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English Grammar Boot Camp

Written by: Anne Curzan, The Great Courses
Narrated by: Anne Curzan
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Publisher's Summary

Grammar! For many of us, the word triggers memories of finger-wagging schoolteachers, and of wrestling with the ambiguous and complicated rules of using formal language. But what is grammar? In fact, it's the integral basis of how we speak and write.

As such, a refined awareness of grammar opens a world of possibilities for both your pleasure in the English language and your skill in using it, in both speech and the written word. As a foundation for writing, a detailed grounding in grammar and usage will hugely expand your resources for meaningful verbal expression, for navigating the subtleties of the language, and for achieving clarity of communication and stylistic power.

In English Grammar Boot Camp, linguist and popular Great Courses instructor Professor Curzan takes you on an enjoyable exploration of the essential aspects of English grammar. These 24 spirited and accessible lectures offer you a comprehensive core training - a linguistic "boot camp," by which we mean a thorough immersion in all of the key elements of English grammar and usage, in their most immediate, practical application.

Here you get a breadth of perspective and context you won't find elsewhere, leaving you with a more choices and rich verbal resources for your own use of the language. In discussing the different parts of speech, Professor Curzan directs your attention to how the element at hand evolved. Highlighting reflections from 18th- and 19th-century usage guides as well as from multiple modern commentators, she guides you in examining real-world language use in a variety of contexts, helping you develop a sophisticated frame of reference and a deep awareness of the idiosyncrasies of English.

This delightful and superbly insightful course offers you a unique opportunity to explore the linguistic riches of the English language, and to significantly deepen your mastery of grammar, usage, and style.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2016 The Great Courses (P)2016 The Teaching Company, LLC

What listeners say about English Grammar Boot Camp

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

A Strange Boot Camp But Helpful One

I am not the greatest at grammar, partially as I feel that as I've gone along in life all the information given to me can get confusing. I am finding it useful to listen to this and read along with the PDF. This has been a helpful course to listen to and learn from, and understand where some of the basics come from.

#Audible1

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

content

first two lectures seemed like History of English language and the qualities of linguist. poor

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1 person found this helpful

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English Grammar Boot Camp

When I saw the title "English Grammar Boot Camp" I thought this course would be dry and strict. Honestly, I am pleasantly surprised that this course was enjoyable and engaging, something I don't think anyone would have thought courses on grammar would be. This was seriously great and it's all because of Anne Curzan. Her voice was wonderful, it was gentle and also passionate about the subject. She loves grammar and you can tell by her voice (also she mentions it a few times). And it goes without saying but she was extremely knowledgeable about the subject. I didn't know how much history there was about certain grammar and usage rules there are. I wish they taught the history in school, probably would have made a lot more of these rules easier to learn.

I would use the course guide while listening to this.

As an aside, after listening to a few Great Courses courses about linguists, I do bemoan the death of the singular second person in English. I'm also more self conscious on what I use for the plural second person. I stopped mid thought to go, "Did I just use you guys?"

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1 person found this helpful

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Great for native speakers

What I like most is the honesty and overall big picture perspective on grammar. I think what confused me most about grammar was the nuances, or how there are so many instances where the rules aren’t always right or always wrong, so I found it hard to make sense with so many contradictions to the rules of grammar. But here Anne gives an honest perspective backed by facts that helps make it make sense. And a key is how language is always evolving and changing and being used in new and creative ways and with this perspective it gives language more excitement and fun to using and learning it.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Not what I was looking for.

There is no denying the passion, expertise, and enthousiasm of the lecturer. The content was simply not what I had been looking for from the title. The lectures seemed to me to detail the active evolution of English grammer. I was looking for a review and explanation of the basics of grammer. Regardless, it was, of a fashion, entertaining.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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  • 2022-06-19

Recommended!

Very informative course. I learned that grammar is important because it prevents our distraction as a reader and helps us to be coherent in conveying written formal messages.

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    1 out of 5 stars

Grammar?

I came to learn about grammar to help with a course I'm taking.

Instead of learning about grammar, I walk away with the confusion of recognizing that English's rules are mostly arbitrary.

This book makes my tests more confusing. Thanks.

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