Writing & Linguistics
English as She is Wrote
"...Showing Curious ways in which the English Language may be made to convey Ideas or obscure them." A collection of unintentional…
Estudio sobre el arte de hablar en público
El autor de este tratado de oratoria, uno de los individuos mas respetados y que figura entre los tres ó cuatro oradores y pensadores…
Stops, or How to Punctuate
Throughout the ages, languages continue to adapt and change. English, being a relatively new language, is a nice example of that. Though the…
Write it Right
Witty, opinionated alphabetical examples of what Bierce considered poor (American) English and advice on alternatives - entertaining, though…
The Philosophy of Style
“The Philosophy of Style,” explored a growing trend of formalist approaches to writing. Highly focused on the proper placement and ordering …
How to Write a Novel
I address myself to the man or woman of talent—those people who have writing ability, but who need instruction in the manipulation of charac…
The Awful German Language
This long essay is a work of mock philology, one of several appendices to Twain’s travel novel, A Tramp Abroad. In it, Twain explains, compl…
Cratylus
Cratylus is a philosophical dialogue by Plato that delves into the nature of language and its relationship to reality. Through a conversatio…
Dialogo delle lingue
Pubblicato nel 1542, questo dialogo espone le teorie sulla lingua italiana che, già dal secolo precedente, presero forma, cercando di…
Mark Twain's Speeches
This collection of the 195 known, publicly-printed speeches of Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens) was compiled by Paul Fatout and publish…
The American Language
"It was part of my daily work, for a good many years, to read the principal English newspapers and reviews; it has been part of my work…
A Cursory History of Swearing
This is a very readable scientific account of Swearing and Cursing in the English Language. Not only is an enlightening historical account g…
The Raven
Poe’s famous narrative poem and the author’s reflections on its composition. (David Wales)
An Essay Concerning Human Understanding
This is the fourth book of John Locke's Essay Concerning Human Understanding. His book deals with knowledge and probability. He asks how far…
The English Language
A description and history of the development of the English Language and reflections on the influences that changed the language. - Summary …
The Technique of the Mystery Story
For one, I have never been one of those who apologize for my frank and never-ending delight in mystery stories. Their mazes have led me unwe…
English as She is Spoke
English as She is Spoke is a 19th century Portuguese-to-English phrasebook that has become a classic of absurdist humor, owing chiefly to th…
The Verbalist
Osmun arranges usage problems alphabetically and treats certain areas in greater detail as he sees fit. For example, his first entry is A-AN…
An Essay Concerning Human Understanding
This is the third book of John Locke's Essay on Human Understanding. Book I was Neither Principles Nor Ideas Are Innate. Book II was Of Idea…
In the Path of the Alphabet
Language: we all use it and few of us think about the form it takes on the page. But how did the transmittal of ideas in written form evolve…