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Human speech, in the sense of the use of vocal expression in linguistic communication, has long been considered to be primary in relation to written language, and in fact presupposed by it. Nevertheless, there is a long tradition of confusing speech with language, as well as of confusing language with written language. Consequently, linguistics, in its attempt to be a scientific study of language has in fact tended first of all to reason in terms of grammar — even if this is rarely explicitly stated as such — i.e., in terms of conventions, rules and principles for correct linguistic expression in writing ² My aim here is to make a contribution to the clarification of these confusions. I will begin by describing some features of the formalization of representations of speech in written language, i.e., in phonographically written records of speech, from its beginnings through its development in later centuries. This will provide a summary of some fundamental concepts of grammar, and hence of linguistics. Given this background, I will go on to make some remarks on the content/expression-distinction in modern linguistics.

DOI: 10.1007/978-94-017-3439-4_5

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