Living Language / Learn A Language "Basic" CoursesHello,
n_j_f. As you indicated in your opening post under this discussion thread, identifying the different generations of the Living Language (basic) courses is not an easy matter. Crown Publishers and Random House were fairly consistent in the updating of the basic courses on which they built their reputation. However, over a period extending several decades, slight changes to the product names, numerous variants in packaging and recording technology, coupled with the simultaneous publication of two different generations, makes it difficult to distinguish some products from others. While I do not have a copy of the French courses, I do have a pretty complete set of the German courses on which I will rely to speculate about the basic courses. Please feel at liberty to correct me.
Crown Publishers began publishing the
"Learn-a-Language / Living Language" courses in 1946. Although the publisher issued “revised” editions to this series, the new editions were, for all practical purposes, virtually identical in content to the originals. Some confusion arises in distinguishing this generation from subsequent ones because they continued to be published (a) during the transition in recording technology from LP vinyl records, to audio cassettes, to compact discs and (b) throughout the long period during which the second generation was introduced and during which it, too, was subject to changes in recording technology.
Here is my understanding of the “generations” of the Living Language Complete Basic courses (irrespective of the differences in product names, the recording technology, and the packaging):
First Generation “Basic” CourseThe original 40-lesson course
"Living Language" was introduced in 1946 and, save for one minor revision, was published through the early 2000’s. This causes some confusion as it was published simultaneously during the period when the second generation basic course was introduced.
Living Language French 1.JPG
"Learn A Language" variants of the "Living Language" basic coursesCrown Publishers marketed these materials either directly, or indirectly via newspapers and the like, as
"Learn A Language" courses. A pamphlet, containing 10 lessons, accompanied each of the 10-inch x 33-1/3 rpm LP vinyl records that made up a complete set. A dictionary was, or was not, included depending on whether the cources were sold as complete 4 LP sets or as 1 LP x 4 installments. The contents of the "Learn A Language" courses were identical to those of the "Living Language" 1st generation basic courses.
Living Language (Learn a Language)2.JPG
Second Generation “Basic” CourseThe completely re-written 40-lesson basic course, circa 1980’s. In this generation, each of the ten “units” were separated into four “lessons” which introduced, successively, the words, phrases, sentences, and grammar that were deployed in the final lesson which contained the dialogues / conversations.
Living Language French 2.jpg
Third Generation “Basic” CourseA cheap marketing ploy: the recycling of previously-published materials, circa 2012. The first unit of the second generation course was removed and replaced by the Living Language "Starting Out in French" course which, given the completely different approaches to teaching, yielded a rather jolting transition between the differnent styles. Minor revisions were made to the subsequent units. The previous single course book was split into three separate manuals: Essential, Intermediate, Advanced.
Living Language French 3.jpg
EDITED:
Tinkering.
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