law Aide Memoir by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book Pidgins and Creoles by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book How many mutations are required to produce a human cancer cell? by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book South-East English Working Class Speech in Film by Thomas Eger
Cover of the book The case of Rambus in the US - Standards vs. Antitrust Law by Thomas Eger
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy