A Functional Analysis of Present Day English on a General Linguistic Basis (Janua Linguarum. Series Practica, 208)

## INTRODUCTION: ON THE SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF LANGUAGE 1. CURRENTS OF LINGUISTIC RESEARCH To begin with, it is to be emphasized that the following discussion is an introduction to a scientific, not to a practical study of English. Hence it is necessary to give a brief account of linguistics as a scientific discipline. Linguistics began to be pursued as a systematic science at the beginning of the last century. Its foundation was laid by the Dane RASMUS RASK (1787 -1832) and the German FRANZ BOPP (1791-1867). Comparing different ancient languages of Europe and Asia, they found some languages to be genetically related. Moreover, a more detailed comparison of identical or similar features in the related languages appeared to offer the possibility of determining the characteristics of an earlier common stage. The method employed by these scholars, the so-called method of genetic comparison, prevailed in linguistics throughout the 19th century. It culminated in the Neogrammarian School, whose most outstanding representatives were KARL BRUGMANX (1849-1919), BERTHOLD DELBRÜCK (1842-1922) and HERMANN PAUL (1846-1921). 1 One of the most important theses of the Neogrammarian School was the assertion that sound changes were governed by phonetic laws, which operate with no exceptions. This meant the introduction of a firm order into linguistics. The Neogrammarian School undeniably achieved remarkable results, but also had certain weaknesses. The excessive emphasis laid on the historical method, i. e. observation of isolated features of language in their development, resulted in the loss of the conception of a system, the system of language as a whole being thus lost sight of. (In the literature of the English language this is apparent, for example, in the otherwise good grammars bv J. and Ε. M. AVRIGHT, 2 which used to be very popular at one time.) The Neogrammarians also wrote descriptive grammars, although they considered descriptive, nonhistorical linguistics unscientific, but these grammars as a rule again described earlier stages of particular languages. Another weak point of the Neogrammarian School was the fact that its only available material was the language of written documents, which is artificially simplified, since writing \* The translations of Czech examples in square brackets have been added by the translator for the convenience of readers unfamiliar with Czech. The degree of literalness is adapted according to the character of the point being demonstrated.

Targeted killing of terrorists has become an established practice in the fight against terrorism. The disturbing consequences of the practice and its increasing political and societal acceptance raise questions as to its justifiability and its place in counter-terrorism.

Anna Goppel explores whether targeted killing of terrorists can be justified, both from a moral and an international legal perspective. She discusses moral and international legal limits to state use of lethal force and argues that the moral principles and the international legal regulations allow for the practice only in very specific, very rare, and rather hypothetical cases. The analysis is based on a thorough discussion of the human right to life, the laws and ethics of war, and the relevant moral and legal arguments. This makes it of particular interest to philosophers and legal theorists interested in terrorism, counter-terrorism, human rights, and the legitimacy of defensive state measures.