1. Language change and grammar change -- 2. An outline of Old English syntax -- 3. An outline of Middle English syntax -- 4. The Verb-Second constraint and its loss -- 5. The loss of object-verb word order -- 6. Verb-particles in Old and Middle English -- 7. Changes in infinitival constructions -- 8. The history of the 'easy-to-please' construction -- 9. Grammaticalization and grammar change
Summary
This book is a guide to the development of English syntax between the Old and Modern periods. Four leading experts in English historical syntax draw on a wealth of empirical data to provide an invaluable introduction to the significant grammatical changes that occurred during the period
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 322-335) and index
