Creator
William Stevens Balch
Title
Lectures on Language, as Particularly Connected with English Grammar.
Coverage
Providence, R.I.
Publisher
B. Cranston & Co.
Date
1838
Description
Balch (1806–1887), a Universalist minister, thought grammar to be a subject deserving “the first attention of every philanthropist.” In these transcribed lectures, Balch shows himself to be dogmatically reductionist on many points: “Most of the words long considered difficult,” he assured listeners, “may be easily explained.” What about interjections? They “deserve no attention” because they “form no part of the language.” Any questions? “I cannot believe there is a person present who does not fully comprehend my meaning and discover the correctness of the ground I have assumed.”