Women, Language And Linguistics: Three American Stories From The First Half Of The Twentieth Century (routledge Studies In The History Of Linguistics)

WOMEN, LANGUAGE AND LINGUISTICS Women have been a dynamic force in American linguistics, yet this has not always been apparent in current histories of linguistics. For twentieth century linguistics, Julia S.Falk argues, the same story has been told over and over: a story of leading men, their followers, and their interest in language as a structure observable in patterns of the distribution of forms. This book challenges this received history by presenting a much-needed reevaluation of twentieth century American linguistics which focuses on the contributions of women to our modern understanding of language. This book relates an account of linguistics as perceived and experienced by three American women in the first half of the twentieth century. Alice Vanderbilt Morris dreamed of creating a new auxiliary language for international communication, and brought together professional linguists and members of the New York upper class to achieve her goal. Gladys Amanda Reichard devoted her life to the study of Native American languages; despite opposition from men who claimed the territory, her studies still survive. And E.Adelaide Hahn brought themes of modern linguistics to the study of Latin and Hittite, keeping her colleagues mindful of ancient and classical languages. Rather than the standard American story of an increasingly triumphant march of scientific inquiry towards structural phonology, Women, Language and Linguistics reveals a linguistics where the purpose of language was communication; the appeal of languages lay in their diversity; and the authority of language resided with its speakers and writers. Julia S.Falk explores the vital part which women have played in preserving a linguistics based on the reality and experience of language; this book finally brings to light a neglected perspective for those working in linguistics and the history of linguistics. Julia S. Falk is Professor of Linguistics at Michigan State University. She is the author of Linguistics and Language, and is 1999 president-elect of the North American Association for the History of the Language Sciences. ROUTLEDGE STUDIES IN THE HISTORY OF LINGUISTICS Series Editor: Talbot Taylor 1 LINGUISTICS AND THE THIRD REICH Mother-tongue fascism, race and the science of language Christopher M.Hutton 2 WOMEN, LANGUAGE AND LINGUISTICS Three American stories from the first half of the twentieth century Julia S.Falk WOMEN, LANGUAGE AND LINGUISTICS Three American Stories from the First Half of the Twentieth Century Julia S.Folk London and New York First published 1999 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2002. Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 © 1999 Julia S.Falk All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the Bri