{"product_id":"the-life-of-guy-guy-fawkes-the-gunpowder-plot-and-the-unlikely-history-of-an-indispensable-word-9780190669201","title":"The Life of Guy: Guy Fawkes, the Gunpowder Plot, and the Unlikely History of an Indispensable Word","description":"Had you said \"What a guy!\" in 17th-century England, anyone would have understood you were admiring a flaming effigy of Guy Fawkes of the Gunpowder Treason Plot. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eHow times have changed! In America and, indeed, most of the English-speaking world, \"guy\" is so embedded in daily speech that we scarcely notice how odd it truly is: a singular \"guy\" referring to males only, a plural \"guys\" encompassing the entire human race. The journey from England's greatest villain to America's favorite second-person plural pronoun offers a story rich with surprising and unprecedented turns. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThrough his trademark breezy, highly readable style, acclaimed writer Allan Metcalf takes us deep into this history, uncovering the intrigue, murderous plots, and torture out of which the word emerged in 1605. From there, it's a thrilling run through 17th-century England, bloody religious controversies, and across the Atlantic to America, where the word took on a life of its own, exploding into popular culture and day-to-day conversation. From the disappearance of thou, to George Washington and the American Revolution, to the modern revival of Guy Fawkes in \u003cem\u003eV for Vendetta\u003c\/em\u003e, Metcalf explores the improbable history of a simple word so indispensable to our daily lives, and that evokes deep insights into the evolution of English itself.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Allan Metcalf\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Oxford University Press, USA\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 09\/12\/2019\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 176\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.55lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.10h x 5.20w x 0.90d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780190669201\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAllan Metcalf\u003c\/strong\u003e is Professor of English at MacMurray College, former executive secretary of the American Dialect Society, a forensic linguist, and author of \u003cem\u003eOK: The Improbable Story of America's Greatest Word\u003c\/em\u003e (Oxford University Press, 2012) as well as six other books on language.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Oxford University Press, USA","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":41061803688051,"sku":"9.78019E+12","price":23.75,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/9255\/0515\/products\/img_8cdf3e6e-14bd-4172-8bf7-77b83e2a7236.jpg?v=1698846527","url":"https:\/\/bookstorenmore.com\/products\/the-life-of-guy-guy-fawkes-the-gunpowder-plot-and-the-unlikely-history-of-an-indispensable-word-9780190669201","provider":"Bookstore N More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}