It’s awesome to see my original little correction about the plural/comparative slip-up turn into such a lively conversation about grammar. I’m an english major, too — English Language. That’s pretty much a grammar major, so I just can’t let these things go.

Chestnuts roasted by Candace @ 01/19/2007 3:59 AM

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Cheeky just beautifully summarized the difference between prescriptive and descriptive grammar, and by proxy the difference in aim and philosophy between radical Grammarians and Sociolinguists.

He also spoke to the evolution of language. Good on ya, Cheeky, very good indeed

Chestnuts roasted by K- @ 01/19/2007 4:14 AM

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Language Death certainly occurs, but if it makes you feel any better the process whereby speakers work together to create contact languages–Pidgins and Creoles–is another beautiful process in which we can see the ingenuity of human beings. Sure, diglossias arise and power relationships are formed, sometimes to the severe detriment of those who wind up on the short of the stick, but that is the way of all things.

fear leads to anger. anger leads to hate. hate leads to suffering, etc. etc.

Chestnuts roasted by K- @ 01/19/2007 4:49 AM

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Wow, some chick died trying to win a Wii. What the hell is going on in the world when people die over game consoles?

yea i heard about that.. at first i thought ‘how dumb of the radio dj’s’ for not knowing how dangerous this contest would be (seeing who could drink the most water without having to urinate for hours) but then later reports are saying they knew about the dangers and even commented on the air about them, basically saying “hey we don’t care, these people signed waivers – so if anything happens we’re not responsible!”. and now they’re saying some of the interns were withholding info from some of the contestants about medical concerns involved.. meanwhile a woman is dead from water intoxication who was simply trying to when a wii for her children.

i’m normally not for harsh punishment but i hope these assholes are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law..

on a more cheerful note best buy and circuit city are supposed to be getting more wii’s this sunday for anybody who’s still looking

Chestnuts roasted by cheeky @ 01/19/2007 7:49 AM

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I’m not an English major, but I am an Education major, so I’m almost as bad And yes, I DO grit my teeth when someone uses the wrong form of “there”. :p

Chestnuts roasted by jazzy @ 01/19/2007 1:08 PM

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I believe there is a place for grammar and syntax rules. Whenever we would misbehave at the dinner table, my mom would say, “You need to learn how to act at home so you know how to act when you go out.” I feel that grammar is the same way. It’s OK to relax your standards in casual settings, like having a phone conversation with a friend or typing an e-mail to a family member (or commenting on a blog – I break rules here all the time), but you’d better make sure that when it comes time to write that resume cover letter, you know what you’re doing. When I see a business that has a glaring mistake featured prominently on its sign (such as a nearby self-storage whose sign proudly claimed for months that it was “climant controlled”), it gives the impression of a small, two-bit operation. That may be fine when I’m looking for a mom-and-pop restaurant or a little antique shop, but I’d definitely think twice if it was something like a bank (one of our larger bank chains around here had a banner in its branches: “Making the world a better place to live by.” To be fair, it was gone pretty quickly.) It’s obnoxious to be in the place where you have to watch every little thing you say (or type) because people are ready to pounce on your mistakes, but on the other hand, if your use of the language is so liberal that people have to struggle to understand what you’re trying to say, your words will most likely be disregarded, leaving you with a battle won and a war miserably lost.

Chestnuts roasted by Lori @ 01/19/2007 2:37 PM

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Ach, I dinna hae much t’say on the matter o’proper language. But my Grandmother (Mama’s Mama) spoke English as a second language. She spoke Comanche, her English came as she grew up, when she married she learned fluent Kiowa to make communication easier with the in-laws (Grandpa learned Comanche for the same reason), and knew a bit of Spanish. Her English had several examples of syntax from the primary tongue. It also sounded very formal, due to the fact she learned a lot of it from reading. What was was fun was to hear her chew somebody out in Comanche. Like German, or Klingon, you always knew when you got a good talking to when a little old Comanche Grandma set you straight. I really should take a Native Language class.

I like cereal.

Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 01/19/2007 3:55 PM

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LemurCat, I’ve always said that it’s completely ok to make up words as long as the person you’re talking to understands what you mean, especially if there’s no word to say what you want to. I even did that on a quiz for English class once and got full credit. The teacher did comment on it, though

Chestnuts roasted by snowfire @ 01/19/2007 5:11 PM

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No wonder we are a laughing stock when it comes to education Neither the internet nor the English language is exclusive to United States.

Chestnuts roasted by dohopoki @ 01/19/2007 5:15 PM

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But I’m willing to bet that in Japan kids don’t turn in papers filled with internet shorthand and call it writing, then get to do it for years and years.

Not calling Muppet Baby a liar but that is something I just have to see to believe and even if I saw it, I’d still be very skeptical that its wide spread to point that we should be alarmed.

Chestnuts roasted by dohopoki @ 01/19/2007 6:47 PM

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I don’t doubt Muppet Baby’s account at all. I believe there are plenty of teachers (not a majority, but plenty) out there who would let that kind of go in an effort to keep the students comfortable and, in theory, more receptive to the learning process. In my sister’s early elementary days, they used a program called “Writing to Read” (thankfully, they hadn’t become so “enlightened” yet when I was learning and we used phonics.) Basically, you were just supposed to write, spelling things however it seemed right to you based on the sounds you knew. The teacher didn’t correct any mistakes, all that was important is that you were getting acquainted with written communication (they didn’t want to discourage students by telling them anything was incorrect.) My sister will be 25 this year and still struggles with spelling (and sometimes reading.) Ask her if she appreciates having her little feelings spared instead of being taught how to do things correctly.

Chestnuts roasted by Lori @ 01/19/2007 10:12 PM

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I don’t like to correct anyone on their English/grammar because I live under the assumption everyone I encounter online is possibly retarded. I’d hate to make a smarmy comment to someone and then find out they suffered a stroke or have a disability.

Chestnuts roasted by Mystie @ 01/19/2007 11:51 PM

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Lori, I was taught the same way as your sister,and I am also the same age as your sister. I think that method was introduced to my age group cause my cousin in law of the same age has also been taught this way and has the same problems I do.

I know I struggle with spelling and grammer, I have Microsoft Word open every time I use the computer becuase I just know I’m going to come accross a word that I can’t spell. It’s so bad sometimes even Word can’t figure out what I’m trying to say!

That’s a huge reason why I enjoy reading x-e so much, I am in awe of someone that has great writing skills who can make me laugh and keep me interested in a subject even if I personally am not interested in it. My husband is a great writer too and I just get so jelous that he has a way to express himself in his writing.

I notice that most people here never use “lol” or “u r” and all that other annoying crap, I like it because it challenges me to keep up.

Chestnuts roasted by IHAQ @ 01/20/2007 12:28 AM

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