The Problem with Chicago’s Possessives

Authors

Betsy Snider, Brigham Young University
Doris Dant, Brigham Young University

Keywords

Chicago's possessives, grammar, prescriptions, usage changes

College

Humanities

Department

Linguistics and English Language

Abstract

American English has no official language rules; rather, it has guidelines of what is acceptable and what is not. These guidelines, or prescriptions, are found in grammar books such as usage books, dictionaries, and style guides. Grammar books are created and maintained by editors and grammarians who base their prescriptions on what they observe as acceptable or unacceptable usage based on what occurs in educated texts. Despite the commonality of method, there is great variety and contradiction between what different grammar books prescribe. Nineteenth century grammarian, Goold Brown, once barbed “Grammarians would perhaps differ less, if they read more.”

Recommended Citation

Snider, Betsy and Dant, Doris (2013) "The Problem with Chicago’s Possessives," Journal of Undergraduate Research: Vol. 2013: Iss. 1, Article 932.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/jur/vol2013/iss1/932