First, I would like to disagree with the author's point in that the "rules" of grammar are starchy and arcane. THEY'RE STARCHY AND ARCANE BECAUSE NO ONE USES THEM!
Within the last 2 weeks I have seen with my OWN eyes - the following:
Bagger's work for tips only.
(sooo the baggers are possessing the work?? Even if it said, "The bagger's work is/are for tips only" I could have excused it.)
Piano's
(There is just something about using an "s" that just FREAKS people out!)
Free Wine on Monday's
(The best part of this, is that it is in HUGE letters off the interstate on the top of a restaurant. Ok, so the best part really is that I stopped in and left a note for the manager denoting said grammatical mistake.)
Let me say again, that in no way am I trying to state that I am better than anyone else. Anyone who has read this blog even once knows that I am the world's worst speller. This is something that I could do something about - just like people learning better grammar.
Ms. Brockenbrough continues by saying that she knows these grammatical non-rules are right because, "many great authors broke them." Hmmmm - so the fact that someone in whom there should be distilled a higher sense of syntax and grammar breaks these rules shows that they don't exist? Are you joking?
Exhibit A - Chappaquiddick.
Just because someone KNOWS the laws or - heck - even helps MAKE them doesn't recuse them from breaking said laws.
Of course Jane Austin broke the rules - women like weren't even allowed to go to University back then. And Shakespeare? (If you even believe he wrote his plays - which I, by the by, do not). He didn't even go to school. His dad made gloves!
e.e. cummings only capitalized things at random! Does that mean Capitalization isn't really That important? i mean, he is after all - a literary "giant" of american History. *segue* I went to school with a guy with the last name Cummings and if I would have married him I would also be e.e. cummings. ha!
The bottom line is, just because people don't OBEY rules - doesn't mean they magically don't exist!
Within the last 2 weeks I have seen with my OWN eyes - the following:
Bagger's work for tips only.
(sooo the baggers are possessing the work?? Even if it said, "The bagger's work is/are for tips only" I could have excused it.)
Piano's
(There is just something about using an "s" that just FREAKS people out!)
Free Wine on Monday's
(The best part of this, is that it is in HUGE letters off the interstate on the top of a restaurant. Ok, so the best part really is that I stopped in and left a note for the manager denoting said grammatical mistake.)
Let me say again, that in no way am I trying to state that I am better than anyone else. Anyone who has read this blog even once knows that I am the world's worst speller. This is something that I could do something about - just like people learning better grammar.
Ms. Brockenbrough continues by saying that she knows these grammatical non-rules are right because, "many great authors broke them." Hmmmm - so the fact that someone in whom there should be distilled a higher sense of syntax and grammar breaks these rules shows that they don't exist? Are you joking?
Exhibit A - Chappaquiddick.
Just because someone KNOWS the laws or - heck - even helps MAKE them doesn't recuse them from breaking said laws.
Of course Jane Austin broke the rules - women like weren't even allowed to go to University back then. And Shakespeare? (If you even believe he wrote his plays - which I, by the by, do not). He didn't even go to school. His dad made gloves!
e.e. cummings only capitalized things at random! Does that mean Capitalization isn't really That important? i mean, he is after all - a literary "giant" of american History. *segue* I went to school with a guy with the last name Cummings and if I would have married him I would also be e.e. cummings. ha!
The bottom line is, just because people don't OBEY rules - doesn't mean they magically don't exist!
1 comment:
I hope I'm not the only person interested in this topic. Grammar is so important! I share your disgust with people not knowing how to use a possesive "s". Ugh!
Maybe you can help me out with one such example. At church I help out in the Four and Five's Class. I do believe I'm the only person at church that refers to it as such. I always hear people say the title as the Four's and Five's Class. Am I right about this?
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