The Story of Webster's Third: Philip Gove's Controversial Dictionary and Its Critics

Herbert C. Morton

Cambridge University Press, 1994 - Language Arts & Disciplines - 332 pages

The publication of Webster's Third New International Dictionary in 1961 set off a storm of intense controversy in both the popular press and in scholarly journals due to widespread disagreements about the nature of language and the role of the dictionary. This is the first full account of the controversy, set within the larger background of how the dictionary was planned and put together by its editor-in-chief, Philip Babcock Gove. Based on original research and interviews with the people who knew and worked with Gove, this is a human story as well as the story of the making of a dictionary. The author skillfully interweaves an account of Gove's character and working habits with the evolution of the dictionary. In spite of its rocky initial reception, Webster's Third is now widely regarded as one of the greatest dictionaries of our time.

Contents

• The Best of Times and the Worst A Prologue: 1
• Goves Formative Years The Road to Springfield: 13
• Early Days: 14
• File Cards and Imaginary Voyages: 17
• Among the Johnsonians in London and Oxford: 23
• Goves First Foray: 26
• Travels with the Navy: 31
• Changing Course: 34
• The Merriam and Webster Legacies: 37
• The Merriam Tradition: 38
• Noah Webster: 40
• The War of the Dictionaries: 45
• The Frustrating Search for Leadership: 51
• On Track at Last: 55
• The New Editor Takes Hold: 59
• Deciding What to Omit: 61
• Limiting the Boards Role: 66
• In Full Command: 69
• Upstairs Downstairs: 70
• Moving Ahead: 74
• The Meaning of Words Definers at Work: 79
• Changes in Meaning: 82
• Tendencies in the Drift of Meaning: 84
• A New Style of Defining: 87
• The Definers: 90
• Lauds and Sneers and More Dos and Donts: 92
• The Role of Citations: 94
• Clarifying Meaning: 99
• The Origins of Words The Etymologists Task: 102
• Guidelines for Websters Third: 105
• The Treatment of Loanwords: 107
• An Example: 109
• The Vocabulary of Science: 111
• Dealing with Uncertainty: 113
• Produce Produce: 115
• Etymology and the Word That Wasnt: 118
• The Sound of Words and Other Matters: 121
• From Websters Second to the Third: 123
• The Great Eavesdropper: 126
• The Compromise: 128
• Signs of Slippage: 130
• Getting into Type: 132
• Usage and Final Tasks: 135
• Correctness and the Purists: 138
• The Loom of Competition: 142
• The Bumpy Road to the Finish Line: 144
• Zyzzogeton at Last: 147
• Will It Sell?: 148
• Early Returns The Fuse Is Lit: 153
• The Word Spreads: 154
• The Quagmire of Aint: 158
• The Relevance of Fowler: 160
• Sympathetic Assessments: 163
• An Early Balance Sheet: 165
• A Closer Look at the Publicity Strategy: 168
• The Controversy Heats Up: 171
• Thunder from the Times: 172
• Mixed Reports: 176
• Friendly Critics in the Press: 180
• YearEnd Assessment: 185
• Calamity or Calumny?: 186
• Sabotage in Springfield: 187
• The Fallout from Follett: 190
• But Whats a Dictionary For?: 192
• The Word from Britain: 197
• The Times Takes Another Look: 200
• Macdonalds and Sledd Face Off: 201
• The Clash of Views: 203
• Commercial Intrusions Trademarks Takeover Threats Competition: 215
• The Worth of a Name: 216
• Hostile and Friendly: 223
• The Usage Panel as Competition: 228
• At Issue A Way of Life: 233
• Ripostes Here and There: 235
• Ethnic Sensitivities: 237
• The Chimera of Politics: 240
• A Linguist Responds: 243
• The Judgment of Peers: 245
• The Word List: 247
• Slang: 248
• Colloquial and Other Labels: 252
• Etymology: 255
• Pronunciation: 256
• Miscellany: 258
• The Persistent Critic and the Second Battle of Aint: 262
• Gove and Websters Third The Legacy: 267
• Winding Down: 268
• Deja Vu and Plus Ca Change: 271
• Second Thoughts: 273
• Small World: 276
• A Lasting Influence: 278
• Concluding Words: 281
• A Change in the Critical Climate: 282
• The Maturing Treatment of Usage: 284
• Websters Third after Three Decades: 288
• Notes: 291
• Index: 325

Bibliographic information

• Title: The Story of Webster's Third: Philip Gove's Controversial Dictionary and Its Critics
• Author: Herbert C. Morton
• Edition: illustrated, reprint
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 1994
• ISBN: 0521558697, 9780521558693
• Length: 332 pages
• Subjects: Language Arts & Disciplines / General; Language Arts & Disciplines / Lexicography; Language Arts & Disciplines / Linguistics / General; Literary Criticism / Reference; Reference / Dictionaries