Tag Archives: grammar

were kiling english

27 Sep

I’ve had the impression that we’re killing English for a while now, but I usually try to keep quiet about it. As a rule, people don’t like snobs, especially the sort that tell them they are doing things incorrectly. Lately, however, I have found myself reading things on the Internet—mostly comments or blog posts by people, some of whom I very much respect—and noticing an atrocious level of grammatical error.

I was moved to action this morning as I read an extremely perceptive yet error-ridden Facebook note. Granted, that action consisted solely of complaining about the state of things on my Facebook status, but it was nevertheless action:

I’m depressed by the state of the English language as seen online. No capitalization, misspelled words and missing apostrophes (or–worse–apostrophes in the wrong places). Yes, maybe I’m a snob, but this language evolved over thousands of years and we’re killing in a tiny fraction of that. Rapid de-evolution. What can we do?

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The New York Times on Style

6 Nov

The New York Times recently published an article about style in The Times. It consisted of questions from readers and responses by editor Philip B. Corbett.  It’s well worth reading for anyone interested in grammar, style, or how to write better. One particular section summed up The Times’ style well: 

Perhaps I’m tradition-bound, but this is one quirk of Times style that I would go to some lengths to defend. We strive for a tone that is literate, civil and serious: not fussy or old-fashioned, but also not chatty or self-consciously hip. It’s not an easy balance, and we don’t always get it right. But I think the simple use of courtesy titles — whether it’s “Mr. Bush,” “Mrs. Clinton” or “Ms. Rivera, a teacher from Queens” — injects a note of thoughtfulness and civility into our pages. Amid the daily cacophony, that seems a worthy effort. 

Incidentally, a reader’s question in that section also used the word “bailiwick”. I figure it has to be a good question if it correctly uses “bailiwick”. So, go enjoy a talk with the newsroom. 

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