Examination of two sections of Benedetto Varchi's sixteenth-century document on Italian language usage reveals an uncommon appreciation for living usage, recognition of common linguistic practice, and a significantly greater awareness of social differentiation than that typically reflected in other sixteenth-century manuscripts. (31 references)…

Presents a proposal to bring literature into the basic program of instruction and make it a meaningful component of the learning process. A model lesson describes how literary texts can be perceived and studied as performances of a language. (CB)