Spanish/English Contrasts: A Course in Spanish Linguistics, Second Edition

By Melvin Stanley Whitley

Book Overview

An invaluable text in language and linguistics because it has a unique scope: a one-volume description of the Spanish language and its differences from English, and ranges from pronunciation and grammar to word meaning, language use, and social and dialectical variation. Designed for survey courses in Spanish linguistics with technical concepts explained in context for beginners in the field, Spanish/English Contrasts brings out the ways in which insights into the two languages have evolved as scholars have built on the work and research of others in the field. A bilingual glossary of linguistic terms is provided to facilitate discussion in either language.

This second edition is thoroughly updated to incorporate insights and issues that have come to the fore from the explosion of research in the past twenty-five years in all of the areas covered by the book. It includes an expanded bibliography and index, and adds new exercises for student application and class discussion. Its approach remains broadly based however, in order to accommodate a range of areas and data rather than focusing narrowly on one single theory or research area, and it continues to emphasize implications for language teaching, translation, and other practical applications.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0878403817
• ISBN13: 9780878403813
• Release Date: August 2002
• Publisher: Georgetown University Press
• Length: 408 Pages
• Weight: 1.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 7.1" x 9.9"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

Excellent for advanced students, too

As an "advanced" student of Spanish, I am finding this book extremely helpful, I just wish I had stumbled on it several years ago. There are some grammatical concepts that become much clearer when explained in English, and this book does that. Highly recommended.

An excellent choice for a bilingual approach

Spanish-English Contrasts is an excellent choice for teaching basic Spanish linguistics with the use of English linguistics as a basis. It is written in English which may make it inappropriate for some upper level Spanish classes/programs. It is easy to read and understand. It is very expansive and covers a lot of information in almost 400 pages. Some of it is less detailed that I would have liked, but it is good for use in a class where you want to cover all the bases in one semester or so. There are a lot of additions to this second edition. Overall, it is useful.