Sen, R. orcid.org/0000-0002-1558-7938 (Accepted: 2023) Resurrecting rhymes, reasons and (no) rhotics: Reconstructing Keats’s pronunciation. In: Kennard, H., Lindsay-Smith, E., Lahiri, A. and Maiden, M., (eds.) Selected Papers from the 25th International Conference on Historical Linguistics (ICHL25). 25th International Conference on Historical Linguistics (ICHL25), 01-05 Aug 2022, Oxford, UK. Current Issues in Linguistic Theory . John Benjamins , Amsterdam . (In Press)
Abstract
This paper reconstructs the pronunciation of the English Romantic poet John Keats – and in particular the likely original sound of one of his final poems, Bright Star – just over two hundred years after his death (1821). Keats makes a particularly fascinating phonological study due to Lockhart’s (1818) denunciation of him as a ”Cockney poet”. I use evidence from contemporary pronouncing dictionaries and several other treatises and orthoepical works from the early nineteenth century to narrow down likely pronunciation variants in 1819. I then employ evidence from Keats’s own rhyme schemes (more concrete) and biographical details relating to his location, education, and social and literary milieu (more speculative) to construct a likely rendition of Bright Star in the poet’s own voice.
Metadata
Item Type: | Proceedings Paper |
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Authors/Creators: | |
Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2024 The Author(s). |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Arts and Humanities (Sheffield) > School of English (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 29 Feb 2024 16:46 |
Last Modified: | 29 Feb 2024 16:46 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1075/cilt |
Status: | In Press |
Publisher: | John Benjamins |
Series Name: | Current Issues in Linguistic Theory |
Refereed: | Yes |
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