Globish: How English Became the World's Language

“A fascinating study not only of the roots and growth of our own language but of its future.”—Bloomsbury Review

It seems impossible: a small island in the North Atlantic, colonized by Rome, then pillaged for hundreds of years by marauding neighbors, becomes the dominant world power in the nineteenth century. In this provocative new look at the course of empire, Robert McCrum shows how the language of the Anglo-American imperium has become the world’s lingua franca. In the twenty-first century, writes the author, English + Microsoft = Globish.
1100880850
Globish: How English Became the World's Language

“A fascinating study not only of the roots and growth of our own language but of its future.”—Bloomsbury Review

It seems impossible: a small island in the North Atlantic, colonized by Rome, then pillaged for hundreds of years by marauding neighbors, becomes the dominant world power in the nineteenth century. In this provocative new look at the course of empire, Robert McCrum shows how the language of the Anglo-American imperium has become the world’s lingua franca. In the twenty-first century, writes the author, English + Microsoft = Globish.
16.1 In Stock
Globish: How English Became the World's Language

Globish: How English Became the World's Language

by Robert McCrum
Globish: How English Became the World's Language
Add to Wishlist
Globish: How English Became the World's Language

Globish: How English Became the World's Language

by Robert McCrum

Overview

“A fascinating study not only of the roots and growth of our own language but of its future.”—Bloomsbury Review

It seems impossible: a small island in the North Atlantic, colonized by Rome, then pillaged for hundreds of years by marauding neighbors, becomes the dominant world power in the nineteenth century. In this provocative new look at the course of empire, Robert McCrum shows how the language of the Anglo-American imperium has become the world’s lingua franca. In the twenty-first century, writes the author, English + Microsoft = Globish.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780393080926
Publisher: Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc.
Publication date: 05/24/2010
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 352
File size: 556 KB

About the Author

About The Author
Robert McCrum is the associate editor of The Observer and lives in London with his wife, Sarah Lyall. His books include the bestselling The Story of English, My Year Off, Wodehouse: A Life, and Globish.

Hometown:

London, England

Date of Birth:

July 7, 1953

Place of Birth:

Cambridge, England

Education:

Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, England, 1972-75; University of Pennsylvania, 1975-76

Table of Contents

Prologue: 'Crazy English' 3

Part 1 Founders

1 In the Beginning: Four Invasions and a Cultural Revolution 23

2 Defeat into Victory: The DNA of Self-Expression 41

3 'Lighte Englisshe': Medieval Mass Communications 61

4 Eating Paper, Drinking Ink: Shakespeare & Co. 74

Part 2 Pioneers

5 'A Whole Country of English': Re-inventing Freedom and Originality 93

6 'Common Hopes and Common Dreams': Lighting Out for the Territory 111

7 'The Audacity of Hope': From Slavery to Redemption 125

Part 3 Popularisers

8 Rule, Britannia!: How England Became British 147

9 East, in a Western Voice: The People's Empire 171

10 'At the Top of the World': The Imperial Swan Song 188

Part 4 Modernisers

11 'A Willingness of the Heart': The American Century I 201

12 'The Unity of the English-Speaking Peoples': The American Century II 211

13 'The World At Your Fingertips': From Google to Globish, 1989-2009 226

Part 5 Globalisers

14 One World, One Dream: 'Conquer English to Make China Strong' 249

15 'Virtually Running America': India, the Far East and Beyond 260

Epilogue: 'A Thoroughfare for All Thoughts' 275

Notes 289

Select Bibliography 309

Acknowledgements 313

Index 315

From the B&N Reads Blog
Page 1 of

Customer Reviews