Sally Johnson. Spelling Trouble? Language, Ideology and the Reform of German Orthography. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters Ltd., 2005. viii + 208 pp. $49.95, paper, ISBN 978-1-85359-784-8.
Reviewed by Diethelm Prowe
Published on H-German (November, 2005)
Sally Johnson, Professor of Linguistics at the this difculty most fundamentally to the fact that University of Leeds, might convincingly have re‐ Germans were so spread out and disparate in placed the question mark in her title with an ex‐ their dialects that they were desperate for some clamation mark. For while the question mark may unifying conformity, which they could only hope lure readers and buyers, a simple period or even to achieve through written language (Schrift‐ an exclamation mark would nail down her thesis sprache). This state of afairs, she reckons, led to in a nice two-word nutshell. The author, a soci‐ excessive attachment to orthography, the absolute olinguist with a strong interest in language poli‐ rules of right and wrong spelling. (At least this tics, as the bio-blurb on the book cover confrms, reader wondered at this point how she would ex‐ clearly answers her title question in the afrma‐ plain the equally adamant French determination tive. She regards the recent and still very much to keep their language pure--in its historical spell‐ debated spelling reform for the German-speaking ing.) Herder, who regarded national language and regions of Europe at least politically and socially tradition as indispensable foundations for cultur‐ as a failure: "Moreover, if one of the key measures al progress, is appropriately cited here, while of 'success' [why in quotes?--D.P.] where language Luther and the impact of his Bible translation are planning is concerned is the criterion of public ac‐ curiously absent. The emphasis on written lan‐ ceptance, then the 1996 reform can hardly be guage, according to Johnson, coupled with an ex‐ seen as a particularly successful instance of policy aggerated respect for the state by a people ever implementation--even allowing for the fact that it frustrated in their desire to gain a common na‐ is by no means atypical for spelling reforms to in‐ tional house by their dispersal and ultimately by cite such vociferous public opposition" (p. 119). the Prussian-Austrian Dualism, which was sealed In fact, Germans always had trouble dealing in 1871, led to repeated drives for control over with spelling reform, as Johnson shows in her fne spelling frst by teachers, who saw themselves as historical overview in chapter 2. She attributes the shepherds of the nation, and later by various hegemonic cultural and linguistic state elites. H-Net Reviews
These are fascinating and sweeping arguments, wir nichts subjectives, sondern eben disen gang whose premises readers will not always readily der reform und die daraus erkennbaren zile. accept--for instance, that there are greater difer‐ "Der standpunkt, fon dem aus unter den ences among German dialects than those of other aufgestellten prinzipien das richtige zu wälen ist, nations. But she presents solid historical evidence kann nicht die gewonheit sein, denn sie wird for the repeated and consistently foiled eforts at täglich fon felen ferlezt, ist nicht einig; - kann spelling reform--with the 1901 reform as the one auch nicht die geschichte der deutschen sprache with the greatest practical efect, primarily thanks sein, denn die schreibung soll eine to the ascendance of the Duden as the hegemonic neuhochdeutsche sein und die althistoriker geben authority on spelling-- the "Kaiser" of spelling in fon ihrem ursprünglichen program ein stück ums an authoritarian imperial state. andere preis. Diser standpunkt kann nur das The frst climax of the modern drives for or‐ bedürfnis des lesen- und schreibenlernenden thographic reform, Johnson shows convincingly, sein, das bedürfnis der folksschule. took place in 1876, which saw philologists and "Fon disem standpunkt aus ist unter den teachers gather together at the new national cen‐ aufgestellten prinzipien nicht schwer zu wälen. ter of Berlin--later dubbed the "First Orthographic Weder das gewonheitsprinzip, noch das althis‐ Conference." Although Reich founder Bismarck torische, noch das auf [Johann Christoph] Adelung was characteristically hostile to this show of senti‐ [1732-1806, author of the standard German gram‐ mental nationalism, the conference's impact was mar of the Enlightenment era - D.P.] zurükge‐ felt perhaps even more powerfully in the Ger‐ hende entspricht dem bedürfnis der folksschule, man-speaking regions that had been excluded sondern das fonetische, beschränkt durch das ety‐ from the kleindeutsch state. Written language and mologische mit dem zusaz: Gebrauche die ein‐ the "people's schools," Volksschulen became the fachsten mittel. Es lautet dann so: Schreib, wie zu beacons of the national. Journalists throughout lesen ist, doch mit rücksicht auf die ableitung, the far-fung German-speaking regions of Central soweit sie in der jetzigen schriftsprache nachweis‐ Europe "took a keen interest in the 1876 discus‐ bar ist und gebrauche die einfachsten mittel."