Descriptive Linguistics and Prescriptive Linguistics规定语言学和描述语言学 Definition History Prescriptive Grammar VS Descriptive Grammar Examples Websters Third New International DictionaryPrescriptive linguistics规定语言学 - an account of how a language should be used instead of how it is actually used . It is the act of taking the official models of a language, and treating them as sacred seikrid perfect representations of the language, and enforcing them on people. For example, correcting someone who uses the word “aint” (am not/are not), even if its used in an appropriately casual way. Descriptive linguistics描述语言学- the work of analyzing and describing how language is actually spoken now (or how it was actually spoken in the past), by any group of people.history1Prescriptive linguistics school2Descriptive linguistics schoolPrescriptive linguistics school 规定语言学派The history of linguistics can trace back to the ancient Greece in 5th century BC. At that time, prescriptive linguistics mainly depended on the early Latin or Greek grammar. It treated the linguistic as a law to rule people how to use language. Until the 18th century, the prescriptive linguistics was still the main stream. Descriptive linguistics school 描述语言学派1911 192419331950One person: Boas(鲍阿斯) One book: Handbook of American Indian language 美洲印第安语手册 The foreword to the book : The symbol of the start of the descriptive linguistics schoolOne organization: Linguistic Society of America 美国语言学学会 Two people: Boas（鲍阿斯 （1858-1942） Sapir(萨丕尔) （1884-1939 ） One book: Language(语言论)One person: Bloomfield blu:mfi:ld 布龙菲尔 德Influence: The symbol of the formal birth of the descriptive linguistics schoolDescriptive linguistics school became mature Prescriptive grammar Descriptive grammar Prescriptive grammarians prefer giving practical advice about using language: straightforward rules to help us avoid making errors. A prescriptive grammarian believes that certain forms used are correct and that others, even though they may be used by native speakers, are incorrect. Prescriptive grammarians lay out r_ about what they_b_ to be the “_c_” or “_i_” use of language.ulesorrectncorrectelieve Descriptive grammarians generally advise us not to be overly concerned with matters of correctness: language, they say, isnt good or bad; it simply is. As the history of the glamorous word grammar demonstrates, the English language is a living system of communication, a continually evolving affair. Within a generation or two, words and phrases come into fashion and fall out again. Over centuries, word endings and entire sentence structures can change or disappear. Descriptivists look at the way people speak and then try to create rules that account for the language usage, accepting alternative forms that are used regionally and also being open to forms used in speech that traditional grammars would describe as errors. Many prescriptivists feel that modern linguistics, is responsible for a decline in the standard of language. Descriptive grammarians study the r_ or patterns that u_ our u_ of words, phrases, clauses, and sentences.ulesnderliebe or form the base for Underlie :se Prescriptive grammar: the structure of a language as certain people think it should be used. Descriptive grammar: the structure of a language as it is actually used by speakers and writers. Though certainly different in their approaches to language, both kinds of grammar-descriptive and prescriptive- -are useful to students and very important in English studies. 1.This is the house I was born in 2.Id like to know what you have been up to Never end a sentence with a preposition. 1.This is the house I was born in This is the house in which I was born 2.Id like to know what you have been up to Id like to know up to what you have beenA. It is I. B. It is me.A. Who did you speak to? B. Whom did you speak to? Prescriptivists take correct and incorrect rules as the absolute standard. Prescriptive grammar is a subjective one-sided prescription. Websters Third New International Dictionary is called a descriptive dictionary, which describes the way words actually are being used in conversations and writings. Philip Grove, the editor of the new dictionary, is a representative descriptivist. Although many people against this dictionary for its alleged permissiveness, its actually the undisputed best.