Social Linguistics

The Hairy Ape (1922) is an expressionist play by Eugene O'Neill. The protagonist, Yank, yearns for a sense of belonging in a world he perceives as being controlled by the rich. Initially, Yank enjoys his job stoking the engines of an ocean liner. Then the wealthy daughter of a steel magnate refers to him as a "filthy beast", and Yank starts experiencing an identity crisis. He leaves the ship, and while walking around Manhattan, comes to the conclusion that he does not belong anywhere; not with the rich on Fifth Avenue nor with the labor unions on the waterfront.

This audiobook makes learning French easy for children. This is done through explaining why language skills are useful, in a way children can understand. The French language is then introduced in a manner that children can effortlessly use in a travel setting, such as answering questions, ordering food or common vocabulary. Repetition is key to recall, and the audiobook is paced to reinforce key concepts and lock them into memory.

Bernard Shaw based his "religious pantomime" Androcles and the Lion on the ancient fable of the runaway slave who pulls a painful thorn from a lion's paw, thereby making a lifelong friend. This tale of a puny Greek tailor triumphing over the Roman emperor is, as always with Shaw, a commentary on the politics of his time, with the emperor standing in for the British government and, indeed, all repressive regimes.

New Poems by D.H.Lawrence. Narrated by Denis Daly. This audiobook is a collection of 42 poems first published in 1920. In it, Lawrence explores the possibilities of free verse, of which he says in the preface: “This is the unrestful, ungraspable poetry of the sheer present, poetry whose very permanency lies in its wind-like transit.”

Making his way to a tryst with his "dark lady" near the royal palace the young playwright William Shakespeare encounters a mysterious woman in a cloak. Mistaking her for his lady friend, he accosts her in a familiar fashion, only to discover, to his dismay, that she is in fact the queen. He overcomes his initial discomfort, and takes advantage of the situation to make a petition for royal support to establish a national theatre.

This book is the basis for Whit Stillman's feature film Love and Friendship starring Kate Beckinsale and Chloe Sevigny.

All they could hear was the wind, and the waves crashing on to the rocks. All they could see was the night. They could not see the ship, broken in two. They could not see the people holding on to the dark wet rock, slowly dying of cold. And they could not hear the cries for help - only the wind. How could they save the people on the rock? Was their wooden boat stronger than the iron ship?

Fitz James O'Brien (1828 - 1862) was an Irish-born American writer, some of whose work is considered the forerunner of today's science fiction. The Diamond Lens is his most famous short story and tells the strange story of a scientist who invents a powerful microscope and discovers a beautiful woman in an enchanting microscopic world inside a drop of water.

Get By in Portuguese is devised specifically for travellers. The 70-minute download will help you to get to grips with the basics of spoken Portuguese, and introduces the most relevant language you'll hear when you're there. Listen to the audio a couple of times to practise the key phrases and vocabulary, and familiarise yourself with Portuguese pronunciation.

William Shakespeare. Born April 1564, at Stratford-upon-Avon. Died April 1616. Married Anne Hathaway: two daughters, one son. Actor, poet, famous playwright. Wrote nearly forty plays. But what was he like as a man? What did he think about when he rode into London for the first time... or when he was writing his plays Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet... or when his only son died? We know the facts of his life, but we can only guess at his hopes, his fears, his dreams.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's most intriguing novella. Austin Gilroy is a scientist and is by nature sceptical of anything to do with the occult. So when his colleague, Professor Wilson, introduces him to the mysterious and sinister hypnotist, Miss Penclosa, he is inclined to view her as a fraud. But when Gilroy's fiancée is hypnotised and Miss Penclosa makes her do the unthinkable, Gilroy is forced to change his views.

Surprisingly few people take any time to think about how they are learning languages. They usually just trust their teacher or friends' advice. This is inefficient at best and often liable to failure at worst. Language learning and learning in general have been over-complicated by a mass of theories, methods, and techniques. This makes life harder than it needs to be. This book attempts to cut through the noise and give a clear description of how languages are actually learned.

Get By in Chinese is devised specifically for travellers. The 70-minute download will help you to get to grips with the basics of spoken Chinese, and introduces the most relevant language you'll hear when you're there. Listen to the audio a couple of times to practise the key phrases and vocabulary, and familiarise yourself with Chinese pronunciation.

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

A magical fairy tale, which features a feisty princess who has the unfortunate curse of life without gravity. Can the curse be broken before she floats away. Beautifully retold to entertain children of all ages.

The crew of a European ship discovers the utopian island of Bensalem, having gotten lost in the Pacific Ocean somewhere near Peru. The crew spend time learning about the ways of the people of Bensalem, a very chaste group of Christians. The most important part of the island is their university, a state-sponsored scientific institution known as Salomon's House. The narrator is chosen from amongst the crew to get a one-on-one explanation of the way their society works, and he learns about the various buildings and jobs that exist on Bensalem.

C'est en linguiste de terrain que Claude Hagège a abordé le champ des langues. Son intérêt pour leur réalité vécue, leur chair vive et le terreau d'origine de la parole humaine en font un adepte d'une approche empirico-inductive, aboutissant ainsi à des conclusions d'ordre général à partir d'une matière concrète.

This story is from The Reminiscences of Sherlock Holmes (His Last Bow) collection. Further adventures by the master of observation and deduction, as faithfully recounted by his companion and greatest admirer, Dr Watson. "The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans," "The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax", and "The Adventure of the Dying Detective" are among the stories. David Timson's award-winning performances continue with this series.

This story is from The Reminiscences of Sherlock Holmes (His Last Bow) collection. Further adventures by the master of observation and deduction, as faithfully recounted by his companion and greatest admirer, Dr. Watson. "The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans," "The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax", and "The Adventure of the Dying Detective" are among the stories. David Timson's award-winning performances continue with this series.

Charlemagne is reported to have said that “to speak another language is to possess another soul”. The Art of Learning a Foreign Language consists of all the things I wish I knew at various stages of my language learning journey during the last 15 years—as a hobbyist, student, academic, and professional linguist. This book is designed to help the learner avoid many pitfalls and seize opportunities, with lessons on choosing a target language, travel, accent, immersion, technology, learning approaches, and the lifestyle habits of professional linguists.

From ancient heroes like Odysseus and Alexander the Great to modern heroes like Nelson Mandela and Bill Gates, the people who stand out for their accomplishments have many talents and qualities in common. For example, Odysseus was known for his cleverness. His idea to hide some Greek soldiers inside a wooden horse and present that wooden horse as a gift to the citizens of Troy turned what had been an embarrassing defeat for the Greek armies into a decisive victory over Troy.