Prefaces - Preliminary Considerations - Methods of Speech-presentation - Speech and Character: Dialect - Speech and Character: Idiolect - Some Case-studies - Dickens and Speech - Index

Since Speech in the English Novel first appeared in 1973, it has won international recognition as an important pioneering study of a topic that lies on the frontiers of literature and linguistics - the nature and function of fictional dialogue and its relationship to real speech. Drawing on a wide range of examples from many periods, the book includes general and theoretical chapters and also case-studies of particular texts, as well as a whole chapter devoted to Dickens. It has been found stimulating and useful by teachers and students in many countries, and has been praised by numerous scholars. The Year's Work in English Studies described it as a 'classic'; Studia Neophilologica said that it 'opened up new vistas for research'; Language and Style found that it 'admirably bridges the gap between linguistics and English studies', and English Studies judged it 'a thoroughly readable and even entertaining book'. This new edition incorporates numerous revisions, new examples, and additions to the bibliographies.