Methodologies: Linguistic Criticism

"Beginning in the mid-fifties and emanating largely form MIT, an approach was developed to linguistic theory and to the study of the structure of particular languages that diverges in many respects from modern linguistics. Although this approach is connected to the traditional study of languages, it differs enough in its specific conclusions about the structure and in its specific conclusions about the structure of language to warrant a name, "generative grammar." Various deficiencies have been discovered in the first attempts to formulate a theory of transformational generative grammar and in the descriptive analysis of particular languages that motivated these formulations. At the same time, it has become apparent that these formulations can be extended and deepened.The major purpose of this book is to review these developments and to propose a reformulation of the theory of transformational generative grammar that takes them into account. The emphasis in this study is syntax; semantic and phonological aspects of the language structure are discussed only insofar as they bear on syntactic theory." - M.I.T. Press

"In this book, Constantine Campbell investigates the function of verbal aspect within the New Testament Greek narrative. He has done a marvelous job in this book of simplifying the concept without getting caught up using terms of linguistics that no one except those schooled in that field can understand. The book includes exercises, an answer key, glossary of key concepts, an appendix covering space and time, and an index to Scripture cited. Professors and students, at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, will use this is as a supplemental text in both beginning and advanced Greek courses. Pastors that study the Greek text will also appreciate this resource as a supplement to their preaching and teaching." - HarperCollins Christian Publishing

"Central in this volume of the 6th International Colloquium on Ancient Greek Linguistics is the question how cohesion is created in Ancient Greek texts. The contributions to the volume either discuss the various cohesive devices that occur in a specific text or focus on the use and function of a particular cohesion device in a larger corpus. Apart from the use of pronomina and particles, less standard cohesive devices, like the use of tense and the grammatical form of complements, are taken into consideration. The result is a volume that gives a good impression of recent research in the field of Greek linguistics, not only of interest for classical scholars, but also for general linguists interested in discourse coherence cnd cohesion." - Brill

"New Testament studies have debated the Koine Greek verb for 25 years--reaching an impasse when it came to both tense and aspect. Now, a group of scholars offer a new take on this debate. Originally presented as part of a conference on the Greek verb at Tyndale House, Cambridge, the chapters in The Greek Verb Revisited represent scholarly collaboration from the fields of linguistics, classics, and New Testament studies--resulting in a new perspective that allows the reader to approach the Greek verb in a fresh way. The Greek Verb Revisited not only offers a rare glimpse into the background of the debate over the Greek verb, but also explains the significance of this discussion and provides a linguistically-sound way forward. " - Lexham Press

"The second edition of the highly successful Handbook of Discourse Analysis has been expanded and thoroughly updated to reflect the very latest research to have developed since the original publication, including new theoretical paradigms and discourse-analytic models, in an authoritative two-volume set." - Wiley-Blackwell

"This volume is a collection of papers revealing the largely unexplored boundary between linguistic and literary approaches to classical texts. Eleven contributions by various scholars discuss a wide range of linguistic and literary apects of classical texts: the narratee in the prologues of Sophocles’ Trachiniae and of Euripides, the chronology in Pindar’s Odes, the relation between tense-aspect and Discourse Modes in Thucydides, Xenophon, Vergil and Ovid, the use of aspect in the Law Code of Gortyn, expressions of futurity and the word order of adjectives in Herodotus, and, finally, ancient and modern views on word order. Following an interdisciplinary approach, all contributions aim at bridging the gap between linguistic and literary study of classical texts." - Brill

"In The Language of the New Testament, Stanley E. Porter and Andrew W. Pitts assemble an international team of scholars whose work has focused on the Greek language of the earliest Christians. Each essay moves forward the current understanding of the context, history or development of the language of the New Testament. The first section of the volume focuses on the social contexts and registers that provide the environment for language use and selection. The second section deals with issues surrounding the history of the Greek language and how its development has impacted the Greek found within the New Testament." - Brill

"First published in 1874, this classic work still stands as one of the most definitive texts on the nature and use of the Hebrew tenses."

"What is Discourse Analysis? is an accessible introduction to an empirical research approach which is widely used in the social sciences and related disciplines. This book explores the idea of how meaning is socially constructed and how 'talk' and text can be interpreted. The challenges of discourse analysis are outlined as well as helpful ways to approach them - from finding the right starting point, processing and interpreting data through to building an argument. Discourse analysts work with language data, including talk, documents and broadcast material. Researchers in different traditions study interactions and social practices, meaning-making and larger meaning systems, and contests and conflicts around collective identities, social norms and subjectification." - Bloomsbury Academic

The Spanish Jewish tradition played a major role in what became common Hebrew Bible linguistic approaches (e.g. the triliterality of the Hebrew root). This short essay offers a history of the major figures in this school and what they did in Hebrew language studies.

Gives a brief history of the expansion of Hebrew linguistics to other Semitic languages.

An excellent overview of the recent history of linguistic criticism in biblical studies beginning with James Barr's 1961 work Semantics of Biblical Language. It focuses on four areas of linguistics: verb structure, case structure, syntax, and discourse analysis.

Biblical linguistics grew in popularity during a time period of the rise of various schools of linguistics (tagmemic, stratificational, and generative-transformational). Dr. Nida uses this essay to help biblical scholars better understand these schools and to incorporate aspects of them into their linguistic studies.