This paper compares the usage of derivational and phrasal adverbial expressions of manner in English and Romanian. It also points to possible translational and learning problems due to selection peculiarities in the two languages. Both English as well as some of the Romance languages (among others French, Italian, Spanish), use both simple adverbs of manner (e.g. well) and derivational adverbs formed by adding a suffix to an adjective (e.g. poorly vs -mente adverbs in Romance).
Landmarks in the History of the English Language by Ruxandra Vişan, published by Ars Docendi publishing house, offers an overview of the history of the English language before 1500, with a focus on the Old English and Middle English periods. There are also excursions into the Early Modern English age, which are provided by the author in order to compare the various stages in the development of certain forms and structures. However, the observations concerning the Early Modern English age are made mainly in order to offset the previous historical periods, which are the main focus of this book. From the beginning, it is essential to emphasize that the book establishes itself as an initiation into the history of English, specifically meant for Romanian readers, and as a precursor for a more advanced study. As such, this book emerges as the first historical overview of English which is targeted to Romanian readers. The author's professed aim is to provide Romanian readers with useful parallels and generalizations which will enable these readers to become familiar with key aspects in the history of English before the sixteenth century.The book is divided into three parts, the first, entitled "Boundaries", consisting of two chapters: chapter 1, "From 449 to 1066" (pp. 17-54), and chapter 2, "From 1066 to 1476" (pp. 55-97). Thus, each chapter is centred, respectively, on the two traditionally delimited periods under scrutiny: Old English and Middle English. The author chooses to present aspects pertaining to the history, phonology and lexis of English in the chosen time frame. What is interesting to note is the make-up of the two chapters which start with preliminary remarks over the landmarks of the two time periods, followed by detailed discussions of the linguistic consequences of the main historical events of each period. There is also a follow-up section after every main topic in which the author poses research questions meant to improve the readers' knowledge.It is in the second part of the book, "Developments", that the author provides insight into the structure of English, concentrating on morphological and syntactical issues. Thus, it is in chapter 3, suggestively entitled "Inflections aplenty…or Not really" (pp. 101-158), that the author chooses to offer an overview of the development of inflectional forms from Old English to Present-Day English, maintaining her focus on the presentation of Old and Middle English structures. This chapter is, understandably, placed at the interface between syntax and morphology, and the author gives insight not only into the development of English inflections, but also into the changes that took place concerning word order in the history of English. The last chapter, "A glimpse at grammaticalization" (pp. 159-175), which is also included in the second part of the book, deals with a process which is essential for a good understanding of the history of English, namely grammaticalization (Hopper and Traugott 2003).The final part of the book, entitled "Linguistic illustrations" (pp...
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