Aitchison's metaphors
Jean Aitchison's metaphorical characterisations of language change as disease, decay, or evolution, reflecting different attitudes toward language change.
Real World
When journalists write headlines like 'The Death of the Apostrophe', they are using Aitchison's decay metaphor — language is portrayed as deteriorating, mirroring the same anxieties she identifies in her 1996 BBC Reith Lectures.
Exam Focus
Name all three metaphors, identify which attitude each reflects, and evaluate using Aitchison's own view that evolution is the most accurate framing.
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