Neoclassicism · English Literature

The 'Battle of the Books' was a late 17th-century intellectual debate concerning the superiority of:

  1. Standardize, stabilize, and codify the English language
  2. Introduce as many fashionable foreign loanwords as possible
  3. Encourage the use of regional dialects in formal prose
  4. Replace traditional words with mathematical symbols
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Correct answer: Standardize, stabilize, and codify the English language

Johnson's goal was to bring order to the 'copious' and 'unsettled' English language. This desire for standardization, clarity, and authority is a hallmark of the Neoclassical intellectual climate.

Difficulty: Medium Question 9 of 20

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