In 1066, England was conquered by the Duke of a. Normandy b. Norfolk c. Norway
Historically, French loanwords that entered the English vocabulary were considered a. vulgar b. common c. refined
“Le shopping” is an example of a. a loanword that English acquired when the British Empire colonized North America b. a loanword that English borrowed from French c. a loanword that French borrowed from English
Discussion/essay questions
A few English loanwords are ballet (from French), algebra (from Arabic), and tsunami (from Japanese). Can you think of any others? Does English have any loanwords from your first language?
What are some loanwords in your first language? Do any of them come from English?
Transcript
A loanword is any word that one language borrows from another language. This often happens when different cultures interact through trade or colonization. The English language, for example, contains many loanwords from French. This is because England was conquered in 1066 by William, the Duke of Normandy. As a result, many French loanwords entered the English vocabulary. Because the ruling class was mostly French, the French loanwords often had more “refined” connotations than Old English terms. During the years of the British Empire, the English language acquired more loanwords from cultures in North America, Africa, India, and Australia. English is the most spoken language today, and it has passed on many of its own loanwords. French now contains terms like “le shopping”, and even Japanese borrows English words phonetically.
A text that excludes a specific letter is called a. an epigram b. a lipogram c. an anagram
The most common letter in English is a. e b. a c. i
To stop himself from using the “e” key on his typewriter, Wright a. tied it down b. removed it c. painted it black
Discussion/essay questions
Can you make a comment without using the letter “e”?
Transcript
Gadsby is a 1939 novel by American writer Ernest Vincent Wright. It is a lipogram, which means it does not include a specific letter of the alphabet. In Gadsby, there are no words that contain the letter “e”. This was a challenge, because “e” is the most common letter in English. In the introduction to the book, Wright says that he tied down the “e” key on his typewriter to stop himself from using it. Wright self-published his book, and he died before it became famous. However, it later inspired other novel-length lipograms. One of these was a French novel called La Disparition, or A Void in English. This novel successfully avoided the letter “e” in both the French original and the English translation.
The writer of Waiting for Godot was a. French b. Irish c. English
The play is considered a a. romance b. tragicomedy c. tragedy
Waiting for Godot became famous because a. it criticized religion b. it subverted common play structures c. it told an epic story
Discussion/essay questions
Do you prefer stories with exciting plots or thought-provoking ideas?
Transcript
Waiting for Godot is a 1952 play by Irish writer Samuel Beckett. Beckett originally wrote the play in French, and translated it into English a few years later. It is considered a tragicomedy. The play is about two men, Vladimir and Estragon, who speak to each other while they wait for a man named Godot to meet them. Godot never arrives. Waiting for Godot became famous for subverting common play structures. Besides the conversations between Vladimir and Estragon, not much happens in the play. Many people have opinions about the hidden meaning of the story. Some critics believe that Waiting for Godot is a religious allegory, and that Godot represents God. Others believe that the play represents the mundane parts of life, and that Godot represents death.
