H.L. Mencken's "The Hallmarks of Americans"
The Hall-Marks of Americans H.L. Mencken Mencken was a journalist and a critic. He wrote many famous essays. In this essay, Mencken says about the characters of American language. There is a general uniformity throughout the country. There is an impatient disregard for grammar and rules, which were followed by the word. There is a large capacity for talking new words and phrases from outside sources. There is a general language for whole nation, with minor differences in pronunciation and vocabulary. Only in America, there is a linguistic solidarity; e.g. the language spoken by the little Russian of the Ukraine can’t be understood by the citizen of Moscow. The northern Italian can scarcely follow a conversation in Sicilian. Dialects vary from countries to countries in England e.g.: Lancashire miner cannot understand what a Lancashire farmer speaks. A Boston taxi driver could not work in Chicago or San Francisco because he must have many misunderstandings. Intrin