William Shakespeare Group

Question:

redbone005
redbone005
Student
College - Freshman

Why is there a difference between contemporary American English and the conversational language of Shakespeare's time?

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Posted by redbone005 on Sunday March 29, 2009 at 11:22 AM and tagged with contemporary, english, language, modern english, old english, shakespeare, william shakespeare.

Answers:

  1. speamerfam
    speamerfam Teacher
    Community / Jr. College

    eNotes Editor

    Have you ever noticed that people who are much older than you use different words and terms sometimes?  That is because language is always changing!  From the time of Shakespeare until now, English-speaking people explored different countries, learned more about science, and were able to reap the benefit of a new invention, the printing press. Think for a moment about the English people who came to America.  They were encountering people, plants, weather, and scenery that they had never seen in England.  They had to come up with new words to describe their experiences.  Many words were borrowed from Native Americans, and other words were "borrowed" from other settlers, for example, the Dutch, the French, and the Spanish.  All of this meant that the English language could not remain the same.  If you want to know more, I have provided a link for you.  This is a fascinating subject, and I hope it interests you.

    Good luck to you. 

    Sources:
    http://www.englishclub.com/english-language-history.htm

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    Posted by speamerfam on Sunday March 29, 2009 at 2:10 PM