My book review is about an eBook entitled A Grammar of the English Tongue by Samuel Johnson. I select to write about syntax.

SYNTAX by Maryann DiEdwardo

Book Review of

     Thesis: My book review is about an eBook entitled A Grammar of the English Tongue by Samuel Johnson. I select to write about syntax.  

     Syntax or word order creates style.  Johnson tells us that the following is true of syntax:

          “The established practice of grammarians requires that I should here treat of the    

     Syntax; but our language has so little inflection, or variety of terminations, that its

     construction neither requires nor admits many rules. Wallis, therefore, has totally

     neglected it; and Jonson, whose desire of following the writers upon the learned

     languages made him think a syntax indispensably necessary, has published such petty

     observations as were better omitted. The verb, as in other languages, agrees with the

     nominative in number and person; as, Thou fliest from good; He runs to death. Our

     adjectives and pronouns are invariable. Of two substantives the noun possessive is in

     the genitive; as, His father's glory; The sun's heat. Verbs transitive require an oblique

     case; as, He loves me; You fear him. All prepositions require an oblique case: as, He

     gave this to me; He took this from me; He says this of me; He came with me.

     (Johnson)

I use syntax to create style in my immigration novels.  The word order of the stories generates the juvenile fiction stylistic tone and modifies the writing to reach younger readers as well as other readers.

Works Cited

Johnson, Samuel. A Grammar of the English Tongue.  ABSTRACTED FROM THE FOLIO EDITION, BY THE AUTHOR, SAMUEL JOHNSON, LL.D. 1812. Retrieved May 17, 2015. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/15097/15097-h/15097-h.htm

DiEdwardo, Maryann. Pennsylvania Voices Book One available as soft cover and ebook by Maryann and her sister

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DiEdwardo, Maryann. Pennsylvania Voices Book 2 available as soft cover and eBook by Maryann and her sister

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DiEdwardo, Maryann. Pennsylvania Voices Book 3 available as soft cover and eBook by Maryann and her sister

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