Halmari, Helena2021-11-172021-11-172002Halmari, Helena and Adams, Robert. 2002. On the grammar and rhetoric of language mixing in Piers Plowman. Neuphilologische Mitteilungen CIII:1. 33–50.https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11875/3216Article originally published in Neuphilologische Mitteilungen in 2002.In excerpt (1) below, the Dreamer of Langland’s Piers Plowman is expressing his dissatisfaction with friars; the passage is a typical example of what is often called “macaronic language” - a conventionalized style where two languages (here Middle English and Latin, or a few times French) are mixed in a happy combination for fairly well-documented rhetorical purposes. In line (4) the Latin prepositional phrase In fame et frigore conjoins the Middle English NP flappes of scourges; lines (5) and (12-13) exemplify full clauses, with Biblical associations, in Latin. That Langland’s virtuoso combining of Latin and English is a result of careful planning is shown by his occasional, extremely pointed metalinguistic comments,Language MixingPiers Plowmanmacaronic languagemetalinguisticArticle