Cato's Grammar Grumble

Started by Cato, February 08, 2009, 05:00:18 PM

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Cato

Amen to Franco and Superman!

Quote from: Joe Barron on September 16, 2009, 09:14:57 AM
For example, "They swam nude" makes much more sense than "They swam nudely," which is just pretentious. (Jim Harrison used the latter constuction in his novel Dalva, and I almost threw the book across the room.)

And rightly so!

Your anecdote reminded me of a novel by John Gardner, a minor novelist who was big in the 70's and 80's for his novel Grendel.  (One of his novels, whose premise sounds great, and could have been great, was called Freddy's Book, but Gardner failed to carry it off.)

Anyway, the word he used was "sillily"  :o    :o    :o   and that stopped my eyes from reading one word more.

Now, yes, the word can be found in the dictionary.  Yes, it is technically correct.

But Cato is not so doctrinaire that he will not make exceptions!   0:)   

Musically the word "sillily" is a catastrophe: it should be avoided.  You can use it only for a flower in front of a window: otherwise cast it out where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth!   >:D
"Meet Miss Ruth Sherwood, from Columbus, Ohio, the Middle of the Universe!"

- Brian Aherne introducing Rosalind Russell in  My Sister Eileen (1942)

Cato

Quote from: owlice on September 16, 2009, 09:41:50 AM
I think Davis's looks just fine in that sentence. Why people get all bent out of shape about the letter s[/i], I do not know. It wants to be treated with the same respect given other letters! Let it have its apostrophe s!!

The letter "S" is all bent!  Maybe it wants to be an I !   8)
"Meet Miss Ruth Sherwood, from Columbus, Ohio, the Middle of the Universe!"

- Brian Aherne introducing Rosalind Russell in  My Sister Eileen (1942)

karlhenning

Quote from: Cato on September 16, 2009, 09:43:28 AM
Musically the word "sillily" is a catastrophe: it should be avoided.

QFT

karlhenning

Quote from: Cato on September 16, 2009, 09:45:20 AM
The letter "S" is all bent!

Yes, but you don't realize all the pressure it's under!

Egebedieff

Quote from: owlice on September 16, 2009, 09:41:50 AM
I think Davis's looks just fine in that sentence. Why people get all bent out of shape about the letter s, I do not know. It wants to be treated with the same respect given other letters! Let it have its apostrophe s!!
Hogarth gave s the highest respect:


'

Joe Barron

The use of 's for the possessive of a noun ending in s is, as with so many things, more a matter of style and consistency than correct or incorrect grammar. Strunk and White advocate using apostrophe-s in all cases, such as Charles's and Ives's, except those in which it will sound as bad as sillily, such as Moses's. AP, on the other hand, insists on using the apostrophe only, without a second s. It's a matter of preference. In personal writing, I prefer the apostrophe s.

To sound bad is another example of an adjective following a verb. It sounds better than "It sounds badly."

Joe Barron

Quote from: Cato on September 16, 2009, 08:48:34 AM
Oh, don't get me started!!!   8)

Everybody here knows "different from" is the correct phrase! 

I was always taught it was "to differ from" but you are different than. From makes more sense to me, though.

Egebedieff

#827
We need a word for when someone posts a response that was already covered on the previous page. Perhaps we could trade in healthily. '

karlhenning

Quote from: Joe Barron on September 16, 2009, 11:20:30 AM
To sound bad is another example of an adjective following a verb. It sounds better than "It sounds badly."

Thanks, an obvious ensample!  Just goes to show how desperately I needed caffeine this ack emma  8)

Joe Barron

Quote from: k a rl h e nn i ng on September 16, 2009, 11:44:08 AM
Thanks, an obvious ensample!  Just goes to show how desperately I needed caffeine this ack emma  8)

Now that I think about it, I realize that verbs dealing with sense impressions or appearance take adjectives rather than adverbs. Things look, sound, feel, taste and smell good, rather than well. It may be that the sensory verbs substitue for the verb to be and take the adjective accordingly. We are describing the thing, rather than any real action.

Cato

Quote from: ' on September 17, 2009, 02:01:20 PM
It is because these words are just short of being the "to be" verbs, which would take a predicate adjective. Sometimes it is perception and sometimes it is a situation where you can't claim something to be fact and use a "to be" verb.

If you are sure he is sick, you can say "He is sick." Otherwise, you say "He looked sick."

"The situation is bad." looks/seems/appears/sounds

"Her dress looked blue."
'

Very nice explanation!

An example I give to my students:  "He feels badly" would mean that the nerves in his fingertips are short-circuiting.   :o
"Meet Miss Ruth Sherwood, from Columbus, Ohio, the Middle of the Universe!"

- Brian Aherne introducing Rosalind Russell in  My Sister Eileen (1942)

Harpo

Notoriety when used to mean fame
If music be the food of love, hold the mayo.

karlhenning


owlice

Quoteirregardless

Oh, dear God!

owlice

No, it was the thud of a Owl, passed out cold from shock!!

karlhenning

Has anyone here handled an actual lorgnette?  I ask only for information  0:)


karlhenning

Quote from: MN Dave on September 21, 2009, 09:44:31 AM
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/booknews/6194031/The-Lost-Symbol-and-The-Da-Vinci-Code-author-Dan-Browns-20-worst-sentences.html

Marvelous! Thanks, Dave!

Quote from: Tom ChiversA silhouette with white hair and pink irises stood chillingly close but 15 feet away. What's wrong with this picture?

And Brown mistaking the Amazon for el Río de la Plata. Might as well talk about Denver's wharves on the Mississippi.

And only "a keen eye would notice" those "large diamonds."

Crikey. You can both write idiotically, and be a best-selling author.

Florestan

Quote from: MN Dave on September 21, 2009, 09:44:31 AM
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/booknews/6194031/The-Lost-Symbol-and-The-Da-Vinci-Code-author-Dan-Browns-20-worst-sentences.html

Excellent, Dave! Thanks for posting it. :)

I might add that these are only examples of his execrable prose. Should we start to examine his history, religion and art related gaffes?

As JR Ewing used to say, if you look up in dictionary "bad writer" you encounter Dan Brown's picture. ;D
Every kind of music is good, except the boring kind. — Rossini

karlhenning

Quote from: Florestan on September 21, 2009, 10:04:59 AM
I might add that these are only examples of his execrable prose. Should we start to examine his history, religion and art related gaffes?

No! You don't want to shatter a Certain Someone's languorous, faun-like dreams! He thinks everything that Dan Brown wrote is so true!!