[1] sions," as Johnson found in her research (p. 21). A The statement nicely illustrates the continuity good example is an article from March 1876 in of the issues raised by the Berlin orthographic Neue Zeit, the preeminent newspaper in the erst‐ conference down to the Vienna discussions be‐ while university town of Olmütz/Olomouc in Hab‐ tween 1886 and 1994, which laid the foundations sburg Moravia. The daily cited a paper presented for the 1996 reform. Recent reformers have been by a Professor Raschke to the pedagogical Verein much more careful and moderate, but the princi‐ of Teschen in Austrian Silesia, "welches sich der ples are remarkably similar. Many of us, especial‐ Schreibweise des Vortragenden bedient." It is a ly those of us frustrated by the chaotic spelling gem worth citing here: rules of English, would prefer a maximally pho‐ "Das theoretische zil der schreibungsreform. netic spelling system like the Spanish one, where "Wie die beste deutsche schreibung beschaf‐ phonemes and graphemes correspond fully, thus, fen sein mus, ergibt sich aus den felern der ge‐ for instance, eliminating the German "v" and re‐ bräuchlichen. Beseitigen wir alle diese feler, so placing it with "f" or "w" according to the pronun‐ haben wir das gewünschte. ciation. But even our Teschen linguist wished to "Aus der entwicklung der schreibung in un‐ limit this central phonetic principle with the ety‐ serem jahrhundert lässt sich das zil zimlich genau mological, in which the derivations were still ap‐ erkennen, dem sie zustrebt. In folgenden geben parent. But like the 1996 reformers, he rejected
2 H-Net Reviews the Gewohnheitsprinzip (go by what people are Hende, but then what about behende, which is used to), which has motivated most of the opposi‐ therefore now spelled behände. Similar issues tion to sensible reform in 1876 and since 1996. He arise with capitalization, compound spelling, hy‐ rightly considered it unreliable because it was "vi‐ phenization, and punctuation, as well as spelling olated daily and not uniform." Instead he pro‐ of foreign words, which have entered the lan‐ posed to use as a guide the most common mis‐ guage at very diferent times. Chapter 3 on "Lin‐ takes made by students and average users of the guistic Details" does a marvelous job of explaining language. Here Johnson confrms that "early pro‐ these spelling features in only 26 pages (preceded posals for re-standardization tended to be driven and followed by more highly theoretical Fachsim‐ by 'social' or 'educational' concerns" in the 1996 peln), which are most rewarding for anyone seek‐ reform as well (p. 45). In doubt, Professor Raschke ing more clarity about the new spelling rules. It is advocated the simplest spelling, again the inten‐ more concise and thus handier for average users tion of the new reform. Clearly the creators of the than the introductory section in Duden. In fact new German orthography would essentially iden‐ this chapter, together with the historical back‐ tify with Raschke's overall maxim: "Write the way ground in chapter 2 and the analysis of the key it sounds, but take into account derivations still court cases following in chapter 4, make this work evident in contemporary written language, and the standard source on the German spelling re‐ use the simplest ways." form in English. To be sure, the experience of 120 years of re‐ The second half of the book belongs to the so‐ form eforts foiled by the inertia of old spelling ciolinguist. After a largely descriptive survey in habits made the 1996 reformers far more cautious chapter 4 of the two cases against the spelling and pragmatic than their predecessors. They did rules, brought before the German Federal Consti‐ not touch such hallowed traditions as capitaliza‐ tutional Court by the lawyers Rolf Gröschner and tion of nouns (surely the source of the largest Thomas Elsner/Gunda Diercks-Elsner, plus a very number of spelling errors by German elementary- brief summary of the referendum in Schleswig- school students), the ambiguous "v," most of the Holstein (later annulled by the state parliament), ph- and th-spellings (rather than f and t), etc. This the last two chapters launch into the language re‐ caution may well have increased confusion and form as "ideological debate." This efort to under‐ added arguments for some opponents, but will stand social and ideological issues underlying the probably also be the key to the success of the lat‐ reform, the court challenges and decisions, and est efort. While the new spelling rules aim at the claims and counterclaims of creators, defend‐ greater phonemic-graphemic consistency (using ers, and opponents of the reform yields interest‐ the same letters or combination of letters for the ing insights, but they remain necessarily specula‐ same sounds) to make pronunciation and spelling tive and often terribles simplifcations. There is, more predictable for readers and writers, the re‐ for instance, a certain obvious truth in the asser‐ formers were guided primarily by what German tion that language disciplines and therefore con‐ speakers and writers would consider most logical trols populations and especially children in by the traditional structure of the German lan‐ school, but it becomes tendentious, when this is guage--or, especially for those learning to read translated into sweeping statements like: "all of‐ and write, to make largely accepted rules more cial policy geared toward (spelling) standardiza‐ consistent. Here the maximal correspondence of tion remains nonetheless an inherently ideologi‐ phonemes and graphemes ("write the way it cal project," and "a useful means with which to sounds") in practice often clashes with assump‐ shore up the privileges of already powerful social, tions based on derivation, e.g., Hand--Hände vs. regional, and economic groups, thereby legitimiz‐
3 H-Net Reviews ing inequality" (p. 122). Her primary paradigm international comparisons when their schools into which she casts the spelling-reform court and were far less, not more, fexible that they are now. referendum battles is Ferdinand Tönnies's old To mention this fact is not to advocate a return to Gemeinschaft-Gesellschaft dichotomy. This usage the older system under very diferent social con‐ ofers interesting perspectives, especially on the ditions, but surely it invalidates Johnson's argu‐ arguments presented by Gröschner and his stu‐ ment, especially when there is clear evidence that dent Wolfgang Kopke, but the application of an al‐ it takes children far longer to learn English spell‐ ready highly questionable model (cf. Ralf Dahren‐ ing than students of more phonetic languages like dorf's devastating judgment, which she fair-mind‐ Spanish and even German. edly cites on p. 123) in the confrontation between Far more sensible is the conclusion that John‐ the court and the reform opponents completely son shares with one of the members of the Inter‐ misapplies even Tönnies's categories. national Commission for German Orthography: In the end, Johnson is unsympathetic to the "Given the historical difculties surrounding the German spelling reform because she believes standardization and re-standardization of Ger‐ that, while granting the liberal intentions of the man Orthography, there was clearly a need for a planners, "the reform served only to exacerbate sustained campaign of public relations (PR) with a orthographic insecurity within the education sys‐ view to communicating to the wider public the tem as well as the wider speech community." overall necessity, content, value, and purpose of From the perspective of English spelling rules, the reform" (p. 156). In the context of her above which evolve rather unpredictably in the markets arguments that the "declarative knowledge associ‐ of autonomous spellers and dictionary publishers, ated with a standard orthography" was the prob‐ she proclaims "any attempt to frame such an act lem, this is at least bafing. So is the assumption [of language planning] within an autonomous, that the reform has failed. The PISA results are ir‐ asocial view of orthography ... misplaced" and relevant in this context since those data long pre‐ calls for "a reform process ... that formally ac‐ ceded the reform, as she acknowledges even knowledge[s] language users as individuals and while forging a link. More importantly, the recent groups whose concerns must be explicitly ad‐ agreement by all but two German states to have dressed." Unfortunately she does not specify how the new spelling rules adopted in all schools sug‐ such a grand scheme of spelling by direct democ‐ gests that the new rules will, in fact, become fully racy might be accomplished, but only states the accepted as the standard spelling within a genera‐ undeniable truth: "How this might be achieved tion with a few small changes and additional fex‐ and on what basis, however, is subject to diferent ibility. Can it be long until H-German follows suit? interpretations" (p. 156). Note Oddly Johnson then links the characteristic [1]. Neue Zeit (Olmütz), March 14, 1876. German inclination toward "explicit state-sanc‐ tioned codifcation of orthography" and the (sure‐ ly long overcome, D.P.) "emphasis placed within the German educational system on the declarative knowledge associated with a standard orthogra‐ phy" (pp. 171-171) to the poor showing of German students in the 2002 PISA (Program for Interna‐ tional Student Assessment). Surely she must know that German students fared far better in similar
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Citation: Diethelm Prowe. Review of Johnson, Sally. Spelling Trouble? Language, Ideology and the Reform of German Orthography. H-German, H-Net Reviews. November, 2005.
URL: https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=11238
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